How often do we reference the so-called ‘Value’ War among major players in the overcrowded Fast Food Sector. But we seldom report anymore on the so-called tipping war between consumers, servers and managers…
Alas, that doesn’t mean the latter conflict is over. Much less does it seem headed for any kind of peaceful conclusion…
Increasing numbers
Financial management assistance company WalletHub has released the results of a re-cent survey it conducted among average Americans. And found a growing – not shrinking – gulf between consumers and those who serve them.
Key findings
I, for one, had made the mistaken assump-tion that all the negative publicity about tipping fatigue and tipping pressure had driven down the greedy, grasping ‘demands (disguised as ‘opportunities’), being forced on consumers up to about a year ago…
But the first thing the new survey confirms is that the issue has escalated rather than abated.
‘Silent desperation’?
WalletHub polled Americans on their current attitudes about ‘gratuities’. An the result showed a pot that had heated up from a simmer to a slow boil. Wallet Hub says consumers definitely remain an-noyed (and ultimately confused) about tipping.
“Tips have gone far beyond traditional establishments, which include sit-down restaurants, bars, and hair salons. Now, it’s everywhere you look,” WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo tells Food & Wine. “I think that’s part of the frustration, because people are at a point where they don’t know who to tip and how much to tip.”
All directions
Lupo says, first and foremost, that Americans are ‘fed up’ with increased tipping ‘opportunities’. That’s a reference to inflated ‘suggested’ tips amounts, amplified attempts to force consumers to tip in cases where they traditionally would not, and excessive pressure from servers, particularly, to make tipping pretty much ‘mandatory’.
A corollary to that finding is the perception that tipping pressure now seems to be coming from all directions – not just often underpaid workers who actually serve you on the front lines. More than half of Americans say they tip out of social obligation, the survey reports, rather than rewarding excellent service – the original rationale for tipping.
A whopping 83 percent of respondents also think so-called ‘service fees’ shouldn’t exist. And 30 per-cent of Americans say they give less when they’re presented with a ‘tipping screen’ when completing a digital transaction.
Employees also affected
Three of every five poll respondents believe it’s now common practice for businesses to replace wages they pay employees with ‘forced’ tips.
We recently brought you a story on how Grub Hub had been found guilty in court of deceptively mismanaging digital tips, diverting tips to make it look like they, the employer, were paying drivers more.
Listen up, Mr.Trump…
Of special importance and unusually ironic interest right now… President Donald Trump tried to appeal to lower-income voters who rely on tips to ‘fill out’ their paycheques, by proposing to an income tax exemption on tips. More than a quarter of survey respondents think tips should still be taxed as income.
Lupo warms Trump’s plan could ‘open the floodgates’, making the already grey area surrounding the ancient question of reporting cash tips even hazier, and increasing the potential for ‘shady business’ surrounding tips in general.
My take
Other recent studies have revealed that consumers are particularly fed up with so-called tipping screens on digital transaction terminals. Especially those which try to make tipping non-optional, or ‘suggest’ previously unheard of tipping percentages of 20 percent or more. (See photo, above left…)
And who can forget the stories early last year about New York City delivery driver/riders who were holding food delivery orders hostage until customers agreed to pay inflated tips amounts.
The central finding of the WalletHub survey was… A full 9 out of every 10 Americans feels that tipping ‘has gotten out of control’. As such, a breaking point has been reached. And it remains to be seen who will blink first: business operators, employees – or more likely consumers… Who are already indica-ting they’re ready to rebel against the whole tipping concept…
~ Maggie J.