Postal Workers (US)

There are laws about how you can tip federal postal workers. They cannot legally accept cash or checks in any amount.

You are only supposed to give them gifts with a value of $20 or less.

I have found that a nice greeting card with a gift certificate (Starbucks, Best Buy etc.) for $15 is the best way to go.

FedEx and UPS
Fedex has the same rule about not accepting cash but you may give a gift with a value up to $25.

UPS discourages its drivers from accepting tips but allows nominal gifts.

Generally, you would only tip Fedex or UPS at the holidays if you have a regular driver who makes frequent deliveries to your home or office.

Waitstaff (US)
Restaurants automatically report 12% of your bill to the IRS for tax purposes.
The server must pay tax on this amount whether or not you tip them.

In some states waitstaff do not receive wages and subsist on tips alone. In most areas their wages are $2-3 an hour.

Obviously, if you get horrible or rude service you shouldn't leave a tip. However, considering how hard these people work you should make an effort to tip them fairly.

If the service was adequate you should tip at least 15%. If service was less than adequate due to no fault of the waitperson you should still tip 15%. This might include a situation where not enough wait or kitchen staff is hired to service a large busy restaurant (manager's fault!).

If you get great service tip more generously.

It is also considered good form to tip double if you stay through two seatings at a busy restaurant. This applies if you and your party linger interminably.

As a side note, one of the rudest things restaurant customers do is ignore closing time. In finer restaurants, the employees are not allowed to mention that the restaurant has closed. However, they cannot finish their work and go home until you do. Overtime pay is unheard of in the restaurant industry.

Yesterday I had to use two taxis, one to pick me up at 5.45am to take me to the railway station, the other from the airport to home which is a relatively short trip, less than three miles. I over-tipped the first one as I felt sorry for him having to get up so early, I over-tipped the second as he was charming when some of the taxi drivers can get a bit miffed at having only a short journey as the next person in line might want to go right across the island.

Great post, Kwdesigner. I'll have to show this to my parents who still think 10% is a big tip. :-)

When I was a college student, 2 of my roommates were waitresses. I heard enough horror tales from their shifts to ever be a stingy tipper.

I know we usually tip, after a nice hotel stay or a nice meal out. One of my nieces works as a waitress sometimes, as a part-time job, and we think some people deserve a extra tip

I am a standard 20-30%, always have been, and will tip even more if it is deserved. What people do not realize is that your waitstaff did NOT cook/prepare your meal. Why people insist on punishing a server for lousy food is beyond me. Ask for the manager or go to the kitchen yourself. I don't care how posh a restaurant is, you have a right to good food when you are paying hard earned money for it. I have popped my head into quite a few kitchens to say thank you for a delicious meal. I was never stopped from doing so, just stated what I wanted to do, and most of the time was taken back by someone working there.

I worked at a 'classy' restaurant during college and for a few summers. I worked my behind off, but because of that, I made fantastic money. I never hesitated to go above and beyond for my customers and had a lot of regulars who requested my section. Personally, I think everyone should have a go at doing it and you would definitely have a different view the next time you sat down. The flip side? If I have someone who is acting like they just really cannot be bothered with taking care of me, they will find the proverbial penny left on the table - the biggest insult you can give. I have only done this a few times in my many years of dining out and I can guarantee you it was a drastic situation of being completely ignored. That in my book is just not acceptable.

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I think everyone should have a go at doing it and you would definitely have a different view the next time you sat down.

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Absolutely. If every teenager were required to pull a few restaurant shifts during their formative years not only would people leave decent tips, but we'd overall have a very different nation. The positive pond ripple would be endless.

Just a thought.

Katie, I couldn't agree more with your idea of "the positive pond ripple".

I've worked as a waitress and food service person and my brother has done it for the past twenty years professionally.
My two kids have both done it.
It's a good exercise in human behavior and how people act.
they say some corporations take the candidate to lunch or dinner to see how they behave with the servers.

I tip about fifteen percent for normal service. I also know that often the waiting staff cannot influence the kitchen staff, so the waiting staff needs to be clear about what's going on. If there's a delay, they need to inform me.

I remember working with a really bad cook in this little restaurant where I was waitressing. The waitress had to do a lot of prep, much more than in a bigger restaurant, but the tips were shared between the cook and the waitress.
I just tried to be informative but not blame the cook, and the customers really appreciated knowing. I didn't suffer too much for the tips.

My son is working in a food stand at the markets now and gets lots of tips beyond his salary. He's so proud as his job is labor intensive.
My daughter made lots of tips as she's a very good customer service person and worked the early morning shift at Buck's.

I don't always tip at coffee places, but if I have it I will give it. I know that my kids rely on tips to supplement their salaries.

Delivery of food is always tipped at fifteen percent.

I have a question for anyone in the food service industry:

What is a reasonable amount to tip on a "carryout" order?

If you get "carryout" from a restaurant like Denny's, the server usually has to do some prep and package up your order for you. This is less work for them than if you were seated and demanded endless drink refills... but still merits some tip.

I usually give them $1 to $2 (most of the time the total is $10-20) and they seem very pleased to receive that amount. I suspect that is because few people bother to tip on this type of order.

I must admit, I generally don't tip on carry out orders, especially at fast food places. My daughter, however, says there are some who do offer tips when she works the drive through window at Burger King.

By the way -welcome to the forums, KW. I've spent many happy times in Prescott.
Our favourite haunt was down on the Row where they served veal parmesan every Friday night. I can't remember the name of the saloon, though. I'd say it was the place with two inches of peanut shells on the floor -but then I would've just described eight local bars.

Generally, tips are not expected in Australia, so I think you'd shock somebody if you tipped them for take-out.

A lot of places here have donation boxes at the register (and the drive-through window) so if you have a little loose change, you can always donate to the charity that the particular establishment supports.

I've just been re-reading some of the posts - and found an interesting comment about British tourists not tipping. I was in London a couple of years ago and did the Tower of London tour. The Beefeater who guided our tour group (of approx 50 people) finished in the little chapel, which was quite pretty. He finished his spiel by telling us that we were free to offer him a tip should we have enjoyed his tour "Just a little gold coin (which was $1euro at the time) isn't too much to ask for for an hour now, is it? Of course, if you think it worth more, please feel free to give a Beefeater what you think he is worth."

He actually stood by the door with his palm out. I got a gold coin out (two, actually, because I was there with Cubby and knew he wouldn't,) when Cubby stopped me. I looked at the Beefeater, who already had a good 50 quid (with still half the queue to go) in his hand - one tourist had given him a tenner - and probably more. The beefeater had already mentioned that he was paid an hourly rate to do his job.
When I got to the Beefeater I gave him a gold coin - and I think he shamed me into that - and then thought - you are paid to do this job. Why do you think you are owed more? Do you not have pride in your abilities and in the knowledge of a job well-done?

I understand that in some restaurants in other countries, the minimum wage is dismal, and tips put bread on the table, and that some people work for tips. I am more than happy to tip generously there - just as I am if I stop to watch a busker or street performance. I just don't think that if you are paid well, you should expect more if you don't do more.

I am staggered by your post ecnalubma, when I visited no one was expected to tip.

This is real interesting, I think this is a cultural thing, varies from place to place. There are some restaurants in India, where you are expected to tip (but not as high as 20-30%!) And there are some restaurants where we are told not to tip! In fact, we are asked to pay the bill at the counter and not to the waiter.

I found the tipping custom interesting when I went to an all-inclusive resort in the Dominican Republic. The official partyline was No Tipping, because it is all-inclusive, and the staff was expected to go above and beyond the call of duty all the time, for no extra pay. However, the norm was still to tip on the sly, and some of the staff kind of expected it. Like, we didn't tip the bartenders but we did tip the waiters at the fancier sit-down restaurants on the resort. And it was considered a nice thing to leave cash, or even little gifts, for the housekeeping staff, and they did a great job cleaning our rooms (and considering how many of my friends ended up puking all over the rooms, we did not at all mind leaving them a few bucks on our pillows).

But, if our travel agent hadn't informed us of these informal tipping practices, we would NEVER have known, since the resort management makes a big deal out of not tipping.

I tip fairly well, especially if I order pizza or something when the weather is bad. If the service at a restarant is bad, I'll leave small change, as opposed to nothing. Nothing, okay sometimes people forget to tip. Small change lets them know that's all I think their service is worth. My grandpa used to go tip the cook if the food was really good because he figured the waiter/ess didn't cook it.

The base pay for a server varies state to state by law. In Illinois it is at least 60% of min. wage. Min. wage is different in each state. States can pay more. In Wisconsin the legislature fought against server pay being based on a percentage. You get $2.01 an hour and they can take out of your hourly for a uniform fee. I paid for that lovely, doubleknit jumper 4X over. When I worked up there payday meant that you went and had to cough up money to cover your taxes. Your base hourly didn't cover them.

Isn't it amazing that people will tip for some jobs but not others. People that work in a retail store usually make min wage but nobody ever thinks of tipping them. But is their job not as hard as a wait person in a restaurant? They are on their feet all during their shift. They are expected to be friendly, helpful and if you have a large item to carry out to your car there's some young person there to lug it for you. No one thinks of tipping anyone at Walmart if they go the extra mile.

I think the staff who work in the 'all-inclusive' resorts often go above and beyond regular duties.

The last time I went to one, I was so impressed by the lady who cleaned our room each day (and actually spoke to my son as though he were a 'real' person), we made a point to leave her a little bottle of perfume for her troubles. She really went above and beyond, and deserved a show of gratitude.

I think retail workers who have to wear fancy clothes are very poorly paid.

Tour guides in France expect a little tip as I found out while touring with older people. It would never have occurred to me. Gas stations where the man or lady comes out and actually pumps your gas are rarely seen in France these days, but, you're expected to give them a few coins. It was the custom for many years.
The one myth that really got me was the cinema attendants. They take you to your seat with a little flashlight and the legend is that they are not paid anything for their work, and only live on tips!
So, people tip them still. In a country where everyone gets benefits though, I find this hard to believe.

I live in England where tipping isn't as widely practised. In an average day I rarely get to a position where I might have to tip someone anyway. The occasional taxi driver maybe but that's about it.
When I visited New York in June and tipping was one of the things I worried most about before I left. With being unaccustomed to it, I had no idea who to tip or how much. I muddled my way through somehow & don't remember any disproving looks from people, so I must have got it right I guess.
I've also been to Berlin this year but didn't give tipping much thought, apart from restaurants. So if people are expected to tip there, then I imagine I disappointed a whole lot of people!

If I make a large purchase that someone assists me to my car with, then I will tip that person. Not much, but it is intended as a show of gratitude.

This rarely happens though - I can't remember the last time someone was thoughtful enough to ask if I needed assistance. I carried my sister's new telly to the car on my own, while the retail assistant offered to carry out the hairdryer for the young blonde in a miniskirt!

*sigh* you know you're getting old when ...!

I manage a small Grocery Store in a small Canadian Town.
My staff and I bag our customers groceries, and we cheerfully carry them right to their vehicle, whether its 1 bag full or 20 bags full. Plus, we carry out many 5 gallon jugs of filtered water for them. (Those things weigh 50 pounds each!)
Also, we deliver grocery orders directly to shut ins and single moms.
Very rare for my delivery person to receive a tip in those cases either.
My staff are lucky if they receive one single tip in a year!
This is hard for me to understand, not that they expect tips, but how does our service differ from what waiters/waitresses, hairstylists, and the like , perform?
We have only 1 Customer that tips on a regular basis, and she is a waitress in the local restaurant.
I think most Customers are very thoughtless when it comes to considering what type of service should be tipped and how much effort is put forth by those of us serving them.
Also, my years of experience show me that customers of advanced years and full bank accounts are the most likely to abhor even the thought of leaving a tip, no matter how wonderful the service.
Anyone with similar experiences?

Wow, Trigger, how sad for your staff.

If someone were so kind to carry out a 50 pound bottle of water for me, I'd tip them. Having said that, I'm capable of carrying my own.

We don't have 'baggers' here in Australia - either the checkout operator bags them or you do it yourself!

I agree that many grocery store staff do the same kind of job that wait staff do - however, for me the question is:

Are they paid the same amount?

If a grocery clerk is paid an hourly rate to perform a task, and my restaurant waitress works for tips alone, then I will tip the waitress almost 100% of the time and the grocery clerk only if they go above and beyond.

It's interesting to hear that someone else's experience regarding the rich and the older - that they are more reluctant to tip than those who may not be as well able to afford it or those who are younger. That's how you get and stay rich - by hanging on to your money! At least that's what my grandma says. She also thinks that because she's older, then you should go out of your way to help her. Perhaps she still expects chilvary to be free?

I do not think being helpful and polite to be 'above and beyond' - despite what (seemingly) some of them think, that's what they're there for.

Now you are making me feel awful. As I am now older I permit people to carry things to my car and haven't thought to tip them, mind you I don't think they expect it.

Here where I live we tip the baggers at the commissary as they only work for tips. They bag your groceries, load them and deliver them to your car and even load them into your car. All this is done in any type of weather, I tend to tip well anyway but if they take extra time to ask whether I prefer plastic to paper (or in my case paper for the refrigerated items and double bagged for the heavy items) I give extra. My husband however, gives them a standard $2 as he feels if everyone gave them the same good tips I did they'd make more money than he does in his paycheck....

As for waitstaff, I also overtip, and enjoy to for those who are extra attentive to drinks, napkins etc. It's not easy taking care of multiple parties at once and I know I definitely couldn't carry a tray of food across a room without dropping it!