Tipping.

Hetty58

Yes, I tip taxis, waiters, the bin men and postman at Christmas - but not the (owner) hairdresser. If the service is bad, I don't tip.

What I really don't agree with (as a retired teacher) is the recent trend to give an end-of-year gift to teachers. We are well paid professionals, so it's quite an insult - and we're not allowed to accept them, anyway. Instead, a little note or card would be appropriate.

I was shocked by the gift giving to my DDs first teacher. One of the other mums organised a collection and I contributed - very reluctantly as I didn't really like her. She was only with her for a term! The following year that teacher came in as a supply when her new teacher was off. She was really mean to DD who was only 6 and had a broken arm. I only found out because another mum told me what her daughter had told her what had happened. I made a complaint as I was friends with one of the school Governers and told her she shouldn't be employed there again with the younger children as she showed no compassion! I regretted contributing to the end of year gift for her - my instincts had been right all along!

Having said that I tip good service in restaurants and tend to tell taxi drivers to 'keep the change'.

I tip for personal service that has been good. Of course I don't tip in shops where I am just being sold stuff over the counter. A meal served efficiently and in a friendly, helpful manner makes a real difference to the experience of eating out and deserves that acknowledgement. We tip postie and refuse collectors at Christmas - unsung heroes in my opinion!

I do disagree with people who say they never tip, because the companies or owners should pay living wages.

The problem is - they don’t. Certain sectors of the service industry are structured because tipping for employees is factored in and they come to rely on it.

Waiters/waitresses have to pay the same bills you do. It’s hard work when patrons are demanding too.

Makes it terribly uneven. If I was serving food and you didn’t tip, I’d remember you the next time you come in. Hah! (Human nature - that’s how a lot of restaurant people feel.)

When in US we were served by a rude waiter who took our order and delivered the two plates of food to our table without a word He spent the whole time chatting to another table. When we came to pay I left 10% tip he chased us down the stairs demanding a minimum 20% no we did not pay it.

I don't tip my hairdresser, as she is a partner at the salon. I usually round off what I pay a cab driver, but if the trip is long I will tip extra. I tip 10% at a restaurant. Less if the service is not up to scratch. I won't tip more than 10% in the US, as their employers need to pay them more, and more often than not I have found the service shocking. Once it was so bad we did not leave a tip. I left a 10% tip while dining out with my family in Italy. There were 11 of us, and the food kept on coming. The staff were taken aback at how much I had left them.

When we were in New York we asked for the price to go around Central Park in a carriage. We were told *dollars plus the tip. They were making it clear we HAD to tip.

There are tight-fisted individuals (whether they can afford it or not) and generous people. So the whole idea of tipping is not even for the service industry.

If all trades were paid a fair and living wage there would be no need for tipping. But certain people will always tip in gratitude for a job well done.

I’m a generous tipper especially for waitstaff in restaurants. For hair salons, if the owner is your stylist I believe it is not necessary.
Cheers!
USA Gundy

I never tip. I really feel strongly about it. Why should we top up someone's wages? The employer should pay their workers a decent and fair wage not expect the customer to pay for the meal/drink or whatever and then top up their employees wages as well. Yes, I have worked as a waitress, in a hairdressers and behind a bar and was never sure if I was more embarrassed or thankful when someone offered me a tip. One other thing I never understand is why do people always complain about sales assistants but then go in a coffee shop and tip a waitress? Doesn't make sense to me.

We tip various service people - delivery drivers, cleaners, etc. - at Xmas and waiters when eating out (unless it's already added to the bill). Also hairdresser. Taxi drivers usually. Serving staff in the USA are usually underpaid and depend on decent tips.

My pet hate is when a gratuity is added to the bill . I don,t mind so much for food but having paid at least double for a bottle of wine I don,t see the need for 10% and above to be added. When eating with friends I don,t like to query it.

No.

Ah, I can get papers delivered! The paper boy isn’t much younger than me by the looks of him!

On the other hand I can't get a paper delivered *Callistemon21

TerriBull and Germanshepherdsmum - in my neck of the woods the milkman/woman is busier than ever. Over the pandemic they weren't taking on any new customers as they were unable to "service" them.

I haven't seen them for a while but my milk is almost certainly on my doorstep as I type.

We always tipped the milkwoman and the paperboy and girls but havent seen any for years.
I remember my DC being very happy with their Christmas tips when they did paper rounds.

The tipping culture was one of the first things that struck me when I went to work in USA for a year back in the 1990s. There are very few employment protection laws there (in comparison with UK and Europe) and employers can more or less do what they want and pay what they want. Fortunately I was paid a very good salary so I just learned to go with the flow. Here in the UK I only tip for exceptional service,

Milk boys/men that takes me back donkeys years, I think I decided the milkman wasn't a viable option for me, when there were disputes over my bill, which didn't tally with regular notes in the bottle of "no milk today please" when those were regularly charged for. Now you mention it GSM, can't remember the last time I saw a milk float.

Milk boys? People delivering milk have been extinct for decades in my neck of the woods!

Nobody tip their milk boys? Ours are out in Scottish weather hail rain and snow before school every day except christmas day and New years day so I tip them every week just 50 or 75 pence but I give them £30 each at christmas.
The courier who delivers gets wine and chocolates sometimes nice bath products and foot creams ,she's been coming here for almost 15 years .The hairdresser, waiters ,taxi drivers etc I've alway tipped ,never less than 10%
.I did less than minimum wage jobs when I was young .I started working at 12 and I well remember how appreciative I was of the wee boost it made to my meagre wages .

I tip my hairdresser even though it`s his business,i also tip the postman at Christmas.
Used to tip the binmen,but they don`t bring the bins back,they leave them in the parking bays.

Hairdressers have, understandably, massively hiked their prices since lock down. During that time we moved, so looking for a new hairdresser I hot footed it down to my local salon couldn't believe what they quoted, probably double what I was paying for what I was having done and that was in West London However, I shopped around and found a satisfactory local hairdresser and now have my foils done every 5 weeks, I've upped that time span since I dropped my base colour and embracing the grey blending with the highlights. She did say, that appointments for such things have fallen off a bit since the cost of living hike and is thankful to have regular appointments such as mine. To get to the point, I tip her more than I would have done at Christmas, and I gave her some $ notes that we still had when she took her children off to the US at Easter, but other than that I don't, I did prior to Covid but I have massively upped my spend on hairdressing on more regular appointments and I spend quite a lot when I go.

As for restaurants, some such as Cote take 12.5% service charge so they take the option away of leaving a gratuity but we would if that wasn't the case, particularly when we've had good service, similarly if we take a taxi to the airport again we would tip.

Blondiescot

I've never been to the USA, so just out of curiosity, what happens if you don't tip?

They get very nasty and throw your receipt at you, or they disappear with your change, if paying in cash, and don’t bring it back. Actually both these things happened to us, not because we didn’t tip, but because we didn’t tip enough! And the second example, we didn’t get a chance to tip, she simply didn’t return with the change, effectively stealing our money. We had to speak to the manager to get our money back, and after that, no we didn’t tip her.

Grannynannywanny

Hetty58

What I really don't agree with (as a retired teacher) is the recent trend to give an end-of-year gift to teachers. We are well paid professionals, so it's quite an insult - and we're not allowed to accept them, anyway. Instead, a little note or card would be appropriate.

I’m surprised that teachers would consider a small token of appreciation an insult. My children are in their mid 40s and it was always something we did at the end of term. They have continued to do so for teachers of my 4 grandchildren over the years and it’s common practice . I think if it was unacceptable or offensive we’d have been informed at some point over the past 40 years.

A few years ago I was a Christmas temp in M&S. because I was quick on the till I was put on the returns desk after Christmas. That was an eye opening experience!
There were ques of people returning their “unwanted” gifts, many of which were still in the wrapping paper. A large group of the returnees were teachers with a carrier bag of stuff from the children. They were often disappointed when we wouldn’t refund an Item because it was from another shop.
It just seemed such a waste, it occurred to me that the parents would have been better clubbing together to give them a voucher for something they actually wanted.

I tip my hairdresser, she goes above and beyond to do a good job on my hair and is a single Mum.I probably tip more than she expects but she deserves it and I only go a few times a year.I also tip waiting staff if there’s been good service, they don’t earn a lot either.Rarely get a taxi but would leave a small tip if they are pleasant.
Used to tip the binmen, Window cleaner paper delivery boy and milkman, but binmen now earn good money and don’t have the other services now, milk from the shop, no papers and clean own windows when I remember to do it.

This subject crops up regularly on here doesn't it ?. I totally agree with BlueBelle
Tipping is ridiculous, outdated and unfair. The only time I would pay a bit extra would be if someone went over and above what they were required to do.
It's time we were charged what the job is worth and tipping not encouraged. I believe this is the case in Japan.