So who do u tip??
 

See if i went to a restaurant i'd probably expect the waiter to take the tip unless the tip jar was at the till then u automatically assume it gets shared out. but i'd never heard of the tips that had been given to a specific waiter would be put into a central pot and shared out.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

Don't know about the UK but in the US its common for wait staff to pool the tips , in sit down, tablecloth places (not Starbucks they are just a take away coffee shop) they usually divi up between the bus-boys (the guys who clear and set up the tables between customers, faster turn around of customers means more tips) and bar staff , you order a drink , you want it now , don't want to wait for a lazy ass bartender to finish a conversation with a punter at the bar. Usually the blond bimbo who seats you isn't included in the pool (her talents are usually reserved for the management) .
Also seating plays a role in the amount of 'tip' a waiter/tress recieves , a group seated next to a window generally gives more than the table seated in the back next to toilet or kitchen traffic , so it seems only fair the fast/good table waiters share the rewards with the folks stuck waiting on the slow/crap tables.
Also , without wanting to sound racist, some ethnic goups are notorious for not tipping/stiffing waitstaff.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

I dont imagine that anyone is legally entitled to a tip, and if you decide to give someone money without contractual ties (and I think we can safely say that the act of slipping few quid to underpaid staff for their good service falls within this definition) then I dont see how you can start treating it as an entitlement. Its goodwill. I know some companies have tried to formalise this by intimating on menus etc that you have to pay it, which is a little naughty. Some companies have even gone as far as including tips as part of staff salaries (i.e. paying them less because they get tips), which I think is really naughty.

I tend to tip like everyone else I assume, by rewarding good service.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

I used to tip in restaurants, depending on the service, don't go out for meals much these days. I don't agree with a compulsory service charge, it should be up to the individual. I always tip taxi drivers especially on the home journey, as I rely on taxies not driving these days, or walking for that matter:rolleyes:

Re: So who do u tip??
 

Tipping is an integral part of the US service culture. It is assumed, for tax purposes, that wait staff will get at least 8%, and are taxed accordingly. Most service industry staff make minimum wage and survive off the tips that they receive. It took some time to get used to - particularly for my dad. My best friend used to be a waiter at a high end place in the coastal resort city where we lived and he used to dread Europeans eating, as they could run up a $500 tab pretty easily and leave a $10 tip. With the taxation rules, he would be taxed assuming they left a $40 tip which means he would owe the tax man money out of his minimum wage for those guys. He was also responsible to "hitting up" his bus boys and back waiters - the people that fill your water and clean your plates - from his tip stack.

The Starbucks case was pretty simple. Most service industries like a coffee shop have a tip jar on the counter. My wife has a simple rule - if the barista spells her name on her cup correctly, she will leave a dollar. Company policy is that if you place a tip in the common jar that it should be split between the staff equally based on the hours worked. A California law prohibits supervisory and managerial staff from sharing in the tips when tip sharing occurs. Thats what Starbucks did wrong.

My general experience is that customer service in the US is superior than customer service in the UK, although the UK has significantly improved over the years that I have lived in the US. I think it is due, in large part, to the tipping culture. I typically tip between 15 and 20 percent of my bill if I am eating out.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

i always tip the bar staff on the first drink
i find that i can get better service next time i go to the
crowded bar
is this a tip or a bribe ?;)

Re: So who do u tip??
 

i dont tip anybody tips were for before the minimum wage ,to subsidise the staff so the owners of the establishment could maximise profit......nobody tips me so why should i tip them:hehetable

Re: So who do u tip??
 

And that sentence is an excellent reason for everyone in the UK to stop tipping immediately!! We have followed the US far too much and usually it has been to our detriment.

Another reason for not tipping is; do we believe that service staff should be reliant on charity for their survival? They are working and should be treated like any other workers, given a decent wage and some self respect.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

yes they should Polly, but there not, so i always tip good service.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

But don't you think that just perpetuates the situation?

And as for giving to a 'tips box' I know at least one major chain where that money is just put to the Christmas Party fund, which no doubt the company claims tax relief on

Re: So who do u tip??
 

it might perpetuate it, but these people are tryin to get by off peanuts, they aint livin off the state, some have families, n not tipping will not change a thing,

Re: So who do u tip??
 

not tipping eans that the ones that are trying to keep families will move on to other jobs or provide such bad service customers stop going and employers have to re-think.

It is hard but the only way in a free market econnomy

Re: So who do u tip??
 

now i know where yer comin from n it aint about not tipping.:rolleyes:

Re: So who do u tip??
 

Prey, do tell me? I think you may be reading things that are not written

Re: So who do u tip??
 

I should think that service staff should be reliant on giving good service for their survival. Good service = bigger tips. No worker should be "given" anything, it should be earned. My mate the waiter earned approximately $7 an hour from his wage, and probably $50 an hour from his tips. Ask ANY food service employee in the US whether they would prefer the English or the US system and a guarantee you they would prefer the latter. I worked for a short time in the limo business, and still tell stories about $1000 tips on two separate occasions that I worked REALLY REALLY hard to get.

Having lived in both Accrington and the US for about equal amounts of time, and come back to visit on a regular basis, there are many things that suck about the US, but their service culture isn't one of them. What I would give for the NHS, the UK education system and some critical thinking capability in the USA. However, don't assume that everything that comes from the USA sucks.

It took my dyed in the wool Lancastrian dad forever to get the tipping system. Its just different, and part of the culture, but would take generations to be adopted in the UK, and would die in the process as no-one would work in food service because they would simply make minimum wage.

At the end of the day, eating out in the US is cheaper, because workers aren't "given" a wage, they get the opportunity to earn a tip by offering good service. Tip comes from the acronym - "To Insure Promptness".

Re: So who do u tip??
 

thats why seeing you asked, anyone that thinks people can just move on to other jobs is either dumb or making excuses n i dont think yer dumb. i can say that easily cos ive have had first hand experience, also i know a couple of people who have been looking for work for nearly 5 months now, also many people no matter how poorly paid would never dream of providing bad service.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

The question is not if the US or UK levels of service is better. The important question is if in a civillised society wo9rkers should have to rely on charity to live.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

The way I see it it is not charity you are just tipping good service. It is optional in the UK but appears that in other countries a part of the wage.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

At the cafe I work at we aren't allowed to accept tips - they assume we're stealing from the till.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

That speaks volumes to me, what happened to trust?

Re: So who do u tip??
 

God knows we sell overpriced bought-in-frozen crap and still manage serve it. At least we get slightly above minimum wage for the pleasure.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

You should still be allowed to accept tips. Wouldn't like to work in an enviroment where there was no trust.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

Anyone working in a service job dealing with the public deserves a tip ... go thro' a drive through for a cup of Tim Horton's finest ($1.50 for an extra large 4x4) don't take the change from a tooney ... in a restaurant, tip depends on the level of service ... always tip a cabbie esp. if he is pouring you home safely from the pub ... if it is -20c, tip the guy who fills your gas tank. It's not charity, and not tipping does not improve the level of pay service industry workers receive. People who don't tip are cheap.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

Welcome to communism.

The question is ABSOLUTELY is the level of service better. That is how economics works. The free market dictates where people want to spend their money, and the darwinism takes care of those that don't provide good service. And those who don't wish to be part of the service industry reward mechanism are free to go get a job as a clerical worker for the government where service is not the greatest.

Should sales people be paid commissions? Should a company that performs well pay its workers a bonus based on the profits of the company? Do people work harder knowing that harder work results in more money?

The last time i went to ASDA, and it was a while ago, I was taken aback that I had to pack my own bags, and they didn't help me to my car with my groceries. That costs me two or three bucks from my change if the person goes to my car with me, I don't always but many older people do. If the 16 year old that does that can do it that 10 times an hour, he makes $30 per hour, on a 4 hour shift, he can make 60 quid even with the crappy exchange rate. He works 3 days a week after school, and a full day on Saturday, and he is taking home £300 a week. He has to work hard, and probably run back to the store but is making a tidy income for a kid.

Eric, I get your point, and Canada and the US have much in common when it comes to the tipping mentality. It just isn't prevalent in the UK, as many people, like Polly, see it as charity. And thats ok, because, I would assume, wages are higher to compensate, and the food is more expensive because its built into the price of the food, in the instance of the eating establishment. I just think its uncivilised not to tip in the US or Canada if you understand the economics of the service industry in the US or Canada, and therefore the performance-based reward of staff results in better service.

That being said, my point still sticks, Tipping a La USA will never work in the UK.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

GOD bless AMERICA And the Pricks that live there:hidewall::hidewall:

Re: So who do u tip??
 

I'm sure that was rather difficult to type at 3am while drunk off your head after a quality night at the Hope and Anchor. I appreciate Polly who can structure a logical argument to a discourse even though I don't agree with her. The three seconds it took to read your indepth analysis of my post, is three seconds i'll never get back. Shame really.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

seems to me , that the service in restaurants in northern Europe (Germany/Austria/Denmark) is better than the US or the UK , and tipping is not required the reason over there it is seen as a profession ( the staff are paid a decent wage with all benefits) and its not just a temp job until something better comes along ( yep, like you really are an unemployed actor waiting or the big role).

I will add one thing ....Americans are the biggest cry-babies when it comes to illegal aliens/undocumented immigrants but 80% of all eating places are depenant on this labor for back kitchen staff and I don't see many of us complaining about this when we are stuffing our faces

re. note about an earlier post about bag-boys and US supermarkets , not all US supermarkets have this service ,(guess it depends on your Zip/post code and if you don't mind paying the hiked up prices for the service) though most do bag the groceries for you and help senior citizens out to the car.
Most of the bag-boys I see running around the supermarket car parks are usually retriving the shopping carts abandoned next to the parking slots by fat lazy ass shoppers too lazy to return the carts to the slots near the doors

Re: So who do u tip??
 

You can count to 3 well you must have been with Jethro in the 12TH GRADE
Hope and Anchor Lost?
:mosher:

Re: So who do u tip??
 

I used to work in a restaurant many years ago and what we used to do was the waitresses used to pool the tips and then split it between everyone - so then the cooks and the washer uppers etc would get a share. The manageress and the supervisors didnt get any - even if they waited on tables because they got paid more. The waitresses got a higher percentage of the tips than the washer uppers and the cooks got more than the washer uppers but less than the waitresses. The waitresses were the ones on the front line getting the earache from the customers or the compliments.

If i go out for a meal i dont always leave a tip - it depends on the service i receive and the standard of the food i will say this though most of the time i do leave a tip. Some places nowadays add it in. I would prefer it not to be added in - that way i can leave what i think is right. Been known to tip taxi drivers - depends if i got home safe and if they drove safely. I have even been known to ring a taxi firm up and complain about the driver.

Whats wrong with going to asda and packing your own bags that way you know they are packed right - heavy stuff at the bottom - light stuff at the top. Eggs at the top, spuds at the bottom.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

If you are trying to be smart - at least get it right. The quote is "FIFTH grade". That would be funny, as Jethro was 18 but had to be in class with 11 year olds. 12th grade is 2nd year at sixth form college where normal 18 year olds are. I was in 12th grade 4 A levels at Sandy Lane. That's the street with the Swan at the bottom. Where they serve you copious amounts of alcohol and you don't bother to tip the barstaff.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

Nothing wrong with it at all. My point was I had become used to the level of service I get in the US.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

Sorry you have misread me. I did not mean to imply that anyone can change jobs easily, but those on the bottom rungs of the ladder in the resaurant trade/pub trade do have an above average chance as this is where many of the unskilled job vacancies occur.
When a national minimum wage is enforced on employers, employees often change jobs rapidly as it is easy to earn the min wage from Grotty Employer 1 as from Grotty Employer 2. This results in low levels of reliability and effort. Try any suitable job consultant in Accrington and they will have a drawer full of bar vacancies therefore making it relatively easiy for dissatisfied employees to move on.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

No, anyone who works in the service industry deserves a decent wage, anyone who thinks they should live off 'donations' is being cheap and denying other people their human rights and self respect. Tipping supports a corrupt system and aids only the fat cat employers.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

i agree entirely they deserve a decent wage, but that is not the reality, n not tipping em,will not make the slightest differance to that fact. everyone i think would love a perfect world, but none will live to see it.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

when i go to any were for a meal i ask the waiting staff who gets the tips if they say manergerment then i dont tip .if they keep there own or share i will tip

Re: So who do u tip??
 

My replies are above in bold

Re: So who do u tip??
 

It seems as if you equate tipping with charity ... and while I agree that people in the service sector deserve a decent wage, tipping is not a "donation," nor charity, it is a gratuity. If one follows and allows your argument, it seems as if one must punish the underpaid worker by not tipping in order to sent a "message" to the employer! Don't throw a crust to the starving man; let his starvation act as a beacon to the crusaders of social justice. Point is, and this is only opinion, one can tip and work to improve the system at the same time.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

the Chambers Dictionary defines charity as "the donation of goods, money etc to those in need: alms or alms giving:" Not my definition.
If we don't tip, ultimately we 'punish' not the employee but the employer as staff will soon move to other jobs offering better wages or better conditions and the service sector has a large pool of unfilled vacancies so it is not that they can not do so. Ultimately, to survive the employer would have to improve pay and conditions.
So each time you tip you stop the employee obtaining better pay and conditions therefore supporting a corrupt system.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

If I've had good service I leave a tip that applies to restaurants and taxis, I do prefer it to be optional though. A few years ago in New York we were checking out of the hotel and one bellboy put our cases in a room for us, so we tipped him, then the one bringing them back wanted a tip as well and had the cheek to ask for it, we were stood right next to the room so all he really did was open the door and pick up our case, I just didn't like his cheek, next time I go to the US I'll take loads of $1 bills cause we were tipping $5+ for even the smallest service (it was worth more then too).

Re: So who do u tip??
 

its a simple equation to me, yer either a tight sod or yer not.:D

Re: So who do u tip??
 

Real life is rarely that simple remember for every action there is a re-action

Re: So who do u tip??
 

I was the manager of a local bistro not to long ago and when I first started working there the tips were pooled in a jar, then I noticed some of the waitress' wernt pulling the weight, just happy to stand by and take the pot at the end of the day, well that wasnt gonna happen on my planet...so I arranged a 'meeting' and told them what I thought...

"were gonna have a 2 week trial...i see girls here that work their guts out and get really good tips while some of you just smirk and take take take at the end of the day...get out there and smile, make the customers feel welcome, talk as if you know them, and see what difference it makes"

After a lot of snidy remarks they got to it, (had to sack one or two though for pocketing) and what a remarkable change!

Re: So who do u tip??
 

Nice theory ... so, if I believe that it is disgraceful that food banks are needed in a country as rich as Canada, and that Govt. not local charitable donations should make sure that the poor have enough to eat, I should not donate to food banks. The govt. hearing the pleas of the starving, and the cries of the hungry kids would step in, with the help of big money capitalism, and solve the problem by ensuring a more equitable distribution of the national wealth ... mmmm, let's think about that one.

I would forget about dictionary definitions; The Canadian comedian David Steinberg, after reading that a dictionary defined "bulls**t" as "nonesense", observed that "to define 'bulls**t' as 'nonsense' is bulls**t"

Re: So who do u tip??
 

Who was it who said

A country can always be judge on how it treats it most vulnerable members of society?

If you believe that you need food banks in Canada things must be in a right state!

Re: So who do u tip??
 

We should not need food banks in Canada, but we do. There is more than enough wealth in this country, yet like all rich countries, much of that wealth is concentrated in a relatively small number of hands. We are not as bad as some countries, but it is immoral that in a Country as rich as ours anyone should go hungry, or not have adequate shelter. However, I still hold to the point that one has to help the poor with charity at the same time as working to change the system.

Re: So who do u tip??
 

Perhaps if you stopped paying for the LT Govenour or the Govenour General or whoever you could afford your poor?

Re: So who do u tip??
 

c'mon: you know it doesn't work that way .... you don't change the accidentals; you change the substantives. It's that simple; and that difficult:confused:

Re: So who do u tip??
 

when I worked in the restaurant trade I was taxed assuming that I made a certain amount. Working as I always have to the very best of my ability no matter what teh job I could earn a decent amount when I worked in one place but at another the service culture was different and tips were a fraction of the first place. The service I gave was no different yet the impact to me was significant. Whilst there was no 'rule' to share tips I had agreements with some of the other staff where we would share our tips as a way of 'smoothing' those rough days with the good ones. I would also often buy the chef a pint or three if I'd had a good shift, I worked on the principle that look after those who can look after you. always seemed to work for me.

Service is not a 'dead end' job. it used to annoy me those business types that would treat you like something they stood in for no more than being a waiter. yet the decent folk were those who pulled up in some huge expensive car wearing suits costing more than I earned in a month but still took time of day to have a proper conversation and appreciate what you do for them. it wasn't always about money either. A genuine "Thank you" said with sincerity was worth something to me in that I knew I had done a good job.

Is UK culture better than US? no, its different. why is the "British Butler" seen as the ultimate in service if we are so bad at it.

I usually tip unless there has beena reason not to, bad food, poor service etc. Usually working on between 5 and 10% of the bill as a measure. If service has been included I ask if it goes to the staff, if it doesn't I take it off and give the staff cash. I've already paid for my food as part of the bill along with a percentage to cover wages etc, service is about how they have made me feel.

One lovely story is when Julie and I were in the IOM at the TT one year. We went in the restaurant owned by the celeb chef whose name escapes me just now. we were early so had a drink in the bar. as we were on hols at a bikers do we had jeans, T shirt etc on. Just before the restaurant opened a group of business men in suits came in. we all went up to the rest and started looking at menus. The Maitre D was clearly faffing round the business men whilst we were left to sit and read the menu in peace. when he took the orders the business men all ordered the tea time 'special' cheap deal, Julie and I ordered full a la carte with a VERY nice bottle of plonk. It was quite amusing to see his attention switch to the point that they sometimes stuggled to get more drinks whilst we didn't even touch our bottle of wine as he was there to freshen our glasses at the mereast hint that we needed it. First impressions were clearly wrong on that day :D