How Often Do You Really Tip?

Discussion in Stores Reviews, Comments & Complaints started by Colebra • Sep 15, 2015.

  1. Colebra

    ColebraActive Member

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    I just changed my cable provider the other day...

    Scheduled the installation, and waited for the cable company on a saturday, which is the lamest thing you can do with your weekend :mad:
    It really is boring for everyone... And I just zoned out watching Breaking Bad, and just came into the living room whenever they had to make me a question :D

    It was an overall good experience though...

    I really wanted to tip the two dudes, especially while one of them gave me the most basic tutorial ever about TV remotes, and I realized he had done it probably a thousand times before because the company demanded it :p

    But I ended up keeping my dollars, because things are tight, and I didn't really know how to bring up the issue...

    What are situations when you always tip, and how do you go about it?
     
  2. AllAboutTheLincolns

    AllAboutTheLincolnsMember

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    I tip 9/10 times I go out to eat. You have to put yourself in that worker's shoes: if they don't get the tips to match up to minimum wage, they'll make less than that in a sitting. Not only that, but they have to tip out a portion of their check to helping non-tipped staff later in the day. Working minimum wage jobs has given me a massive respect for the tipped worker. Of course, if they do their job right, they can come home with tons of cash, but I still tip for good measure and respect for my fellow man.
     
  3. joshc428

    joshc428Active Member

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    All the time, unless the service is heinously bad. My dad is a waiter and it sucks to see him come home after a long 10 hour shift with $10 in tips and an hourly earning that doesn't touch minimum wage. If a service person at least makes an effort to make your dining experience pleasurable, please show some gratitude, even if that means just a dollar. A dollar is better than nothing. Typically, I tip 15%.
     
  4. Diane Lane

    Diane LaneWell-Known Member

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    I tip wait staff at restaurants. If it's a take out place, I don't tip, unless it's Sonic, where they bring the food to your vehicle, in which case I do tip, but not as much as I would tip at a full service restaurant. If I have food delivered to the house, I will tip, since I appreciate that they drove out here to deliver it, even though I've already paid a delivery fee. I wouldn't tip a cable installer, though, and I don't think they expect to be tipped. I tip hair stylists, and nail technicians. I don't tip the mail lady per se (at Christmas), but I have been known to make her something such as a gift bag with goodies in it.
     
  5. SLTE

    SLTEActive Member

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    I tip at restaurants and when getting my hair cut. That's about it, because the rest of the time the services I'm getting aren't extensive enough to really warrant a tip. I'm especially generous with restaurants because waiters make most of their money from tips, and are fiendishly underpaid otherwise. Where I come from, anyway.

    I found myself tipping far more often when I was in the UK not too long ago. It's a big part of the culture, and quite often it irritated me how often people expected tips for performing rather simple tasks. I'm not tipping you for ringing me out at a cash register, for pity's sake, that takes about half a minute of your time.
     
  6. LeopardJones

    LeopardJonesActive Member

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    I always tip my servers and my hairstylists. In the case of the latter, I’m convinced I’ve started getting better haircuts because I’m a pretty generous tipper ;)

    I live in one of the states where it’s unlawful to pay servers way less than minimum wage, but I do believe it’s legal to knock 75 cents off their hourly wage under certain circumstances (don’t quote me, though). So it just makes for a nicer experience all around when you tip.
     
  7. DrRipley

    DrRipleyExpert

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    I've held out on tipping servicemen and delivery men before and it really made me feel bad since I know they are not living as comfortably as I am but at the same time at that time money was tight for me too so I just opted out of it. I don't feel too guilty about it though since I know they are fine even without the tips but it made me wish I had more money to spare all the time since I hated the feeling of getting good service but not being able to show appreciation.
     
  8. Pat

    PatWell-Known Member

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    I have never thought about tipping a service person like the cable guy. I always tip for good service in a restaurant because I know they work for tips, the wage is low and it is hard work. I have been a server I know what it is like to have to work for so low a wage.
     
  9. ReadWriteLearnLove

    ReadWriteLearnLoveActive Member

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    I have never tipped the cable guy, actually the thought never crossed my mind. I tip when I go out to eat, or take a taxi, or get my hair cut. To be honest, the only times the cable guy has come out to my house, it has been to fix a problem that started on their end, so it was more of an inconvenience to me and my family than to him, so I'm not sure why I would tip him. Can people who work for the utility companies accept tips? I know some places have policies against that.
     
  10. DreekLass

    DreekLassWell-Known Member

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    I never tip, and have never willingly tipped in my life. But then again, I live in the UK, where tipping is not really a part of our culture. It has only just begun to become a part of our culture in recent years, and they don't give you a choice wither. They just add the tip to your bill at the end, whether you like it or not which is daylight robbery if you ask me.
     
  11. Zyni

    ZyniWell-Known Member

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    I always tip waitstaff and hairstylists and such. I've never tipped the cable guy or similar. I didn't even know it was a thing. I do usually offer service people like that a coffee or a soda, but that's about it. If they really went above and beyond then yeah, I'd probably tip.

    How many people tip delivery guys? I mean, pizza yeah, everyone knows it's expected, but what about the Fed Ex guy or someone delivering a new piece of furniture or something? Do you tip those guys?
     
  12. Lushlala

    LushlalaWell-Known Member

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    I would never have thought to tip on this occasion, to be honest. the main people I tip are waiting on staff, taxi drivers and my hairdresser. Beyond, that I don't ever tip anyone. I think I'd be left out of pocket if I tipped all the service providers for a job well done LOL

    @Zyni@Zyni...I do sometimes tip delivery guys, if it's food they're delivering.
     
  13. razelia

    razeliaActive Member

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    I tip only when the restaurant I eat at has no service charge. Where I live, service charge is a common thing - it's basically a percentage of the sales that's added to the overall bill as compensation to the servers. If they have that, I usually don't bother to give a tip. There are occasions when I would give tips though, but only if the servers were really, really good during my time eating.
     
  14. isabbbela

    isabbbelaWell-Known Member

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    Where I live it's custom to tip 10% of the total bill. So that is what it will usually tip. And restaurants the 10% already comes in the bill for you to pay, you don't even need to pay it with cash.
    Now, if it is for an informal work, I will usually tip a couple bucks depending on the price.
     
  15. ohiotom76

    ohiotom76Well-Known Member

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    I've never thought to tip the cable installers - in fact, I would be a little leery of doing so, because they might think I'm trying to get fresh with them, lol (though I'm sure they get propositioned quite a bit on their jobs, lol).

    Once I tried to tip a flight attendant for making me a cocktail - needless to say it was one of the first times I had ever flown. She refused the tip and politely told me they were not allowed to accept them.

    I always tip my servers at least 20%, even if the service was not so great - a majority of things are beyond their control, so it's not fair to screw them over. Not to mention, many restaurants force the servers into giving over a percentage of their tips over to other staff, even though they are already being paid well below minimum wage.

    There are plenty of guides out there for tipping, to give you a heads up as to what positions you should tip various workers for, and how much (

    Log In

    ). It's kind of sad though because all of these people should be getting fair wages to begin with, and not have to rely on tips from customers because their employer is greedy.
     
  16. Yosh

    YoshActive Member

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    Honestly, I do it rarely, such as if someone delivers takeout to my house and if they've really been a decent person. Having said that, it's not done much in Europe, we include that in the price of things over here, so tipping is worth even more to people, I guess. There's (usually) no such thing as having to rely on tips in order to get by :S
     
  17. DreekLass

    DreekLassWell-Known Member

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    I have stated this time and time again, that I do not mind tipping if the customer is the one to choose to tip. But this attitude that seems to rest with America - where people feel like you need to tip and if you don't then you are cheap, or you are a bad person, or you are ridiculed. I just will never be able to agree with that standpoint. You can't tell people how to spend their money, especially after they have already paid for the service that they went to the establishment for.
     
  18. MikeyPaine

    MikeyPaineActive Member

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    When I'm going out to eat? 100% of the time, honestly. Same goes for pizza deliveries. Those people live on tips and I'm not going to not tip them because I have some sort of moral problem with it. If I'm supposed to tip, I do. I guess I could be unaware of certain situations where tipping is appropriate, but it's a good thing to do. I do understand it's different in other countries, though.
     
  19. missbishi

    missbishiWell-Known Member

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    The service charge in the UK really annoys me too but the fact is, you aren't legally obliged to pay it. You are well within your rights to demand that the bill be re-calculated without this charge.

    It's a terrible policy though and I've always avoided establishments who practise this. I'm always happy to tip if the service has been good but that should be my choice.
     
  20. dorothymoreno

    dorothymorenoActive Member

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    To be honest I haven't been leaving too many tips myself. Although I have no problem with tipping when the service is good, I really like to leave something extra to show my appreciation. Unfortunately the ways things are these days financially I haven't been able to tip as much as I would like. In any case, when able, I always leave a tip of at least 5.00 or more when the service is really great. I don't really think about it, I just do what feels right.