I think this was discussed earlier on FT but I'd just like to know your opinions about tipping. For example: should I tip the owner of a beauty salon for doing my hair? And if so, do I tip the standard 15%-20% or a set amount?

Great topic Clara! I have been cutting my own hair now for five years so I can't be of much help to you, but I had to pop in here to let you know how much I like this thread.

Well.... I try to tip for good service at a restaurant - usually 15-20%. The better the service, the better the tip. And I do let them know ahead of time. Especially if I have a special request, say like -- a margarita WITHOUT salt!

However, when it come to beauty salons -- It's hard for me to tip $18 if the bill is already $120!! Maybe I'm old fashioned, but a hair dresser has to be really, REALLY outstanding (have yet to find one) before I get wild and crazy with tipping!

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"I'm so lonesome in my saddle since my horse died."

I always tip at restaurants and tip very well for excellent service. But I've never really known if it was expected to tip the owner of an establishment - like a beauty salon. If I went to a stylist who just worked for the salon, I would tip, but somehow it doesn't seem right to tip the person who sets the prices. I hate to appear cheap so I've always tipped but I'd sure like to know if it's expected.

Well I betcha the person doing the work expects it!! Heh..heh..heh...

I've seen and heard a couple of times on "talk shows" that it is expected. At least in more up-scale establishments. I have seldom tipped the shampoo girl (or guy). To me having someone else shampoo only leads me to believe that my hair dresser is either overbooked, or doesn't care, or just wants to fit in as many as she/he can to get more money. That does not in any way increase my tip!

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"I'm so lonesome in my saddle since my horse died."

Tipping is not a well known thing down here in Australia. What is the basis of it?? (Yeah, I know, probably a dumb question, but I have always wondered why it's done??)

I think the Aussies have the right idea about tipping.
In the USA, we tip because in the service industry especially Restaurants and Bars the pay is not all that great and considered part of the take. The employee relies on tips. In general, you tip well on good service, not so well for poor service.

My hairdresser told me that the owner of the salon need not be tipped as he/she is getting a percentage of all the business in the salon. If he/she is the person who does your hair, it's customary to give them a gift at christmas time ( a holiday floral arrangement for the salon, a box of chocolates, bottle of wine or champagne, etc.).
I usually tip my stylist 15-20%; that amount also for a waiter/waitress. It's important to remember, though, that the waitstaff is not responsible for the quality of the food or the fact that you might have been seated near the kitchen door. I tip based on their attitude (nothing like a waitress who makes you feel that you're bothering her with your petty requests), attentiveness (don't hover, but don't disappear!), and clearing away dishes so they don't sit there in front of you).
We're going away to a wedding next weekend, staying at a hotel. How much are you supposed to leave the chambermaid - does anyone know?

I have said it before in FT, I do tip but only because I feel that I should, I would far rather pay more for the service in the first place and forget the tip. If the wages for staff were increased to an acceptable level and this cost passed on to me as the consumer I would be delighted. At the end of the day businesses will not lose trade over it as every establishment will increase prices so will be just as competative. I find tipping very embarrassing and feel that I am being patronising by tipping.

Although people have posted in FT before about this topic I still find it hard to understand that some people feel tipping should continue. I must stress again, I feel that wages should be increased by the amount which would normally be filled by the tips. To say that a business couldn't sustain the increased wages is not valid if the cost was passed to the consumer.

What is the difference to me to pay £20 for my hair plus £5 tip or to pay £25 in the first place? The difference is that I don't feel that I have been obligated to give a tip nor do I feel that I have patronised the stylist.

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From over the pond....

I just noticed that Ethel asked about tipping chambermaids. For a short stay in a hotel I wouldn't tip anything, having worked in a hotel the 'service' which is applied to bills is shared between staff members.

If staying in a hotel for a couple of weeks then I would leave the equivilent to a couple of dollars per day - perhaps I am just a meany but I do some sums and work out that if every one did the same it amounts to a tidy sum over the course of a year.

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From over the pond....

I don't know if this is common among Americans, but I usually leave one or two dollars on the mirror when I stay at a hotel in the USA. If I stayed for only one night I used to leave them a dollar or some pocket change.

[This message has been edited by JoJo2 (edited 09-30-2000).]

I am getting my hair cut by a professional tomorrow for the first time in five or six years. The hair cut will cost about $25.00. How much should I tip the hairdresser?

Hi JoJo. The shop where I get my hair cut charges $25, and I give the hairdresser a $5.00 tip, and the shampoo girl gets $1.00.

My maternal grandmother worked as a chambermaid in a hotel in Manhattan, so I know they depend on their tips in much the same way that waiters and waitresses do. If we stay in a hotel for three or four days, I'll leave $5 or $10, and if we stay longer, I'll leave $15 or $20--it really depends on the length of the stay, and how good the service is, but I always leave something.

I think tipping, and the amount you give, depends on what is considered the norm for the area in which you live.

Thank you Annie! I'm glad you helped me, now I will be sure to bring the right amount of money with me. My first job in the casino industry was a Keno runner and I depended on my tips. In fact, I would not have been able to survive without them. Thanks again.