So who do u tip??

[mani]

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.

A US judge has ordered Starbucks to repay its California coffee-makers more than $100m (£50m) in tips that were paid to shift supervisors. San Diego Superior Court Judge Patricia Cowett said the coffee-makers - "baristas" - were entitled to $86m in back tips, plus interest.
She issued an injunction banning supervisors from sharing future tips.

[steeljack]

Originally Posted by mani

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.

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.

[MikeSz]

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.

[jaysay]

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

[Gareth]

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.

[beechy]

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 ?

[cmonstanley]

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

[polly]

Originally Posted by Gareth

Tipping is an integral part of the US service culture.

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.

[cashman]

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

[polly]

Originally Posted by cashman

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

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

[cashman]

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,

[polly]

Originally Posted by cashman

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,

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

[cashman]

Originally Posted by polly

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

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

[polly]

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

[Gareth]

Originally Posted by polly

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.

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".