I've realized that there are many things that annoy me when it comes to tipping. Since I just got back from a mini-vacay to Vegas, I'm more recently reminded of these things.
EVERYBODY IN VEGAS THINKS THEY DESERVE A TIP!!
That's ludicrous. (I'm purposely focusing on Vegas since I was just there.)
I'm a fan of rewarding someone for hard work or a job well done. But I don't think a tip should ever be required or expected.
Here are a couple examples of where I don't fully understand tipping:
- Taxi cab drivers—especially when they expect or even demand a tip. Unless you handled my bags or went above and beyond the call of duty (driving me from point A to point B), why?
- Housekeeping. I pay good money to stay in a hotel, again, why should leaving extra money also be a part of the deal?
But I can understand tipping bellboys (the ones who have to handle a bunch of heavy bags), cocktail waitresses who allocate free drinks (I'm not paying for the drink so what's an extra dollar or two) and, sometimes, I even feel that tipping a flight attendant should be allowed—for the ones who are good at their job.
Now I must say that I have worked in a job where I received tips. Don't get me wrong, it was great. But never once did I ask or beg for a tip—it just wasn't appropriate.
There are many places in China where tipping is not a part of the culture. Tipping is something that people in the United States came up with to compensate for long hours and low pay. Furthermore, proper tipping does not always mean the service will be better.
More service industries should latch on to the customer experience model. Firms should be responsible for rewarding their own employees—not the customer. It's not the customer's fault that the company is too cheap to provide a real, substantial salary outside of tipping. If this were the case, there'd be many more happy employees and thus satisfied customers. Tipping should be a surprise and delight—not a requirement to earn enough money for a reasonable standard of living.
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