To think people should tip waiting staff?

[StudentMummy92]

Title says it all really.. providing good service is given of course.

No. There's hardworking care staff on minimum wage who are far more deserving of tips but don't get them. I don't agree with tips and it seems particularly odd to give them to waiters and waitresses.

@Areallthenamestaken had I just done my job and not provided a particularly good service I wouldn't expect a tip. I don't expect a tip just because I took your food to your table.

@ThreeLittleDuckies healthcare work is much more rewarding in other ways.

Lots of people work in low wage jobs where tipping is just not a thing. I really don't see why you should be tipped just for doing your job as you are expected to. Loads of other people get no extra thanks for a job well done. Lots of retail workers for example are paid low wages, are on their feet all day, have to deal with difficult customers and are often subject to abuse but no one would ever dream of tipping them for good service.

@StudentMummy92 good service is a minimum expectation though. I'm talking over and above. I very rarely tip because I think it's outdated and ridiculous. You agreed to the job knowing what the wage was. Don't expect other people to pay you a bit more because you have them their food with a smile. Everyone has low paid jobs at some point. It's life.

My friend used to work in retail. He regularly had to break up fights at sale time and clean out shit that people had smeared all over the changing room (this is a mid market high street retailer not a primark).

No I don't think people should tip waiting staff, any more than other people. You're doing the job you're paid for. Yes working large tables is harder and this is usually acknowledged by the restaurant- eg by taking payment or deposits in advance, asking for menu choices in advance etc is normal to help things run more smoothly.

I think there are people who deserve tips who are more overlooked - care home staff, hospital cleaners etc

Out of interest what do you class as going 'above and beyond' normal service that you think you should be tipped for?

@gingerRH,
firstly just to say i do not agree with tipping being anything obligatory, i dont always tip and I am a waiter myself,

Secondly I am currently studying to in fact Get a Better Job!!, and the tips i get for being good at what I do, and being nice to not particularly nice customers helps that a lot!!

As someone who knows a lot of waiting staff id like you to know that most of us are trying to get Better Jobs but have not all had fortunate lives, and have had to struggle and take bad customers and rude people in our stride..
Thirdly the one thing i dont appreciate is not people who dont tip, its people who feel the need to explain why!!

I don’t agree with tipping as standard, though I do tip if I get exceptional service. The reasons that I don’t think it’s a good idea are that the laws that govern other parts of our pay - we can’t be paid less because of sex, race, religion, sexuality, disability etc (which aren’t perfect anyway!) don’t apply to tipping. I worked somewhere where the tips were proportional to the attractiveness of the waiting staff - I would guess that’s pretty common - and I don’t think that’s fair - but there is no mechanism to control that. And just generally - I could work just as hard, be just as friendly and efficient as the next waitress but our tips would be dependent on the mood of the customers, or the quality of the food, or 100 other factors outside of our control. Better ways to reward good performance in a job that are fair and reward the right things in a transparent way. I’d rather pay more for my meal on the bill to ensure staff are well paid

@StudentMummy92 Well I think that depends on the sector of care, individual care home and persons altitude. Some hate it but it pays bills. But for those who love it, does rewarding mean you work less hard? Does rewarding make it easier to pay bills? Waiters and waitresses are one of the sectors least deserving of tips IMO. So many people work so much harder, on minimum wage and make an actual difference to lives and society.

I will if it's good service - I don't see why I should tip a sulking teenager who slams my food down in front of me which is sometimes what you get.

I used to waitress- I was paid NMW and it was lovely to be left a tip but I certainly didn't expect one or think badly or any tables that didn't. I find on MN people love to get offended about issues that don't actually involve them.

I tip if the service is good - doesn't need to be exceptional, just competent will do.

Unfortunately, in a lot of restaurants, the service is pretty poor, i.e. very slow even when the restaurant clearly isn't busy, mistakes with the order, forgetting to bring things such as condiments when asked for, general poor attitude/stroppiness. I am lenient when the place is clearly busy, but when there's just a few tables occupied and you still have to wait forever to even get the order taken, and then for the meal, then another long wait for the bill, they can whistle if they think they're getting a tip.

@Kt5cjh I don't take away from the fact that numerous people may wait tables whilst studying etc.

That being said I've not had a fortunate life. I've worked for the last 12 years. The highest qualification I have are my GCSE's. I've still managed to get by without having to wait on and rely on tips.

I've also had to take rude customers in my stride in numerous customer service roles, never once been given a tip for it.

I will tip if the service is extraordinary: which (among the chain restaurants) I have only experienced at Wagamama. I hate the American tipping culture taking off over here.

OP, it is just a job. Like the one in a supermarket or McDonalds. Get over yourself!

I hate the American tipping culture taking off over here.

Funniest comment of the thread.

I don’t understand the argument that other jobs are low wage and don’t get tips - the convention is to tip waiters. If you want to switch jobs to be a waiter then you too would get tips.

@StudentMummy92 and certain qualified jobs... Drs, Nurses, Police etc should also be paid more.

It's not down to the customer to top your pay up. That's on your employer/the government.

I don't understand why, they get paid at least the minimum wage
, just like all employees are paid it and we don't tip them. Exceptional situations aside

Nope, I don't see how that job role is any more deserving of tips than any other role on minimum wage.

Restaurants should pay them enough to get by. I’m assuming they earn NMW like many over workers, we don’t tip supermarket staff so I don’t see why waiters deserve tipping tbh. I’ve never experienced a waiter going above and beyond, they’re all just doing their job.

I currently tip in the UK because I understand that waiting staff are taxed on a presumed level of tips. I tip in the USA because well it really is expected and done staff ask quite aggressively why you don't.

This is not ideal, I would much prefer the staff to be paid a fair wage and am happy for that to be reflected in the price. So much easier all round, as they do in Scandinavia and Northern Europe.

I gave left tips there and had them returned by a lovely waiter who explained that as a professional waiter it is his pleasure to provide exceptional service. He does not expect tips, any more than your doctor or lawyer might. Works for me.

If excellent service I will tip. However it seems a bit strange to tip over here in UK as we have a minimum wage that staff are paid, the same as if you worked in a shop etc, and like a PP said if you accept a tip in any other minimum wage job it's likely you'd be sacked. I completely understand why they tip in America though

That said, I don't need any 'extra' or 'special' service. I come usually knowing what I want and if I don't - I read the menu. Order. Eat. Pay. Leave. I don't need any recommendations, fake smiles, annoying small talk and all the other bullshit. All the 'how are you today' (Please. You don't give a shit how I am. And I don't give a shit about your day either). Just take my order and bring my plate - that's it. You don't need to smile and pretend to be nice - I absolutely don't care.

Oh this!!
You're not my friend, dont try and pretend to be
If I need help on the menu, that's your job surely?

I also say this having worked a few serving jobs myself. Tips were lovely but I didn't rely on them to live. I worked in a small kitchen independently run pub were the chef wasn't paid much more than the wait staff and they didn't get tips, despite working just as hard as the wait staff

Would you rather as waiting staff have a job because people who dont have a lot of money use the establishment, or only richer people go, but its quiet and then in danger of closing.

I dont want fluff, I just want a meal, the whole price for the meal, should be on the menu

The more threads I read on this subject, the less likely I feel inclined to tip waiting staff, mostly due to the massive sense of entitlement that comes across. Plus, no one has ever been able to explain what they do over and above their actual job description that should cost the customer more than the service charge.
But perhaps you could explain, StudentMummy. What do you do for the customer over and above what your employer is paying you to do?