Quote:
Originally Posted by Velvet
I think tipping is basically unfair to the employees, it’s an excuse to keep their wages down and make them dependent on the goodwill of some people, and expose them to the bad will of others. Appreciation of customized service is appropriate but not for simply doing their job. Their wages should do that. I would consider restaurant service as customized but cleaning your house? Unless you have special request, then it is warranted.
I know a lady who demands absolute perfection, eg. that her sofa pillows need to be put a certain number of inches from the arm, etc. okay, from her I’d expect double pay - and she does pay very well….
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Agree to a point. It does seem unfair if the employee in question has no, or very limited contact with the public (as in the case of newspaper delivery people)s, but in the case of waitstaff especially, I think it is eminently fair. If your job is to please the public, especially if the place where you work is in direct competition with other places offering the same thing (such as restaurants) then earning above and beyond your wage by how well you please the public seems pretty reasonable.
I've never experienced it yet myself, but I've heard stories about service in places where a "living wage" is paid to the waitstaff and no tipping is the order of the day. Service, if you can believe the stories, seems to go downhill pretty fast in such environments. The reason seems pretty simple. Why should a worker go above and beyond, if at the end of the day he or she gets paid precisely the same as the slackers?