An op-ed in the Washington Post today complains about all those touchscreen apps asking how much of a tip you want to leave:
Tipping is now out of control. Gratuity prompts have become so widespread and indiscriminate that a new study from the Pew Research Center shows it is causing mass confusion and frustration.
....The easy-to-tap buttons for 10, 15, 20 percent — in Los Angeles, often 30 percent! — have put tipping on autopilot. It may spare us the awkward math, but it also erases the pause for appreciation. The presence of a watchful employee has turned the act of tipping, even for subpar or no service, into a reflex rather than a reflection. We often tip simply to end the transaction, and businesses bank on that.
I've heard this complaint before and I don't get it. I don't consider these screens to be a demand for a tip, just a routine thing at places that run partly on tips. If my transaction isn't the kind of thing I'd normally tip for, I just press "No Tip" and finish up. Is that really so hard?
But maybe I'm just heartless. How about the rest of you? Do you find these screens sort of intimidating, as if you're expected to tip in every conceivable situation these days?
I've delivered pizza, part-time, for decades. Tips were a necessity, as only in this last year have I made minimum wage (almost $14) as a base. I still like getting tips, as the gas and wear-and-tear allowance is absurdly low -- but I now resent tip jars and touch screens at take-out counters which take far less effort than restaurant serving. Does this make me a monster?
I hate the screens. Most of my interactions with this screen involve no work at all on the part of the cashier. While the screen does not demand a tip, you have to get past that page before you can sign the receipt. [And why are we required to physically sign? Even if you don't leave a tip]. My 2 cents tip.
In places where I used to throw a buck in the tip jar I now press the 10% button, yeah. If 10% isn’t available I won’t tip in those situations. I’m a generous tipper in situations where it appears genuine effort is involved or it’s a personal service.
Yeah. I have to admit that I feel like the screen shames me into giving something when nothing is really warranted by the amount of effort required on the part of the server. . Particularly if it is a place I go to frequently.
“ Do you find these screens sort of intimidating?”
Intimidating? Of course not. It’ll be a cold day in Hell when I’ll be intimidated by words put up on an impersonal computer screen by an anonymous programmer.
But annoying? You betcha!
I think you are missing something here…the intimidating part isn’t the “ask” from the computer screen…it’s the person at the register that you’re worried might judge you harshly if you don’t leave a tip that’s the (possibly) intimidating part
Especially if you pay before your food is made.
(1) You are somewhat heartless... what I like about you.
(2) We're now presented with the option to tip in places where it wasn't expected before, which throws some people.
(3) The options are sometimes ludicrous, e.g. 30%, which also throws people.
(4) I have heard from some businesses that the tipping options are built into the transaction software and are hard to disable. Believe that as you will.
(5) It seems like more folks behind the counter are now verbally stressing that a tip is optional. So there's greater awareness that the screen is making people uncomfortable.
Maybe the tip screen are unavoidable in some apps, but the wide variation in options suggests they are customizable, and I've used screens where I wanted to tip but the opportunity didn't come up.
See also: adding a tip option after an automatic gratuity has already been calculated.
It’s borderline fraud, imho.
I’m not bothered by the screens. If I don’t think a tip is warranted, I don’t tip. Not a big deal. At a restaurant, or wherever the employees income might depend on tips in addition to the hourly wage, of course I tip at least 20%, unless something went glaringly wrong.
The opportunity to tip came up today and it took me a while to find the no tip option - take out a cup of cafe americano, not bloody likely.
I got into the habit of tipping more and in more situations during the pandemic. I've started scaling it back. I do appreciate the tip screens in some places (like baristas) where I wanted to tip but never have cash.
I worry about ordering take-out online and not tipping "sufficiently." I don't want them to spit in the food. I do resent feeling pressured to tip for take-out the same as sit-down.
My thoughts exactly. Sort of feel extorted.
Just to say the words - whoever makes your take-out order is unlikely to have any idea who paid for it, how much was paid, or if a tip was given. They simply make the order that comes up next.
FWIW, I think this fear of people spitting in your food is exaggerated. We treated every takeout customer the same when I was a restaurant server. Partly because we didn't have time to get angry at the zero tips, and partly because zero tip for takeout is still quite common. Even those who do tip are typically only giving 10%. The real money for restaurant servers is sit-down customers.
I think what is behind this annoyance is that it's happening at places where the employees are paid regular wages, not tipped wages, and so it feels like an economic assault - where employers (capitalists) are trying to shift the cost of doing business (wages) onto customers in a stealthy way without raising sticker prices.
But people don't know how to verbalize that complex idea, so it comes out as simply an expression of annoyance with tip screens.
I will not tip in places where it is not traditional. I will not support employers pushing more their labor costs onto customer whim.
Would love to see tipping everywhere go away, but I know that won't happen.
Agreed!
Would love to see tipping everywhere go away, but I know that won't happen.
I think there's a place for a gratuity system in the restaurant sector—at least in full service restaurants. But I'd strongly prefer that system to consist of a flat, fully transparent service fee added to the bill.
But tip creep is a real thing, and it's been picking up steam in the US. To me it just seems to coursen daily life. Everyone's constantly got their hand out looking for cash or is fumbling for their wallet to search for cash (figuratively speaking, of course; it's substantially electronic these days).
Whatever happened to a decent wage, and doing a good job because of taking pride in one's work?
Reaganomics
But I'd strongly prefer that system to consist of a flat, fully transparent service fee added to the bill.
I'd strongly prefer that it just get rolled into the listed price rather than being a separate fee.
I'd strongly prefer that it just get rolled into the listed price rather than being a separate fee.
Yes. That would be better still.
When this first became a thing during the pandemic I was happy to add a tip for any business that was likely struggling. I still will tip if it's an ultra small business where I think it might actually be needed to keep the doors open. But I have long since gotten over being intimidated and tap the No Tip option with no sense of guilt in most other situations. I think in time most people will get there as well.
That's roughly where I am. When COVID was roaring and small businesses, especially, struggling, I made a point of leaving a nice fat tip even for pickup. I still tip well, but I've cut back a bit, and I won't leave a tip for a simple counter purchase. (I have exceptions. I always tip the lady at the bakery.)
Tipping was always complex. If you got your hair done, you were supposed to tip, but not if you had your hair done by the person who owned the salon. I'm old enough to remember when restaurant credit card forms had a tip for the waiter and a separate tip for the captain. One of my oldest memories is my mother lifting me up so I could leave a $5 tip for Arthur, our mailman. My current USPS mail people have told me that tipping isn't allowed.
I don't tip for takeout, and it annoys (not intimidates) me whenever I get confronted by one of those screens in situations where tipping is traditionally not expected -- as recently as when I picked up lunch yesterday and and dinner tonight. (In the latter case, I'm pretty sure that the guy behind the counter who handed me the bag with my meal is a co-owner of the restaurant.) Mostly it reminds me that as a society we ought to get rid of tipping as an expectation and in turn require that waitstaff be fully covered by minimum wage laws and similar protections.
I don't tip for takeout, and it annoys (not intimidates) me whenever I get confronted by one of those screens in situations
I'm too much of a softy. I generally throw a buck in the tip jar if I pick up take out. But I won't be bullied into tipping electronically.
If I lived in the US, I'd have to be diligent about always keeping a supply of dollar bills on me at all times.
I was not intimidated, but amused, at a request for a tip "for the person who packs your order" at an online retailer.
I find that far more dispiriting than amusing. There are all kinds of stories now about service workers of every stripe being set up by their employers for wage subsidization (tipping). Repairmen. Installation crews. Pet groomers. Cleaners. Even on occasion teachers (not making that up; in high end NYC kindergartens this is now apparently a thing). Kevin seems very nonchalant about this phenomenon, but I I think the US is rapidly approaching the point where a flat majority of the hourly customer service workforce derives a significant part of its compensation from the opaque, gray zone tipping sphere. It's so tawdry and coarsening.
I live in a state where the minimum wage is comparatively high. I don’t tip at Starbucks anymore but do feel obligated to tip at takeout restaurants. Who am I tipping and why? I need to stop feeling obligated in these situations.
Generally I use a card for everything, but I keep small bills in my purse to pay a tip, when it’s deserved, and hand it to the server. I know they actually get the tip.
It doesn't come up for me. I would tip for sit down restaurants, not for takeout. Given my wife's weak health, I don't eat in sit down restaurants any more and do curbside pickup for most of my local shopping. We do not do fast food of any sort, so that doesn't occur either. I see no need to tip for standard service, but have told my wife to tip rather generously for her hair stylist. (and she does wear a N95). My wife crew cuts my hair every few weeks so I don't have that issue.
I err on the side of tipping, even for middling service, because people have to make a living, and management (bless their greedy little hearts) pays people a pittance assuming that folks will make it up in tips. I resent being put in this position, but it doesn't rank that high among the things I'd change about the world.
How about the rest of you? Do you find these screens sort of intimidating, as if you're expected to tip in every conceivable situation these days?
I find America's tipping culture utterly out of control. I miss many things about the USA on a daily basis. Tipping ain't one of them. Others no doubt will vary.
Screen asks? Eh, whatever. But always tip the band.
I know a few musicians, and the only place around here that pays musicians decently is the city government, to their credit.
Folks rail on "businesses" for furthering tip creep. But smaller businesses are caught up in the system like everyone else. Once ubiquitous tipping becomes entrenched, workers expect it. If you don't set up tip screens (or at minimum allow tip jars) those workers will go elsewhere.
Larger businesses as usual are more of a culprit. McDonald's, God bless 'em, doesn't allow tipping, per their website. Starbucks could follow the same policy. But Howard Schultz can't stomach the thought of dying with only a 10 figure net worth.
The screens don’t intimidate me. I always tip only in cash, to avoid the bank fees. Now, ordering online is troublesome. I assume that if I don’t tip online (cause I prefer to tip in person), my food won’t be at its best, if you know what I mean, when I pick it up. At least DoorDash is being honest about the effect of tips.
Now, ordering online is troublesome. I assume that if I don’t tip online (cause I prefer to tip in person), my food won’t be at its best
Yeah. This is absolutely maddening. Tipping is supposedly a reward for good service, right? How do you know in advance whether you're going to receive good service?
(Not to mention the fact that, twenty years ago tipping for takeout was comparatively rare, and 40 years ago it was virtually unheard of. Tip creep in action!).
My favorite is getting mediocre service and then having the snooty waiter hover over you to see what percentage option you choose.
I hate this movement to ask for tips everywhere on a screen. I do feel a bit shamed into tipping. After all, I am now comfortably retired, and these workers are making minimum wage. I almost always just click 15 or 20%. If I was younger and had kids at home, I likely would not do that. However, the fact they do so little to earn a tip just makes no sense. Why not tip every service worker you encounter then? Where does it end?
Tips should be for workers like waiters/waitresses in restaurants who interact with you for an extended period, and if they do their jobs well you have a better experience. Also, tips are a great motivator for them to put in the effort. I remember eating dinner in Finland a few years ago where there are no tips in restaurants, and the waiter sort of disappeared for long periods. I actually had to go find him sometimes. He would be very friendly as if this is perfectly normal. I guess we were all just hanging out, and he would drop by with some food and stuff at his convenience. Experiences like this make me think tipping in restaurants is a good arrangement.
There was a restauranteer blogger who eliminated tipping. I can't find the link, but some of the points he made:
* The correlation between tips and quality of service is low, so if you think servers who do a better job should be paid more, tipping is a poor way to accomplish that.
* The best servers focus on providing good customer service rather than worrying about their tips.
* A compensation system where employee compensation depends in part on physical attractiveness--in particular one that gives a boost to young, sexually attractive females--is ethically questionable and bad for employee morale.
* Tipping can create perverse incentives--for example a server who provides poor service to four tables will better compensated than a server who provides good service to three.
There's more, but the bottom line is that his goal was to provide a good customer experience, and he found that the practice of tipping made that harder to do.
Perverse is allotting uneven tables.
Is the prompt appearing before, or after one has received the goods or service? ...
I like them. I hate having to scrounge for cash so the minimum wage worker gets a tip.
The other thing that sucks is that some apps correctly calculate the tip on the pre-tax cost, and others calculate the tip on the post-tax total. Having to check the math removes the major advantage-to-the-consumer of the app.
Just back from Europe, and these apps really muddy the waters there. In many countries, Netherlands and Germany eg, service has traditionally been included in the menu price and no tip is necessary. So these apps seem to be pressuring customers into leaving a large tip anyway, even when the service is supposed to be included.
And is service included now or not? Hard to figure. In Amsterdam, I will follow the traditional practice of leaving five percent for an exceptional experience, nothing for an ordinary one. However, I'm sure many American tourists will leave the usual 20 percent tip and complain about how expensive their meal was when they have effectively tipped twice.
The tip screen is usually presented by some poor scrub worker you feel bad saying "no i won't give you money" so I hate them because it is corps taling advantage of human deceny right in your face.