I WILL TIP WHOM I WANT TO TIP ... GET OFF MY BACK!

TO INSURE PROPER SERVICE
“T.i.p.s” are a reward, not a billable expense.

I can remember when tipping was to thank folks for their good service. A good waiter or waitress got a good tip while a poor waiter or waitress received a poor tip if they got one at all. Well, that’s how it used to be.

Today we see more and more ‘shame tipping’ and ‘auto tipping’ going on and it makes me absolutely crazy. When I order delivered goods from Walmart, if I’m not careful, they throw a driver tip onto the bill. I don’t like this and will not engage in this ‘automatically assumed tipping’ practice.

There are many people who rely on tips to make a decent living. Waiters and waitresses at diners and other fast-food sit-in restaurant are often exempt from the state’s minimum wage regulations, so tips are critical. I tip cabbies, waiters and waitresses, delivery people, and even the kids at the concession counter of the local movie theater.

Do you remember when the ‘standard’ tip was 10%? Remember when it crept up to 15%? Do you know that it is creeping up to 20%? Here’s flawed logic. When I asked a waiter why the tip had gone up to 15% from 10% he said it was because of inflation.

Sure, things cost more now, including the serving cost at the restaurant. The bill had gone up by about 10% so I think a 10% tip is still in order. Had costs jumped more than that, a 10% tip would be even more extravagant and inflationary. C’mon!

It’s tipping someone when they don’t expect the tip that makes me happy. It’s tipping by my own choice that makes me happy. It’s having a choice as to how much to tip and when to tip and whom to tip that is my God given right!

It is an insidious practice to ‘shame tip’ people. It typically takes form when the clerk at the register asks if you want to contribute your change or a set amount to a particular charity. I will and I do contribute to charities on a number of fronts, but when I am at the register with someone just leaving and another behind me I will not cave in to the pressure to ‘tip’ at the register. I simply say, “I contribute by other means.” I will not be shamed into tipping anyone!

I have managed to single out many merchants and diners that practice this insipid scam and I avoid them at all costs. I will tip whom I will tip, and that’s all there is to be said.

I’m Max, and that’s the way I see it!