Tipping Culture

Tipping Culture 

Tipping culture is a very polarising topic, it can vary dramatically from culture to culture, venture to venture and person to person. Obviously, the United States of America works on a completely different scale, with tipping not only being culturally respectful but also necessary. Hospitality workers in the US are paid well below a living wage hourly, so the tips they receive are imperative to the employee’s survival, making not tipping being almost immoral.

Outside of the US I find this situation is universally frowned upon because it puts the responsibility of paying workers on the guests who are already paying for a service rather than the company employing them. It also makes it impossible for employees to take the holidays and sick days they deserve as without being there to make tips they’re not receiving a wage. Although I disagree with this situation it’s not something I have ever been exposed to so it’s hard to analyse my relationship with it. British tipping culture, on the other hand, is something I have experience with and one that’s far less black and white. 

I always tip 10% regardless of quality of service. I only do this because I’ve been conditioned by working in the industry, not because I feel it is deserved. I tip because I know servers have bad day after bad day and I want them to know sympathy. I feel like having every few guests tip well makes up for all the unpleasant guests you need to deal with in between those situations with no reward. I know most servers live off minimum wage and that’s hard to sustain, but so do grocery store staff and retail workers and people that work in call centres, where are their tips? Why are hospitality staff more deserving? 

The simple answer is they’re not. The more complicated answer is a hospitality job has a very different vibe that contributes to the perceived moral responsibility to reward your server for their work. Being seated and served creates a hierarchy amongst individuals that doesn’t normally exist for the lower and middle classes to such extremes. I believe this hierarchy of being waited on makes most people feel a sense of discomfort and guilt and that’s what creates the illusion of needing to personally reward your serving for completing their job. 

Although I think this is where the perceived need for tipping comes from, I don’t necessarily believe it to be right. I know many hospitality workers that get actively annoyed when they don’t receive tips. I think it is unfair because I don’t believe their minimum wage work is any more valued than any other work. I as an individual would feel far more comfortable giving money to establishments that are slightly more expensive but paid staff a living wage taking the onus to tip away from the guest.