Are you tipping more?
Discussion
Interesting experience at the weekend with family in town (USA) and the quite large tip for the waitress received, and got me wondering about gratuities in the UK.
In the US I typically tip about 20% (15% if completely outraged at bad service, 25% if exceptional) this is because I understand the minimum wage for servers can be $2.15 per hour from the employer and you just factor this additonal cost into the displayed menu prices (along with additonal taxes, covid charges, city taxes and entertainment taxes).
In the UK I would normally say keep the change if it was a couple of quid from a tenner, maybe 10% at a restaurant if exceptional service, but wondered if this has changed over the last year on tipping for deliveries and collections to help out the local restaurants/pubs.
TLDR - Basically asking if you have been more generous with tipping in these recent times.
In the US I typically tip about 20% (15% if completely outraged at bad service, 25% if exceptional) this is because I understand the minimum wage for servers can be $2.15 per hour from the employer and you just factor this additonal cost into the displayed menu prices (along with additonal taxes, covid charges, city taxes and entertainment taxes).
In the UK I would normally say keep the change if it was a couple of quid from a tenner, maybe 10% at a restaurant if exceptional service, but wondered if this has changed over the last year on tipping for deliveries and collections to help out the local restaurants/pubs.
TLDR - Basically asking if you have been more generous with tipping in these recent times.
peterperkins said:
No, because i don't want us sliding inexorably into the ludicrous system they have in the US where employees are not paid a sensible wage, and it is left to the customers forced to make up the difference.
Thankfully the UK is a more advanced developed country, and tipping is just nice show of appreciation for exceptional service (v.s. "this lady is totally going to starve and lose her kids" if I don't tip in the US). I let them keep the change when I can't be bothered waiting. If the change is a decent amount I wait. Alot of places around my way, the tip gets put in a jar and split between everyone. I think that's more fair.
I did leave extra money on the eat out to help out at the local small family run italians though. I'll probably do the same when it re-opens.
I did leave extra money on the eat out to help out at the local small family run italians though. I'll probably do the same when it re-opens.
Edited by hotchy on Thursday 25th March 06:42
peterperkins said:
No, because i don't want us sliding inexorably into the ludicrous system they have in the US where employees are not paid a sensible wage, and it is left to the customers forced to make up the difference.
It appears the median average hourly wage for a waitress is £6.95 in the UK and the average hourly rate earned by someone with <1 year experience is £6.12 then there are a lot of waitresses that are earning around £2ph more than apprentices which can be 2-3 years into professional/trade qualifications.
Has anyone ever considered tipping the apprentice mechanic getting £4.15ph to work on your car
aka_kerrly said:
It appears the median average hourly wage for a waitress is £6.95 in the UK and the average hourly rate earned by someone with <1 year experience is £6.12 then there are a lot of waitresses that are earning around £2ph more than apprentices which can be 2-3 years into professional/trade qualifications.
Welshbeef said:
aka_kerrly said:
It appears the median average hourly wage for a waitress is £6.95 in the UK and the average hourly rate earned by someone with <1 year experience is £6.12 then there are a lot of waitresses that are earning around £2ph more than apprentices which can be 2-3 years into professional/trade qualifications.
https://www.payscale.com/research/UK/Job=Waiter%2F...
10% of waitresses on under a £5.
Apprentice wage can be £4.15 up to the age of 19 or over 19 if it's their first year on the course. The minimum wage for a 18-20 year old not doing an apprenticeship is £6.45 hence £6.12 seems pretty reflective of the average young waitress.
sc0tt said:
No because nothing is open.
Exactly this - nothing is open, so the question is totally pointless.A little clue for the OP - go to the classified ADs on this site - look at the cars for sale - see what currency they are advertised for sale in - see what side the steering wheel is on most of them.
That should give you a couple of pointers as to where MOST of the posters on this site are based.
I have tipped less in the last few years.
It came to a peak when a group of about 10 of us went out, the food wasn't particularly good, the timings were out, some people's foods were stone cold (or finished in the Northerners case) by the time it was all out, and there was no table service for drinks. The 10% tip rounded up was £50, for carrying out and collecting 10 plates, whilst being paid £10 an hour (pubs round here pay up to £15/hr!) for mainly playing on his phone.
I only tip when the service is particularly good nowadays.
The US model where staff get the majority of their pay from tips is wrong IMO.
It came to a peak when a group of about 10 of us went out, the food wasn't particularly good, the timings were out, some people's foods were stone cold (or finished in the Northerners case) by the time it was all out, and there was no table service for drinks. The 10% tip rounded up was £50, for carrying out and collecting 10 plates, whilst being paid £10 an hour (pubs round here pay up to £15/hr!) for mainly playing on his phone.
I only tip when the service is particularly good nowadays.
The US model where staff get the majority of their pay from tips is wrong IMO.
I tend to use card for everything these days so there's no "keep the change" any more. Quite a few places will add an optional service charge (often 10%) to the bill, or some car machines will have an option to add a gratuity.
omniflow said:
Exactly this - nothing is open, so the question is totally pointless.
A little clue for the OP - go to the classified ADs on this site - look at the cars for sale - see what currency they are advertised for sale in - see what side the steering wheel is on most of them.
That should give you a couple of pointers as to where MOST of the posters on this site are based.
I suspect he already knows, which is why he asked a question about tipping in the UK on here rather than on a US based forum where they probably wouldn't know much about it A little clue for the OP - go to the classified ADs on this site - look at the cars for sale - see what currency they are advertised for sale in - see what side the steering wheel is on most of them.
That should give you a couple of pointers as to where MOST of the posters on this site are based.
RizzoTheRat said:
I tend to use card for everything these days so there's no "keep the change" any more. Quite a few places will add an optional service charge (often 10%) to the bill, or some car machines will have an option to add a gratuity.
You are correct - I've just re-read the original post and it's very clear. Apologies to the OP on that one.omniflow said:
Exactly this - nothing is open, so the question is totally pointless.
A little clue for the OP - go to the classified ADs on this site - look at the cars for sale - see what currency they are advertised for sale in - see what side the steering wheel is on most of them.
That should give you a couple of pointers as to where MOST of the posters on this site are based.
I suspect he already knows, which is why he asked a question about tipping in the UK on here rather than on a US based forum where they probably wouldn't know much about it A little clue for the OP - go to the classified ADs on this site - look at the cars for sale - see what currency they are advertised for sale in - see what side the steering wheel is on most of them.
That should give you a couple of pointers as to where MOST of the posters on this site are based.
However, that doesn't change the fact that nowhere in the UK where you would generally tip - restaurants, hairdressers etc - has been open for the past 3 months. So no-one in the UK is going to have any experience of tipping anyone in the past 3 months - unless they perform role play in their dining room to pass the time.
omniflow said:
So no-one in the UK is going to have any experience of tipping anyone in the past 3 months - unless they perform role play in their dining room to pass the time.
It's the only way I can persuade my wife to dress like Vicky Michelle from 'Allo 'allo when she serves dinner.Do people tip takeaway delivery drivers these days? We always order and pay online rather than paying cash to the delivery guy, hence no tip there where we might have done in the past.
RizzoTheRat said:
It's the only way I can persuade my wife to dress like Vicky Michelle from 'Allo 'allo when she serves dinner.
Do people tip takeaway delivery drivers these days? We always order and pay online rather than paying cash to the delivery guy, hence no tip there where we might have done in the past.
This is hitting delivery drivers in the pocket now, I think. It's almost unheard of to order food for delivery and even get the option to pay cash on the doorstep. But we always used to, and did the "keep the change" thing for our local Indian restaurant's delivery driver. Since we moved to a different area we've always paid online/over the phone at the point of ordering, and it's always the exact amount required, never a penny more. It's just the way the internet ordering model encourages you to do it really. Do people tip takeaway delivery drivers these days? We always order and pay online rather than paying cash to the delivery guy, hence no tip there where we might have done in the past.
After reading a thread on here, I started to tip the food platform delivery guys a quid (I.e. order paid on card, and tip in a coin). Some appreciated it, some were just meh.
But now they leave the food at the door and are metres away so not practical. So social distancing ftw
But now they leave the food at the door and are metres away so not practical. So social distancing ftw
Edited by hyphen on Thursday 25th March 10:30
No, because I haven't been in a restaurant or bar for 12 months.
When I do return, I still won't tip a dime over 15% for normal service, and unlike most natives who were raised here, am not afraid to leave less - or at the extreme end, nothing - if the service sucks.
Tipping culture is way out of control here and getting worse.
When I do return, I still won't tip a dime over 15% for normal service, and unlike most natives who were raised here, am not afraid to leave less - or at the extreme end, nothing - if the service sucks.
Tipping culture is way out of control here and getting worse.
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