Here's A Little Tip

I don't get any tips at my job so why do I have to tip others for doing their jobs?

Now that I have half of you agreeing with me and the other half calling me nasty names, let me delve into the practice of tipping for service and my thoughts on the subject.

For the record there have been very few occasions when I haven't provided a tip where it is customary. The one time happened at the Royal York Hotel in Toronto when the valet brought my car around for me and I just grabbed my keys and left. To be honest, I just wasn't thinking and I probably would have given him a couple bucks had I remembered to do so.

But there are times when I wonder why am I having to tip this person or that person when all they are doing is their job. As I stated above, I have never received any gratuities for the work I've done over the years but of course, those jobs were never classed as a "hospitality or service" position. Most of the people who receive tips are probably making less than minimum wage and the tips help to offset that. My argument to that of course is, find another job that pays better so you don't have to rely on tips to survive.

When I started to look into it, I couldn't believe the number of different professions where you are required or expected to provide a tip for them doing their job. Now I realize many professions such as servers, delivery drivers, airport shuttle drivers, valets, hairdressers and bartenders are supposed to be given tips for the job they do. Heck I'll even give a little something to the girls dancing at the gentleman's club if they do good work but that is the key right there for me. They must provide good service.

I've been on a couple of cruises and I can remember someone telling me to make sure I tip the dock workers when I give them my luggage or they might lose my bags on purpose. How is that allowed to happen? Of course I did hand them some cash because I didn't really feel like wearing the same clothes for a week.

Now lets go with the most common example: a waitress. Typically a waitress will get 15% of the bill from me. Here in Canada that is usually easy to figure out because the total of the taxes is around the same amount. So if the taxes from my meal equals $2.50 then she or he will get that amount of a tip.

That's the amount I'll start with and depending on the service I'll either add or subtract from that total. If the service is exceptional, prompt, friendly, available when needed and above average, she might get a bit more.

Reasons I will start reducing the amount of the tip will include poor manners, slow service, rudeness and anything else that pops up. One thing I absolutely detest is when a server begins the experience by asking, "How are you's tonight?". I don't claim to be Mr. Grammar or the King of the English language but if you use the word "YOU'S" instead of asking "How are you" or "How is everyone" you can expect a less than impressive tip off the bat. I haven't done it yet but I've been tempted to reply, "We's fine".

Only once can I recall not leaving a tip on purpose. I was at a Swiss Chalet in Port Hope, Ontario with my dad and two friends from Pennsylvania. We were on our way home from a Toronto Blue Jays game and decided to stop for supper. If you've ever eaten with me at the Chalet, you know I always order the Half Chicken with Fries and an Extra Roll. Well this fellow must have been having a bad day because he brought out our meals and left but my extra roll was missing. He came back and I politely asked him for my extra roll. His response to me was, "I only have two hands!". To which I replied, "and you'll also be getting no tip." He tried to apologize but the damage had been done and he received no gratuity from our table that night.

The best service I ever had was at Ruth's Chris Steak House in Toronto below the Hilton Hotel, but we certainly paid for it. I think my steak alone cost me $40 and then I had to pay for my potatoes and vegetables separately. I was there with a group of guys and I think our bill came close to $800 so the tip was around $160 but we had a couple of waiters keeping us happy the entire time and never had to wait for them to show up. It was also worth every penny because Roger Clemens and his family were eating at a table near us and several of the Boston Red Sox players were also there. For a group of guys who are baseball fans, that made for a memorable evening.

So as much as I detest tipping to some extent, I will continue to follow the trend of paying someone extra for doing their job but I won't be happy doing it. I just wish someone would offer me some extra cash from time to time for showing up and doing my job.