It never fails to shock me how a tip is demanded in the US. People simply refuse to listen to reason when we (yes, there are others!) tell them that leaving a tip isn’t necessary. Well, I’m hoping for too much here, but if you’re a waiter, here are 5 reasons why I will try my best not to give any money to you and why the reasons for tipping are crappy.
1. You act as if you’re my best friend
Just leave me alone ok? I don’t want to bloody chit chat with you. I want food. FOOD! Get it? It’s a restaurant. I go there to eat. I go because I want either Italian food, Chinese Food or something else which I can’t get in a McDonald’s. So I come to a restaurant to fulfill my cravings for it. I will pay for what I value – food. Not you.
Christ, you offend me – kneeling down next to my table, pretending to like me and chatting as if you’re my best friend when it’s obvious that all you’re after is the tip! I’m not a bloody money bag you know. I will pay the bill which includes the cost of the food, the environment and the salaries of the people involved – nothing more.
The only way to get money out of me that I don’t have to legally pay is by prying it out of my cold dead hands…
Bottom line: I don’t want to know your name, or interact with you for any longer than I have to in order to place my order. As far as I’m concerned, you’re the equivalent of a conveyor belt that brings me my food and a computer into which I input my order. Of course, I won’t be rude. But don’t expect me to interact with you any more than I would with some stranger.
Image Credit: cafemama
2. You don’t get paid enough
And this is my problem how exactly? It’s astonishing that customers are expected to make up for your employer’s cheapness in not paying you a decent wage. Please include the full cost in everyone’s bill thank you very much. I’ll pay it because I have to and the charge is there for me to see.
What’s really funny here is that no one seems to criticize the employers! All criticism is reserved for non tipping customers instead of the owners of the restaurant for not paying a decent wage. Wtf! Could it possibly be because you guys know you can make much more by tips and under report your income to the IRS?
3. You’ll spit in my food if I don’t tip you?
And I’ll shoot your kid if you don’t give me a million dollars. Seriously, am I even hearing this right? You’re actually using the threat of blackmail to make me pay you? Well as long as you’re openly claiming to be a criminal it’s all right I guess.
Fortunately that’s why I prefer buffets. Listen apart from it being illegal, this shows your poor integrity. But if you spit in someone’s food because they didn’t give you money you didn’t earn, then you’re a loser and deserve to be a waiter for the rest of your life.
4. Bringing me my food isn’t worthy of being paid extra
Did you cook it? Did you invent it? No. You picked it up and brought it to me. While it might not be easy, there are plenty of jobs which are much worse – shop floor workers for example. And I’ve been a shop floor manager, so I know. Face it – compared to other jobs, being a waiter is unskilled. You get paid what the market will think your services are worth. You don’t deserve more for your work over and above what your employer should pay you.
5. Money doesn’t grow on trees
I expect you to be grateful and pray for me at night if I tip you 10%. Be happy I gave you anything at all. I worked for the money in my wallet and by giving you some I didn’t have to, I’m doing you a favor. Learn to remember that when people give you something they don’t need to, it’s a favor. You don’t complain that they didn’t give you more!
By the way, the same thing above applies to all professions that demand tips including those on cruise liners.
So now that you understand why I won’t give you money you don’t deserve, stop with the “oh how could you?” attitude. I can. And I will.
Update: Here’s a rebuttal of the many silly justifications for tipping that people have given in the comments section.
This guy is a straight tool bag…you’re too cheap to leave a tip, don’t go out to a restaurant idiot.
Good
If they want more money get a better job..Nobody tips me and i work hard..No way they never get a tip off me…
You are taking advantage of the cheaper food restaurants are able to offer by not paying minimum wage, if you want your restaurant bills to rise then support extending minimum wage to servers. You are also forcing servers to pay for the privilege of waiting on you, no matter what the credit card slips say the IRS demands at least 8% of sales be reported as tips.
In reply to Carl
The law requires that employers make up at least minimum wage for tipped employees if the tips are not enough. I don’t see how the server is being affected here in the least.
Unless of course your argument is that waiters deserve more than minimum wage.
In reply to bhagwad
??? Do you honestly think servers make minimum wage? I’m a bartender at one of the top nightclubs in the country… I never walk with less than 600 a night. I’ve also have been a server/bartender for over 7 yrs, there’s a reason why I’ve stuck with this profession. I’ve been able to pay off most of my student loans, buy my car, my home, and love comfort my with no debt what so ever. You sir are an absolute fool. I’m also only 26…
In reply to Genevieve
Also, I remember every douchebag that doesn’t tip me, or decides to leave 2 bucks on a $100 tab. Watch how long you have to wait for a simple beer or how little alcohol is in your drink. Respect the bartender.
In reply to Genevieve
It was never a secret, but thanks for at least admitting that tipped employees actually earn far more than minimum wage by exploiting the emotional weaknesses of patrons who feel compelled to give them far more money than they would have received had they just gotten a basic salary instead.
You’ve just admitted that a lot of people like me can simply not tip without your earnings dipping below minimum wage. So you have no justification whatsoever at feeling outraged when I just walk away without tipping.
In reply to bhagwad
He meant LESS than minimum wage! Servers make LESS than the normal wage that other employees would make, because by law, the employer only has to pay the server an hourly rate based the tips received for the day, so if you only made $40 in tips over 8 hours, which is $5.00 per hour, then the employer only has to pay you the difference that adds up to minimum wage for regular employee, which amounts to a lousy $3.00 per hour. GET IT WAD BAG?
In reply to bhagwad
What ever I make in tips or salery are non of your business. The bottom line is there’s an understanding when you go out to eat you tip. I work hard and you not tiping is a slap in the face. If you think serving is an unskilled job you should try it for a week. It takrs skill to handle fifteen tables, keep them all happy and still keep up with side work. These people are not your servents, try treating them with simple compassion… or learn how to cook.
In reply to bhagwad
Shocker your not american…What is ur profession exactly…love to know. Nice name by the way.
In reply to Erica
i’m American. I stil hate tipping. It is a stupid, Pre World War I antiquated system that has no basis. There is no legal backing (unless there is an auto-grat). So stop with the xenophobia, OK ERica?
In reply to Erica
Research Scientist. Barely starting making almost twice what average Americans make. Still I won’t tip.
I’m sure this has already been mentioned but if you don’t want to pay a “serv”ant to serve you are you aware that take out exists? Then you get your lovely food and do not have to be bothered by servants groveling for hand outs. Another brilliant option… buy a cook book. You should read what you wrote about human beings to your mother, I’m sure she has served you many meals and would be proud of the way you speak of those who do so for a living.
In reply to Ruthiey
Yeah, but I hate washing and cleaning up. I hate cooking as well – too much effort.
How bout…here’s an idea! I go to a place that does all that for me and presents me with a bill for services rendered. I wonder what they call those places. Hmm….
In reply to bhagwad
Then go to McDonald’s… Then a server doesn’t have to waste their time waiting on you!!! There are plenty of places you can go and not tip! You are using a service that restaurant offers and should be expected to tip unless you want to get your own drink and put in your own order.. And from the way you speak I don’t think your bright enough to use our computer system!!
In reply to Kristina
Sadly McDonald’s doesn’t always have the food I want. Tough ennit?
Oh and the restaurant is free to bill me for anything it wants. Just like I don’t tip the cashier at walmart, I don’t need to “tip” anyone else either.
You said it yourself – it’s the restaurant that offers the service and not the waiter personally. The waiters are just employees. I pay the restaurant for what they bill me, and nothing more.
In reply to bhagwad
Man i’ve missed a lot.
Kristina–you did say it yourself. The restaurant can simply auto-grat me if it wants. If there is nothing on the receipt, I’m not legally obliged to do so.
Sure I might look like a jerk to you, but who cares? I don’t know you. I selected a better career adn as a result I am more fiscally responsible. If restaurant work pays less than minimum wage, why don’t you work at McDonald’s? They pay minimum?
This is a LEGAL issue. Tips are not legally required so, therefore, I don’t need to pay up. Your employer IS legaly required to pay you minimum if you don’t meet minimum wage in tips. If he doesn’t, h/she is committing what we call here in America a crime.
In reply to bhagwad
My guess…u tried waiting on tables and u sucked a bag of dicks at it. Sooo somebody is a little bitter. Couldnt even get that right eh? Stick to writing articles….that way no one ever has to lay eyes on u..good plan assface
In reply to Erica
Never waited on tables ever in my life. I started in manufacturing. Entry level position. Paid about $18/hour and had NO experience whatsoever.
It is my fiscal rigth NOT to tip. Guess what, you have freedom of speech, right? I also have the “freedom” not to relinquesh my property (money) unless required to do so by a governing agency.
expectations and legal obligations are different. I expect the government NOT to tax me 25% of my income.
I am legally and contractually obliged ONLY to pay what is on the receipt. no more is required. If you auto-grat, since the auto-grat does come on the receipt, then I am required to pay that as well.
Hey dude saw this blog and thought it was a good laugh. I don’t mind leaving a few bucks if I have it and I feel like doing it. I never tip people at a buffet for bringing me a drink, I will be damned if I will got get my own food and give you a tip because you brought me a drink. At the Golden Corral they ask when you order your buffet if they can charge your card over to give you cash for a tip. I say no but you could just pay your people more if you are concerned.
The waitresses that piss me off are the young flirty ones who think I will fawn all over them because you paid some attention to me, you would never talk to a normal guy unless he was loaded outside of work. You won’t ever get a tip and can kiss my ass! If I see grandma or a college kid working hard I will give what I can but never a bullshit % of my bill. Why the hell do you deserve more because a plate of lobster and wine was brought instead of onion rings and beer?
Fuck bartenders who think I need to tip them after I pay the price of a six pack for one drink. If you are telling me jokes and throwing in a drink now and again I will be happy to tip.
Strip Clubs ARE THE WORST. They get pissy when I don’t want to order quadruple priced drinks just because I am seeing some titty. The strippers can kiss my ass when they think I should pay 30 dollars for you to dance on me clothed. I came to see some new boobs and paid the fee to come in.
Fuck saying I can’t eat out unless I plan on tipping. I am an American that has the right to go get whatever I want to eat if the restaurant allows me to sit and take my money. I will look at the menu online and know with tax how much it will be and decide if I would like that for dinner and go. You do not have the right to limit my choices because of a % you think you are entitled to. If you think that sucks here is an idea to make everyone happy. Get together with all of your coworkers and decide to not work on the busiest night and all of you go to the owner. Say you will all walk if they don’t pay you a decent wage and watch what happens. Put the employer’s ass to the fire and make them pay you better, that’s my tip.
In reply to Dude Guy
Dude guy, you’ve pretty much summed up all my points. Good for you.
Lets contniue with this bartender thing. Now Let us say you tip the bartender $1/drink. each patron orders three drinks. You see 10 patrons per hour.
3*10=$30/hour?????
Damn straight, now I know NEVER to tip bartenders. They are making as much money as some nurses are, who are HELPING people.
I’m an American, and I’m free to tip or not. Unless its on the receipt, don’t expect anything from anyone.
In reply to Common Sense
Never tip your bartender? Watch how Long you wait for your next drink, and how little alcohol is in it. Rule of the trade…. Do not fuck with your bartender. Most nights I average about 50-60 an hour, and the people that tip me have the time of their lives and quick service while you lovely folks are stuck being ignored and with half a shot in your vodka sodas :-)
In reply to Gen
In other words, you’re not doing your job. There’s a certain minimum basic requirement that you have to do and I’m pretty sure that cheating paying customers falls below that line.
In reply to bhagwad
Oh I’m doing my job just fine… Why waste my time with a disrespectful little twit such as yourself who will never understand or enjoy te perks of being in the industry. I go out to some of the top restaurants in my city, I get waited on by a friend of a friend in the industry, I get complimentary dishes sent to t table or a couple round of free drinks and amazing service. You’re so silly. We are given a $100 credit each night. That means, that we are aloud to give out $100 worth of free drinks to whomever we’d like each night. Do you know who gets these rounds bought for them? Not people like you. This also does not include the rounds of drinks tha bartenders (including myself) reach into their own pockets for, we save that for our regulars or a realy cool couple who wandered in oe night. This is standard for most places. Maybe not 100 but maybe $25 or a free round. You’ll never know what it’s like to walk into your local spot after a hard day at work as have the bartender happy to see you, and knows your order right away, even though you’re only there once a week or so. So sad… That you will never see that you sir are the one whose social ethics are ass backwards, even with all of these comments. I bid you well, good luck.
In reply to Gen
Pardon my grammar Due to my faulty touch screen. Allowed* and etc etc… Last thing I need is him insulting my intelligence
In reply to Gen
Openly admits to cheating paying customers by giving them less alcohol in their drinks.
.
.
.
Claims to do his job “just fine”
What’s missing?
In reply to bhagwad
Let me put it this way. A country called Amerikahstan has a “culture” where medical practioners are tipped 20% of the medical bill. You are from the United States of America visiting. You go to the ER of Amerikhastan. BTW, ALL things in Amerikahstan are identical except tipping medical staff.
Anyways, the medical staff see you only tipped 5%. The Next time you go to the ER, you are not treated and you die because they KNOW you will not tip a “disrespectful little twit.”
How fair is that.
Do your job. Even if you don’t get tips, that is called “not doing your job.” You agreed to a particular position and now you are REQUIRED to perform it.
What’s missing?
if anything, you are a dispresctful little twit, i’m sorry to say (and I don’t mean to insult) simply due to you not doing your job as you are supposed to.
BTW, how much do you earn? That’s right, probably more than ER nurses since you are tipped $1/drink, right?
In reply to Gen
Servers and battenders especially have the right to refuse service to anyone … no one has to serve you that’s why you tip. To Insure Proper Service… you sound like a narcissist jerk, who clearly, is not very bright…
In reply to Kasey
And you DON’T sound narcissistic? C’mon give me a break.
Guess what? I can also NOT serve you if you came to an ER i worked in, right? How is that any different? I can accept a tip from you.
It IS your job to serve the clients. Otherwise, you are being a bad employee.
Try telling the Best Buy kid that as well. He can’t accept tips, but he still busts his hump to sell you products. And no, they don’t make commission either (not anymore).
In reply to Common Sense
Good lord…get a better job so u don’t have to stress about doing what is the norm. And if not stay ur lame…cheap…and I’m going out on a limb here…SINGLE ass HOOOMMMEEE
In reply to Erica
It is called financial responsibility. Guess what? I never had to work for such jobs sicne I am financially responsible. No loans, no interest, no bad credit, etc.
You as an employee have no right to “bite the hand that feeds” since I am the consumer. Remember, the customer is always right.
btw, in Amerikahstan, people who tip their medical practitioners give out $100,000 of medicine. People that tip (ie the wealthy people that can tip 20% on a $1000 medical bill) get to have free medical while people like you, who can’t afford tipping, get no medical attention since you are seen as a “disrespectful little twit.”
BTW, how is tipping any different from bribery.
Bhagwad, you are from India, where bribery is common, right ( and I mean that with no offense).
Can you shed some light on how tipping is ANY different from bribery? TO me, it seems like those that are more well off get the better service since they can afford to bribe the wait staff, but that is just me.
In reply to Common Sense
Honestly, Common Sense and Douchbagwad should just hold hands and go to those wholesale club’s like BJ’s and Sam’s and just fill themselves on samples from every stand because they are FREE! Don’t worry your little head about paying at all because it is COMPLIMENTARY! Your favorite kind of food right Douchbagwad? FREE and COMPLIMENTARY? While the rest of us civilized people who can afford it should be patrons of fine restaurants that welcome us.
How selfish is it to say “I hate washing up and cleaning up afterwards” then not realize that the people who are WORKING FOR YOU are doing exactly what you hate to do? Why are your needs more important than everyone else’s? If you hate to do it, why do you think that you are entitled for someone to do it for you? Do you think you are a king? I don’t think with your sense, you could even qualify to be the King’s janitor (you might steel the toilet paper because you are so cheap. They behead you for that you know.) You guys are basically saying that we should work for free for you because you are either to broke or too cheap to pay for tip. You are saying that the reason you are not tipping us is because we are NICE?! Ok, calling all servers! Next time you see an Indian person, be as rude as f*ck to them and make sure you make it known that YOU ARE NOT THEIR FRIEND! Maybe then they will tip you! How about this, your boss says “Well Douchbagwad, I feel that the only reason that you are being friendly to me is to get a promotion, so now I demote you.” Absurd!
Mr. Commonsense…. What the hell are you even saying? You are saying we are not doing our jobs by serving you slower if you don’t tip etc, etc. etc. Last time I checked Mr. Common sense, a job means that you get PAID FOR WORK am I correct? So technically, unless you actually pay the servers, they are not working. They are doing you a FAVOR in cleaning up your mess and bringing you food. So the servers can do whatever they want to you or your food in that case ;).
Just a little education for all the selfish cheapskates reading this. Tipping is actually a good thing to your particular group of people. Why? (Asks these dumba**es) Having the option to choose how much to tip lets you at least get away with tipping 15%. If you want the restaurants to “just pay salary” to all the servicing staff, your Mac and cheese or whatever cheap shit you order at a restaurant just went from $8.00 to $14.00. Too much for you to afford anyways. Cheap f*ckers, JUST STAY HOME. Stop being a dumba** and learn how to cook. You are not happy with us, we are not happy with you. Need I say more? Win win.
In reply to Just stay home
talk to your employer about being payed. If you work in an ER, the hospital pays you. We don’t care for tips. EMT’s make about $10/hour here in LA county and they are forbidden from tips. If you are bleeding to death, just stay at home and fix it yourself.
Doing me a favor? It is called a job!! It isn’t supposed to be fun. You sweat and bleed when you work. THat’s how it is. I don’t have the option to tip. IT is either 10%, 15% or 20%, what kind of optino is that?
These are REAL options:
1%, 20%, 50%, 10%, 9%, 8%, pi%, 3.4649205820395820%, 9.1023952039%, 11% or 0%.
In reply to Just stay home
they aren’t doing anyone any favors. They are doing their job. They can easily quit the job and work at Target or Costco or something.
Waitresses, according to their W2 forms, are employees of the RESTAURANT.
In my state servers get paid minimum wage which happens to be one of the highest in the USA.
Let’s say a server has 3 tables an hour, and each bill is $30 before tax. If everyone paid the demanded 20% tip, plus the $9 and change minimum wage. Almost $28 an hour, and since they only pay 8% of SALES, which is roughly $8 they are theoretically making $20 an hour tax free.
You are cheating the customer and your government if you partake in collecting tips.
In reply to taint goochman
First off, you aren’t getting tipped tax free. If you work in a position where you are tipped and dont declare your tips either at the end if each shift or at the end if your pay period you will get audited by the IRS. The IRS knows that servers make the majority of their money through tips. Before you even got to the point where you were audited you would probably have been harassed by your boss several times and most likely fired for not declaring tips, as the restaurant and all it’s employees get audited if there are major discrepancies between sales and overall income being reported. You would know this if you had any idea how a business is run and the way the IRS works.
Secondly, if everyone in America decided to vote to outlaw tipping and all restaurant workers as well as other services such as valet drivers, bellman at hotels, room service workers etc, then ALL of those services would cost the consumers MORE than they did when they were just tipping. This system also allows for restaurants and small business owners to schedule properly for certain shifts and not have to take large hits due to over scheduling and over paying on wages disproportionately to their sales. It helps business owners, it helps consumers, and very few people within the service industry are complaining about how they are tipped vs salaried or given a higher hourly wage. The only downside to this system is that there are people like the author if this blog who don’t use reason when deciding not to tip. Notice that he has stated in several comments that he would be completely willing to pay any charges for service if only hey were on the bill itself. So it’s not that he minds paying more, he’s just taking advantage of the opportunity to not have to pay more. If I ever see him in a restaurant I will advise management to add a service charge of at least 15% to his tab. Hopefully I never run into him though, but I imagine he doesn’t eat at the same restaurants I do as his profession is authoring poorly written articles filled with flawed grammar and logic.
In reply to David
the market would correct this. It is called capitalism. If prices suddenly went up, a genius down the street would figure out a way to sell you cheap, good food without the tip. Let the market do its work. It has done it before.
Capitalism example: Sears used to be the pinnacle of success. What happened to them now?
Wow is this guy an idiot…lol