Tipping in USA

[hopeishere]

I hate tipping it makes me feel awkward and I think you should just pay people properly but I get it's the norm in America.

Few questions:
Taxis - if you pay by card can you add a tip?
Bars do you need cash? I read it's $1 a drink?
Tour guides - how much should we tip them?
Porter $2 per bag?

Thanks!

If there is a service charge, though, then if it's 20% you don't need to tip, or less than that, only the difference.

The reason they don't include sales tax is because it varies so much from place to place. Now, you may say "it would be simpler" but people prefer that the base price stay consistent even if it means the surprise at the register. If you haven't lived or travelled here -- the sales tax can vary from the city to the suburbs or county to county. So shops can advertise things at a consistent price. It matters less than in the days of print or TV ads, but imagine having an ad in the New York Times back in 1990. There's going to be a dozen different final prices in the New York metro area; they couldn't print that.

one of our children has worked in USA and been tens of times we have also been many times - they expect 20% at least but its a no thank you form us - at best we pay 10% and even paid zero, they mutter stuff in their mouths - best not to go back to the place

That's really not fair. If you don't tip then the server is paying YOU to eat / drink.

The server has to tip the bus boy, the chef etc.

I hate the American system, it has its roots in slavery, but it is the system in the US. If you are going to visit a country you should respect the culture of that country.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/02/05/opinion/minimum-wage-racism.html?smid=nytcore-android-share

From the New York Times article above, about how tipping is a hold over of slavery and discrimination:

Never did it occur to me that it was fundamentally unjust for me to earn less than the minimum wage and to depend on the good will of strangers in order to earn what was guaranteed by law to most workers. I had no idea that tipping was a legacy of slavery or that racism and sexism had operated to keep women, especially Black women like me, shut out of federal protections for wage labor. I did not question tipping as a practice, though looking back I see that I should have.

Again, you do have to tip in America, it is unfair not to, but like so much in America tipping is inherently unfair.

For people saying what difference does it make it if customers pay the server's wage (via tips) or the business raises prices to pay the servers wage... Well, one way has you reliant on a paycheck that you've earned, one way runs the risk of no renumeration. One system places the onus on a business to pay it's employees, one system absolves a business of that responsibility

My friend and I were chatting about this last year, she’d just been to Vegas, Yosemite and few other places. She said once she got her head around tax and tips etc she mentally just added a third to everything and chose restaurants she could afford.
The first morning she got got caught out and and her DH had breakfast at the hotel. One had an omelette and one had pancakes and it was over $110 for two. 20% tip had been put on the bill and she couldn’t really take it off.
After that she said to the rest of the group she is mainly going to look for much cheaper places and then add the third on and enjoy it. After that she said it wasn’t a thing.
I liked her attitude, the tipping didn’t put her off as she’s going on a different road trip this year.
My DH and I did the same in New York last month, there were lots of restaurants where mains were about $37 but when we factored in tips we knew we couldn’t afford it so we ate in Irish pubs where the staff were really friendly and a main was about $24.

Sorry, but that is not the case!!
We've been many times and one of our kids has stayed there

You don't even know who the tips go to and that is fact!!

Enjoy your day when you get up as I'm guessing you are not in England!!

You have to remember that American workers are treated very badly in comparison to the majority of people around the world. Basics like holiday entitlement, sick pay, parental leave are either a fraction of other countries or non-existent. Whilst quite rightly tourists feel that American employers should treat their staff with respect, you have to accept that they don't and follow their tipping practices.

@YorkNew One had an omelette and one had pancakes and it was over $110 for two

Even with a 30% tip, that seems massively overpriced for breakfast in the US

Completely agree with your posts. This is another reason why I dislike the tipping culture although I do tip when over there.

Even with a 30% tip, that seems massively overpriced for breakfast in the US

It was in my friend’s hotel in Vegas, they were jet lagged the first morning. After that they found a diner around the corner.

We hired a Marriott villa when we went to Florida last month. Saved a fortune on dine in costs as we got take out most days. Still paid a small tip but not 20%.

Hotel run villas are the way to go I think.

"Minimum wage has nothing to do with wages for servers/ wait staff. You are misinformed."

I'm sorry but it's you that are misinformed. Things vary by State.

Yes, in many states, tipped staff are allowed to be paid a lower minimum wage than non-tipped staff. However, even in these states, the employer is required to bring their wages up to the minimum wage for non-tipped staff if they do not receive enough in tips.

Then, in other states, tipped staff are required to be paid the same minimum wage as non-tipped staff.

Most British people tend to visit NYC, Florida or California.

Let's look at the relevant state laws:

In NYC, tipped food service workers minimum wage is $10.65 per hour and employers must make this up to $16.00 per hour if the employee does not receive enough tips.

In Florida, tipped employees minimum wage from October will be $9.98 per hour and employers must make this up to $13.00 per hour if the employee does not receive enough tips.

California is different in that everybody receives the same minimum wage regardless. That means that tipped staff receive the same minimum wage of $16.00 per hour and then get tips on top of that.

Some areas of California have even higher minimums. For example, the minimum wage in San Francisco will be $18.67 per hour as of 1st July. In Los Angeles city it will be $17.28 per hour.

Then those employees working in most fast food restaurants (eg McDonalds etc) now get a minimum wage of $20.00 per hour

Hotel breakfast prices, especially at the nicer hotels, are a massive rip-off in my experience (unless it's the sort of chain with breakfast included -- in which case the breakfast is mediocre, but you can't complain too much when it's free!). Explains why the price was so high. I love a good breakfast, but I am not paying what they charge.

Sorry but if you don’t respect the American culture of tipping servers a minimum of 18% stay home.

Are you one of those people who also don’t scan all your shopping at the self checkouts as you believe you deserve a discount for doing their job.

Or are you one of those people who complains about too many people speaking Spanish in Spain?

Seriously, if you’re eating out tip properly. It’s not a flex.

Sorry, but i am not going to tip, "culture of not especially if they have not served us pilotely and nor do you know who is getting the money!!

Agree to disagree!!

Enjoy your weekend!!

The strange thing is this. Since the pandemic, wait staff at many restaurants have increased, a lot. Red Lobster was offering $15/hour in my area (not a real bad COL area). Other places have also risen the pay.
Over the years, I have asked wait staff their preferences. Small inexpensive family places, where the cost of a meal was low, many of the wait staff would like higher wages, as their tips were lower on average ($5=20% tip for two breakfasts). But, wait staff in larger, fancier restaurants were much more wanting to be tipped than a higher wage. When a dinner and drinks for two costs $80 or more, the tips are higher. One waiter, with four tables, in a 5-hour shift, can make $200+/night. Even after sharing, it is $175 or so for one night plus their low wage. If they got paid $20/hour and no tips, in a 5-hour shift, they would make $100 wage. Period.
Which would you rather make?

Of course, even though many restaurants are paying a lot more to their wait staff, they still want an 18% or more tip. So, now meals are much more costly and the staff still want large tips.
We need to do it one way or another, as I just cannot see where it is sustainable. Many restaurants have closed because the cost has become prohibitive. Those $80 dinner/drinks are now $100+ and we are still supposed to tip.

I usually do not tip for counter service or for coffee shops etc. It's gotten out of control, so unless someone does something exemplary, I do not tip. We don't use taxis or Ubers and carry our own luggage. If we need help, we tip and tip housekeepers.

It may be our system here, but it needs fixed.

After following this thread, I made sure to tip appropriately on my trip to the US - when in Rome and all that!

I even tipped the maid daily, which was not mentioned here so I hope that was appreciated!

I’ll never visit the states again. The tipping culture has gone out of control.

@Kbeebe That seems like a good idea. We are a completely separate country and culture. If you don't want to play by our rules, it makes sense for you to stay away.

The strange thing is this. Since the pandemic, wait staff at many restaurants have increased, a lot. Red Lobster was offering $15/hour in my area (not a real bad COL area). Other places have also risen the pay.

@Nanaof1 Yes, my DD was paid $16/hr this summer as a temporary restaurant employee and the experienced long term staff were naturally paid more.

I think the days of miserable wages in the food industry have gone, All of her friends were earning similar amounts, some got $18/hr. if they’d previously worked at an establishment. Plus tips.

I’m getting annoyed about the requests for 20 and 25% tips nowadays. 15% used to the standard, 20% for excellent service. Now 20% seems to be expected.

In Canada too. You have to mentally think it’s 35% or more on top of the advertised price. Sales tax is 15%. At least here any sales tax is included. You get used to the costs but it feels the extra costs are excessive over the advertised price.

Yikes @TizerorFizz , I didn't realize that sales tax was so high in Canada!

@BruFord Yes. We were in Nova Scotia. You do have to budget for spending more than you think.

eating out in the states used to be cheap twenty years ago but the last time I was there it was much more expensive, so adding the tip really does push the cost up beyond what I’d consider reasonable for a pizza or bowl of pasta which is cheap food. Posters are saying restaurant margins are small but I don’t see how at those prices if they’re not paying their wait staff much. I paid the tips but I’m not keen on going back. If you’re there a few weeks you end up spending a significant amount tipping everyone that you come across…