To not give the postman a Christmas bung

Sure, but even throughout the year, tipping all of those people regularly IS going to get expensive so it is going to place pressure on others to do the same when they maybe cant afford it

I’m not allowed to accept tips in my job.

We always buy the postie a box of nice biscuits and leave them in the postbox for her. (We have our own locked postbox so it’s perfectly safe.)

We also give the bin men a nice box of biscuits to share. It’s a private service as there’s no council collections here and they’re very reliable.

My sewing group also gave the library staff a nice box of chocs to share as we use the meeting room upstairs for our weekly sewing group. They provide us with free tea, coffee and biscuits all year round so it’s a very good deal!! Plus we don’t have to pay to hire the room. 🌟

I don't do it just at Xmas. I do it throughout the year so it's not a case of having to find £50 at once. It's a few quid here and there. Hairdresser gets a tip but I factor it into the cost of my appointment etc

And your problem is?
We are not discussing who to tip and not to tip.
We are discussing tipping the postman.

I have a friend who is a postman. He has covered the same round since his 20s and is now in his 60s. His job has got harder and harder, working conditions have deteriorated and he's under constant time pressures now. Despite that, he looks out for older people, is kind, friendly and helpful.

He has a permanent back injury from his work and had a heart attack at work (still finished his round though!). Royal Mail are a terrible employer, he was hassled to return to work when unwell, pushed into working additional hours and bullying is rife. He's very grateful for anything he gets at Christmas. Let your husband give the postie a fiver OP.

So, you are saying I should tip the postie? what should I do about the fact we get loads of different ones? should I tip them all as otherwise that would be unfair

I have actually in another post. I said I do, but I do it throughout the year as and when I see /use services. I dint go to the hospital to tip just at Xmas, but when I had some major work, I popped in a week later with a thank you card and gift for the people on the team that had worked for me. I tip my tesco delivery man but do it at deliveries and not just at Xmas.
I certainly don't od these things to 'brag and feel good about myself'. Noone else knows apart from me and the recipient. It's no one else's business who I give my money to.

Shelf stackers and hospital staff do get a lot of cards and tips and gifts and thank yous. Do you even know any to ask before being so judgemental?!!

I feel extremely lucky and like a weight has lifted knowing I’ve been able to provide for my family, with a single income and cost of living etc etc. I’ve read this week on here there’s an expectation to give to teachers (3 children with 3 teachers, teaching assistants, other staff) and now this? Give money to postal staff, delivery guys and bin men? Can we actually not set this up as a social expectation? It’s making me feel quite anxious, the thought of being miserly and tight if everyone is happily doing this and I’m not. Or is this a rich-people-MN thing?

The service is not the fault of the individual postman, that's down to Royal mail.

Interesting, but if we all tipped everyone for doing their jobs then wouldnt it get rather expensive?

Eg the average person could tip:

Postie
Bin men
Kid's teacher
Check out person
Hospital worker
hairdresser
garage mechanic
Local cafe owner for serving us coffees throughout the year
Bus driver
There are easily more I am forgetting

If you spent a fiver on each thats getting on for £50. I think its unfair to place any expectation on people to do this considering the cost

We have a really lovely postman. It’s our pleasure to tip him. We tip the bin men also, they always neatly return our wheelie bins to our bin store down the driveway, even though we have to leave them out for emptying at the top of the drive.

Totally agree with this post.
I come from a very poor working class background and had relatives who were bin men and I remember my parents always leaving the the postman/bin men a tip.

We are not well off but own our property and live a lifestyle which we are grateful for (we live within our means and can pay our bills).
Our neighbours have new cars, several holidays a year and I was having this discussion with them about the going rate for tipping the bin men/postman and they don't.

I think it is all relative and those who don't have much often give more because they can relate.

Aw @Notmyrealitythis comment says a lot more about you than it does me

it would have cost us a lot more to redirect mail for 4 people for the last 8 months so it’s a thank you for saving us money

You still haven't explained why you don't also tip shelf stackers in tesco, street cleaners, the healthcare assistant at the hospital??

All the tippers carefully ignore this question because they know deep down tipping culture is unbalanced towards a certain type of job... Tippers just enjoy feeling benevolent and imagining they're securing a better service for themselves / seeming like a 'nicer' customer

Thank you!
It's a very small and easy way I manage to show my thanks to the people I come across. This world is miserable enough and it takes very little effort to spread a little kindness!
Over the years though (I'm only 43!), I have noticed more and more I get comments about 'why I bother' from some people!
Each to their own but I enjoy it and l will continue!
In my best Tiny Tim voice... Merry Christmas, everyone!!!

I've just been out and given our bin men a case of beer and some mince pies, they're brilliant!

Wow, the festive spirit has really passed you by, hasn't it??? That's such a mean thing to say!

I don't tip the postman because I never see the same one more than once! As for binmen, not a bloody chance. They constantly miss collections (although to be fair that's on our council rather than on them)

We rarely get the same postman twice so no
But I will give my butcher a bottle of wine and some chocolates. But I see them all year round and they always go the extra mile

I know both tesco workers and hospital staff and they do get a lot of tips and cards.

It's a fiver. Not worth squabbling about unless you are really struggling for money.

Lovely post, from a lovely kind person.
Some people are so unkind and so ungrateful. I am not suggesting anyone does anything they can't afford but a little thank you once a year goes a long way (in my opinion).

In our last house we had the most wonderful postman. I always gave him a card and money. He was so friendly and helpful

We moved to our current house three years ago and don't really know our postman. We rarely get out these days! And he's quite grumpy. So I'm not giving him anything.

I've never tipped the bin men.

We’ve had the same postie for years. I know about his daughter, he knows all the dogs in the street, he always has a kind word when it’s a big day like exam results etc. we give him £20 every year in a card.