A little off topic -- tipping 2

[dgillz]

A little off topic as this is not strictly an IT question. The last 2 years I have been traveling a lot on business, and more and more I ave noticed envelopes in hotel rooms to tip the housekeeping personnel.

10 years ago -- the last time I had traveled extensively -- these were NEVER around. Now they seem to be almost everywhere. The question is should I tip or what is expected or normal in this regard?

For what its worth, I do not stay at 5 star places (at least not very often) I usually stay at a Hamptons, Best Western, etc. Anywhere from $60 to $100 per night is my average hotel bill.

Any feedback on this appreciated.

Software Sales, Training, Implementation and Support for Macola, eSynergy, and Crystal Reports

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[jsteph]

jnwcad,

And the US finds it socially acceptable to pay people below the minimum wage?

This is a special case with wait staff, which is why I'd said previously that I always tip wait staff (unless service is absolutely horrible).

A typical waitress/waiter at a mid/hi end resaurant can make $200-$300 per night. Doing the math, if they work full time that's a pretty respectable income for something that requires little or no education.
--Jim

 

[OhioBill]

Pete: It sounds like you were in New York city. The guy in the men's room used to hand you a towel (white cloth) brush your coat and make certain you were well turned out when you left. For his service, you gave him some change, generally less than a dollar. These days I couldn't tell you what to tip, but a dollar is OK.

I tip the wait staff according to the service and the attitude. I realize that some problems come from the kitchen, and others do not. I'll demand service from the manager as needed, and explain that I'm willing to pay for the service, but I expect to be served.

 

[njwcad]

I tip well if I revive adequate service but-

1. I think that every one is entitled to a basic working wage, tipping should be an optional expression of gratitude over and above this base level. I would hope that this would never be bellow the minimum wage.

2. I take the point that waiting staff in top establishments get good tips but these same establishments charge a premium and it would be fair to expect good service. It is also fair to expect high profit establishments to pay their staff properly.

I am more then happy to pay more for services up front if this is passed on to the staff. May be this is a cultural difference, I would rather have a mandatory front end charge then an optional back end charge. I do not accept that tipping gives better service, staff in many service sectors do not revive tips.

 

[mrdenny]

I do not accept that tipping gives better service, staff in many service sectors do not revive tips.

I would have to disagree with this. I've noticed that with the restraunts that I go to often if I tip well, I get better service from the waiters and waitresses the next time I am in there. (Sometimes free deserts, free drinks, etc). When I haven't tipped so well, the service the next time isn't so good. The wait staff deffinetly remembers the folks that tip better, and from what I've seen they pay better attention to them the next time around.

Denny
MCSA (2003) / MCDBA (SQL 2000)

--Anything is possible. All it takes is a little research. (Me)

http://www.mrdenny.com

(Not quite so old any more.)

 

[SteveGlo]

I tip my barbershop about one-third of the cost of the haircut. There are 3 staff and they certainly remember me -
when I show up every couple of months. If I am the next in the queue there is a race to finish their current customer, if someone is in front of me in the queue they dawdle over their customer hoping a colleague will finish before them, thus taking the customer ahead of me.

Needless to say I think I get an excellent level of service - which is the reason I tip relatively generously, not because I like to cause aggro amongst the staff. If I was unhappy with the service - well there are plenty of barbershops in the area.

 

[skiflyer]

1. I think that every one is entitled to a basic working wage, tipping should be an optional expression of gratitude over and above this base level. I would hope that this would never be bellow the minimum wage.

2. I take the point that waiting staff in top establishments get good tips but these same establishments charge a premium and it would be fair to expect good service. It is also fair to expect high profit establishments to pay their staff properly.

Wonderful sentiments... but in the United States it's just not the case, as has been stated... it's one of those big circle things in the low end places, they keep your bill low by paying their staff nothing and letting you make up for it in tips.... and in high end places, they do pay better because they demand more from their staff, but it's often still below or near min. wage... it's all about the tips in certain industries in the US. And while I can agree with you saying the way it should be, it's not the way it is, and it's good to get the info out there, because alot of people just don't know, and the wrong people lose when people don't know about this topic.

 

[ecannizzo]

In the gym I just joined there is a little shop that makes smoothies. I decided to try it out yesterday. There was one woman behind the counter. I ordered my drink and she told me it was a $5 total. I handed her a $10 and she asked me if I wanted 5 ones or a 5 dollar bill. I told her it didn't matter. That's when she said "well, I'm just asking because if you want to leave me a tip I will give you the ones, otherwise I will give you the 5 dollar bill." I found this very odd as I never thought to tip someone behind the smoothie counter. That to me is like tipping someone at McDonald's. Would anyone have tipped this woman for making them a smoothie?

 

[jsteph]

...so many ways I could go with that but...gotta keep decorum, y'know...

 

[DrJavaJoe]

$5 for a smoothie, I hope it had vodka in it.


Two strings walk into a bar. The first string says to the bartender: 'Bartender, I'll have a beer. u.5n$x5t?*&4ru!2[sACC~ErJ'. The second string says: 'Pardon my friend, he isn't NULL terminated'.

 

[skiflyer]

See, that's the company screwing the employee... if that smoothy was 4.25 or 4.50, yeah I'd probably throw in the change... but no I won't throw paper into the tip jar unless I go there every day, then maybe a couple times a week I would.

 

[Thadeus]

I got a tattoo last evening. Tipped the guy pretty well. Not only is he a great artist, but I'll be going back for another session and figured it couldn't hurt to leave a favorable impression upon the guy that draws on me permanently

The smoothie server would have received a smart response from me. You can't ask for a tip. If you earned it, it will come.

 

[Dollie]

I tend to disagree that "Smoothie Woman's" company is screwing the employees. They are just adapting to the poor trend that upscale coffee houses started by putting a tip jar on the counter. I can almost guarantee that Smoothie Woman is not making the $2.10 an hour that wait staff earn, and that the tip is nothing more than extra money on top of their (at least) minimum wage income.

I think that regardless of how good the smoothie is, I paid for it, I shouldn't have to tip because it was handed to me instead of punted to me.

/your 15% tip has been added to this post because this party has 8 or more people

 

[LTeeple]

I can't imagine tipping on someone making me a $5.00 smoothie - that's outrageous!

If I was seated and he/she brought came to me, wiped off my table, took my order, made my smoothie, and then cleaned my dishes away, I'd tip for sure, but for counter service? I don't think so.


Cheers!
Laura

 

[mrdenny]

I agree. Tipping for counter service is just nuts. You are helping me for a whopping 15 seconds. I tell you what I want and you hand it to me. This is the end of our dealings with each other.

To think that I should hand over a dollar for this is insane. To the best of my memory I haven't ever tiped for counter help, and I probably never will. (The exception to this would be when I go to California Pizza Kitchen and order take out. The folks there are very nice, and will chat with you while your food is made. They'll also offer the bread and whatnot that is normally reserved for dining in guests. The'll get a couple of bucks for keeping me intertained while I wait.)

Denny
MCSA (2003) / MCDBA (SQL 2000)

--Anything is possible. All it takes is a little research. (Me)

http://www.mrdenny.com

(Not quite so old any more.)

 

[njwcad]

[/quote]I can almost guarantee that Smoothie Woman is not making the $2.10 an hour that wait staff earn[/quote]

Are the staff really paid the equivalent of £1.70? The minimum wage in the UK is about £5.00 with no exceptions. It certainly explains the difference in US / European tipping cultures!

Pete.

 

[gurner]

can see the minimum wage in the UK being 3 times that than the US.

the cost of living here is 3 times the US anyhow, if not more, ha

Gurner

 

[Dollie]

njwcad, It looks like I may be mistaken... It's $2.13 an hour

Per the Office of Personnel Management, Tip offset is the amount of money by which an employer, in meeting the legal minimum wage standard, may reduce a tipped employee's wage in consideration of the receipt of tips. The Small Business Job Protection Act of 1996 requires a fixed dollar tip offset. A minimum cash amount of $2.13 per hour should be paid to tipped employees. If tips actually received are not sufficient, when added to $2.13, to total the minimum wage of $4.75 (as of October 1, 1996) or $5.15 (as of September 1, 1997), the employer must also pay the additional difference to the tipped employee. ("Tipped employee" means an employee who customarily and regularly receives more than $30 a month in tips.)

So basically, it's not up to the consumer, it is still up to the employer to pay the wait staff properly. Even the poorest (worst) of waitstaff still earn their minimum wage.

 

[gurner]

$5.15 still works out at about £3 (approx) eqivalent in the UK

(there's that UK/US comparison again, ha)

What with this comparison having been raised, i was wondering what the opinion of people in the US on this site to tipping when in the UK? being as with the current exchange rate if a US citizen in the UK bought a round of 4 beers in a london pub /resturant you'd be charged about $15+ (£10+ approx)?

Would you still? irrespective of the point the 15% probably hasn't been added.

It wouldn't be expected, but would you?

I suppose the other end would be, would a UK citizen in the US tip if the role was reversed, probably not. even though a round of beers might be (don't know the average in the US) less than $10 (about £6 to a UK person)

Gurner

 

[Stella740pl]

$5.15 still works out at about £3 (approx) eqivalent in the UK
That was in 1997.
I believe, the current minimum wage is higher, something around $6+ or even $7+.

 

[Thadeus]

No Stella, that is current as of today.

The federal minimum wage for covered, nonexempt employees is $5.15 per hour. The federal minimum wage provisions are contained in the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA).

~Thadeus