Tipped serving staff in US restaurants and bars tend to earn FAR more than serving staff in Europe, certainly in the UK. Yes they need tips to do it but the culture means they get tipped and higher tips for better service.
Brits don't hate tipping. We simply understand it is a voluntary gratuity for exceptional service and not an entitlement to subsidise exploitative low wages.
How is it exploitative? They earn more than serving staff in the UK, once tips are accounted for. The tipping culture makes for good pay for good staff in a good establishment.
I'm English, and I do hate tipping. It promotes fake, obsequious, fawning behaviour, which is completely unnatural, and unnecessary, and just makes us uncomfortable.
I am a Brit and the way I see it is. In the US tipping is a way of topping up wages regardless of service. In the UK tipping is a way of appreciation for a good service.
I don't think us Brits like really attentive service in a restaurant to be honest. I find it annoying if I'm continually interrupted when I'm trying to eat a meal with my family. If I want something, I'll ask when someone walks past or go find a member of staff to ask. Also not a fan of the fake jollyness and fake smiles and Smalltalk. Would rather have someone who just gets the job done efficiently with minimum fuss and fanfare and is as genuine as possible.
@@georgeprout42unfortunately they usually time the question when everyone has a mouthful of food and so can't properly respond. I don't know whether it's deliberately done by the serving staff to avoid any negative responses but it really annoys me.
I find it a bloody cheek. I pay for the service in the price. It is not my job to also pay the business' employees. You're their employer, that's literally your job!
If the staff didn't come to work the boss would be seriously screwed so it makes no sense the boss doesn't pay them to be there. The chef and the dishwasher get paid. Why not the person taking the food to the table?
No one can ever explain to me why it's a percentage and not a fixed amount. Serving a burger and serving a steak is the same work. Also, even in states with a higher tipped minimum wage they still expect tips. In NY, they earn $10 an hour, but still expect tips.
American employment law in the US is bonkers, it’s not the consumers responsibility to pay the wages of the staff, that’s the employers responsibility.
Doesn’t help when unscrupulous restaurants and so on take tips from employees and put them in a “tip jar” and share them out amongst the staff - or, in extreme cases, the management treats tips as extra income for the restaurant itself and the employees don’t see any of it - some, at best, might allow the individual employee a %age of the tip - if I go to a restaurant and get exceptional service from the waiting staff and they make sure that everyone in my party gets exactly what they want, I would like that tip to go to the waiter or waitress, or whatever - that individual employee - not everyone in the place - and definitely not the management! We don’t have a tipping culture here in the UK - most decent restaurants pay minimum wage - or living wage, as it’s called nowadays - it usually means employees have to work long hours to get enough money to live on - I would only consider tipping if not only did the waiter or waitress did a good job of accommodating my party, but saw to it that each of us got what we wanted, but also if the entire tip went to that employee and not the entire restaurant staff or the management! Doesn’t help when the bill includes a seemingly mandatory amount that represents a “tip” - only to discover that the staff are rude, the food is overcooked or undercooked, your steak and chips morphed into liver and boiled potatoes somewhere along the line or whatever - then you are expected to pay the gratuity! No! If I get good service, I will happily reward it, if it all goes to that waitress!
While I agree the UK minimum wage system is better, the consumer will pay the same either way. If the employer has to pay minimum wage, the price of the food will have to be adjusted up to cover that cost. The thing I dislike about the US tip-everyone system is you have to deal with that constantly, as well as work out the actual cost of products (their prices don't include taxes like VAT in the UK). It just seems like one of those things they do because it has always been done that way, despite it being a massive pain in the arse for everyone involved. I know many Americans would like to see common sense change (eg bringing in the metric system!). I guess if you're used to something as you grew up with it, you probably don't even think of it as a problem.
@@arthurvasey here in the UK, that’s illegal. There’s a law that states that all tips must go to the staff member and none of it can be kept by the owner of the restaurant.
Its a messed up society where, if you don't tip, then you are looked at as a scumbag, rather than the employer being the scumbag for not paying a decent living wage, or even the government being a worst scumbag for allowing this sutuation to be an actual, existing thing in this day and age.
Why? You say it is messed up but fail to explain why. Do you not realise that the customer ultimately pays the employees anyway? That giving the choice to the customer allows good employees to earn far more than they would in the UK. I have worked in good service jobs in the UK. A very brief calculation of what US serving staff earn on typical tips for good service shows they earn a good chunk more.
@@randomxnpIt's bad for the consumer because it means you're pressured to hurry up, eat your meal and go so the server doesn't lose out, whereas if I'm going for a meal out I expect to be able to chill there for the full evening if I want It could also be bad for the server since on a slow day there is a risk of making less than the minimum wage
The tipping culture in the States makes tourists from most other countries feel very uncomfortable. It just does. And by God it's an expensive place to visit. A pretty basic meal plus a bottle wine is a major shock to the bank account. We've found an infallible way past the problem - we simply don't holiday in the States any longer.
"The tipping culture in the States makes tourists from most other countries feel very uncomfortable." Why? That is a really weird response to adding 20% to the published price.
@@randomxnp After they have already added sales tax and a bunch of other BS extras. If something is advertised as costing $10, I expect it to actually cost $10. If you want me to pay $20, advertise it as costing $20.
@@randomxnp You REALLY don't understand!? I too used to visit the US many times over 40+ years and have now cut down my visits to ONLY very special occasions... Mainly because of the tipping culture and the cost of living! It is now so ridiculous to 'eat out' (and I live in London !).
Everything in the US is about money and exploiting others. It has the worst workers rights of any Western country, it's more like the third world in that respect. Much the same with it's health care system. Everywhere else affordable health care for all is considered a basic human right. In the US it's a chance to exploit people at their most vulnerable for their life savings. It's much the same with food safety standards, animal welfare, pollution & environmental controls, the prison system, etc. It's all about exploiting people and making money, not doing what's best for society because that's (gasp) SOCIALISM! Which means you're a COMMIE!!!🙄😐 Land of the free my arse. Unless it's the Land of the free to be exploited by the greedy, the selfish and the inhuman.
BE AWARE: In Las Vegas _(on the 'Strip'),_ several bars and restaurants ADD a CNF Charge _(in addition to the sales taxes, service charges and/or ANY tip you might choose to leave)._ It is shown on the menu, but right at the bottom in the 'tiniest of letters' and next to the bit telling you about allergies etc. The CNF _("Consessions and/'N' Franchise" charge)_ is a TOTALLY made up charge by the restaurant/bar, referred to by the waiters and bar staff _(when asked/challenged!)_ as a 'tourist tax' ! It is usually about 4.5 to 5% ON TOP of the sales tax, any service charge and you are STILL meant to add a tip for the staff _(of around 15 to 25%)._ It is NOT a genuine charge and you can ask for it to be removed - most serving staff are happy to do so BECAUSE it often affects what THEY get in tips, as people TIP less when they see the ACTUAL bill total before the tip... Check ANY bar or restaurant for ALL the charges before going in anywhere in America - it can save a lot. 🤔☹ EDIT: FYI: My friends and I started to 'play a very British game' (when we saw a 'CNF charge' mentioned on a menu), by getting up and leaving, telling the waiting staff that we would NOT spend our money there, because of it ! We 'hope' the message will get through to the owners that they shouldn't 'take the piss'...
In the US, just pay your staff a decent wage. In the UK I don’t tip a shop assistant who sells me a pair of shoes, why are restaurant staff any different.
In the UK, if I walk into a shoe shop and request a pair of shoes, try them on and pay for them then I have done the majority of the work - Therefore no tip. if I see a pair of shoes I like and the assistant measures my feet before getting a number of pairs of different sizes and then helps me try them on - Yes, probably tip. It all depends on the level of service received.
No we don't hate tipping, we hate being ORDERED to tip. And the % thing is stupid.. why should I give you MORE because you're carrying an already expensive meal? Make your boss pay you properly FFS.
When I was on the island of Jersey last year, Banjo, a restaurant in St Hellier refused to accept a tip because, they say, running a restaurant is their business. The staff are well paid, the food prices are fair, tips aren't necessary.
I'm in London and recently went to a Lebanese restaurant in Shaftsbury Avenue (near Tottenham Court Road)... I was pleasantly surprised that the 'eat in' menu had at the bottom of every page '10% service charge OPTIONAL' - The waiter actually said, "we will add on a 10% service charge to your bill, but please DO NOT feel obligated, as many of our regular customers prefer not to pay it and we don't mind, we prefer you come back for our food... Also, it was VERY good food (and service), not expensive for the West End and we WILL BE GOING BACK soon. 🙂
@@ArthurTanner-d7s OR, if in London (?), check out all the cafes who DON'T expect or look for any 'tips'. That includes most pubs etc. i.e. The Wetherspoons chain (known just as 'Spoons' here in the UK) - by the way, one of the few places where you can purchase a 'bottomless' tea or coffee - stay all day with your laptop! 🙂
As a postman in the UK I would say about 10% of my customers give me a small tip maybe £5 at Christmas which is for delivering mail in all weathers for a year, so giving someone a tenner for carrying a plate 5 yards in a warm room seems to me a bit excessive!
@davidthompson797 The only tip I'll give to my posties is to learn to read so that they post the mail in my letter box instead of the bloke two floors above me, or post his mail through my letter box. I stopped counting the number of times they got it wrong when it exceeded thirty!
I don’t tip unless someone does something particularly worthy of it. There’s no point to it in the UK. The staff are paid enough, so they don’t care about it. I’d rather pay a fair charge for what I want, and not feel rushed or obligated to do or pay more than that. This is one American custom we don’t need to see creeping into the UK further, as it’ll only incentivise employers to pay less once they see staff are making a lot on tips.
I’ve only been to the US twice but I hated feeling I had no choice over tipping and had to be constantly thinking about who I should tip, how much and did I have enough of the right notes on me. Forgetting to tip once in a bar got us a dirty look and sarcastically muttered THANK YOU from the server. If your server is super friendly and helpful it comes across as insincere because they are also hurrying you out the door to get more tips. I’d rather pay more for the meal and be able to relax without stressing over tipping. I’m from NZ where we only tip for exceptional service and it is voluntary.
British people don't hate tipping. Tipping should be voluntary, not compulsory. The problem still is that in the US still, hospitality staff are mostly paid low wages and so tipping needs to make up their wage or they can't live. Its such a shame, if tipping was not needed in the US, hospitality staff would be happier.
Yup It’s very rare for us Brits not to leave a tip. Service has to really suck for me not to leave a tip. And I’ll leave more if Hairdresser/Cabbie/waiter etc has been great. Hairdressers and cabbies especially have at times had some awesome conversations with.
What makes you think that? Some staff have demanded to stay on tipped service in the past. Most earn well if they do a good job, far more than British serving staff (I have waited tables and worked a bar).
@@alans9806 Good service is customer experience like the hairdresser doing a good job, the taxi driver who helps with luggage, or the polite, friendly and helpful restaurant waiter. Why should a poker-faced one, who only speaks to take the order and then delivers it silently, obvious that they hаtе their job be tipped for that lousy service?
Tipping is considered a compliment for exceptional service. People don't hate tipping, they hate the tipped wage law because it is undeniably immoral. I've never seen tipping as an American thing, but a law to allow employers to pay employees less very much is.
The question is not "Why do the British hate tipping?". It is, "Why are Americans happy to live in a mediaeval, feudal society in which the serfs rely on the charity of others?". To put it a different way, "Why the f*ck do you let employers get away with this sh*t? It is literally ripping your society apart.".
Yet they keep voting for people like Trump🤦...crap workers rights, crippling health care costs, no protected minimum holiday per year etc etc and yet they keep voting to get kicked in the teeth...
Hi Kalyn. Nothing is as it seems in the USA. This tipping mentality can also be included in the fact that grocery prices do not include the taxes you will pay at the checkout. The overall effect is that I felt I was being conned when I holidayed in the US. Interestingly, many Americans that I've met often express disbelief at what they see here. One group of Americans refused to believe that the ancient ruins on my property couldn't be the age I said it was because there was concrete in the stonework. Another couple from America became cranky when the musicians playing in my local pub when they were half an hour late showing up. I had to point out that they don't charge and don't get payment as they just perform voluntarily and for their own enjoyment. I think they thought I was lying to them. On yet another occasion an American said to me that he felt the Irish were only speaking Irish because of the tourists. (I live in a Gaelic speaking area of Ireland) I've been to the US and my take is almost everything is not to be trusted and nothing is ever what it seems across the pond. As a result, Americans themselves do not recognise what is real or what is false when they arrive in places as ancient as Britain or Ireland. Anyway, that's my rant for today. Love the channel ❤.
I agree with you that Americans are used to hidden prices at checkouts and that possibly changes their view of other things. As a Brit I want to know exactly how much I'm paying. Not so much pricing items but very obviously advertising something at one price knowing full well that there are lots of hidden extras just seems like dishonesty.
"it's got concrete so it can't be old". Hahaha! Concrete was invented by the Romans, and in some aqueducts is still in perfect working condition. Interesting that the majority of people where you live speak Irish; not very common in places like Dublin.
It's about just plain simple honesty. The price on the ticket should be the price you pay, simple as. Anything else is dishonest, is a con. Like not including taxes in consumer retail prices and charging them extra at PoS.
Which happens all the time in the US. You see a price on a menu but that's not what you pay. That $15 burger is over $20 when you get the bill (After County tax, State tax and resort tax are added) then you are expected to add another $4 as a tip so, all of a sudden that $15 burger costs around $25 . It's the one thing I really hate about US trips.
@@anroadking Even in something like a bookshop. You pick up a book, it says $20 on the price sticker, so, obviously, you hand the cashier a $20 bill ... and get told that's not enough!!! WTGAF?????
It put me right off. Add to that my constant 'captivity' within walls, a car or an enclosure of some kind - walking and wandering is my great delight, and I have done so in many, many places - and I will never go again.
I was in a group at a buffet in Las Vegas. It was all self service, the server did absolutely nothing other than show us an empty table. We never tipped and she gave us a mouthful of abuse. Quite a disturbing experience but I'm not going to tip for non-service.
I hate hearing when American servers give people grief for not tipping. I agree, a SELF SERVICE buffet is not a place that should be expected to give large tips to staff.
Did you watch the video? The 20% service charge pays their wage. Without it the employer would need to pay them the difference & the food you ate would have cost you 20% more, like it would in the UK. If effect you robbed that staff member of their wage, so all they get $2.13 per hour (obviously there would have been other people paying the tip there). No wonder they were miffed. Would you work for less than £2 per hour? Whether the US system is good or bad (I think it's bad), it's their system and when in Rome...
@@McMonkeyful But is it really any wonder those unfamiliar with the system wouldn't assume it was optional?. I'm sure there are many alive in the US that remember when tipping was an option. Blaming the customer if not native is blaming the wrong person. Either add 20% to the prices or pay the staff more then there wont ever be any confusion, in reality its just a race for the bottom. Yes I agree people should educate themselves before visiting another country but they dont and that perhaps goes for Americans more than anyone, we love them though they are just crazy. I tip if I sit down in a restaurant and the service + food was good, id also put some in the tip jar especially at Christmas, I'd tip the taxi driver especially if it was at night and I give the postman a bar of chocolate at Christmas but thats all my choice and well earned. There might be the odd other occasion but it would be more a matter of me paying someone to do something so not really a tip
@@McMonkeyful not my problem as a customer. if the restaurant advertises a meal for $10, i expect the bill to be $10. i don't expect $10 + taxes + tips + whatever other things they come up with. the price you advertise with is the price i expect and the price i'm going to pay. otherwise you're falsely advertising and in a lot of countries that's a crime, but in the US it's allowed to lie to your customers and serve them with a bill that's way higher than you told them beforehand.
I'm with Mr Pink - do you tip McDonald's staff? Do you tip the Paramedic for saving your life?! No you don't (I'm a former Paramedic and McDonald's employee, I know)
Considering the USA is the richest country in the world their lack of regulations giving employees a living wage, paid holidays, sick pay and maternity paid leave of more than a couple of weeks just goes to show how everything in that country revolves around money, if there isn’t a profit to be made it doesn’t get done, appalling.
Service charges are wrong and need to go. Pay your staff a decent wage and bake the cost into the prices. Then the customer can make a choice of where to eat based on clear information.
@@randomxnp One of the wider differences between the US and the UK is transparency in pricing. In the UK sales taxes are built into the price not added on at the till. Basically if the price says £10.00 I know to expect to £10.00, I am billed £10.00 and I pay £10.00. Service charges in restaurants go against this transparency. They are technically optional but you have to explicitly ask for them to be removed from the bill, especially if payment by card which is the default here. So many people feel socially forced into paying them and would prefer they simply be rolled into the basic price.
Im from the uk and I don't want tipping coming over here. when I got to a cafe or restaurant im going with the money i can afford for the meal, if tipping was a thing here i would never ever eat out
I worked for a few years in a hotel in Germany. American tourists used to tip me dollar bills, which I had no use for. It put me in an awkward situation: I was embarrassed to refuse, but I didn't really want the money.
@@mdnickless I worked in a bureau de change in the 80's the look on their faces when I explained $1 is 0.64 pence not the other way round. Thank god they don't go to Malta. That would have been really hard to explain.
@fredshred5194 The other thing was that I was back of house, so I didn't get many tips. I'm totally against tipping culture since it seems so arbitrary. I usually leave a tip for the room cleaners though, since they work really hard and are often forgotten.
I'm visiting the US now, and yesterday, I was asked to tip 10%, 20% or 30% (on top of hidden taxes) when buying a hat... What service did they provide 😂 I'm used to tipping in US restaurants, and I do tip in sit-down restaurants, but these days, they expect you to tip almost everywhere. I like the way we do it in the UK. You tip if you want, but it is not expected. It's the same where I grew up. And what I like the most is the relaxing atmosphere in European restaurants. You aren't bothered every 2 minutes, and they don't bring you the bill before you even finish the meal. Dining in the US can be annoying sometimes when your server really wants that tip, but honestly, I'd tip them extra just to leave me alone 😅 I want to eat in peace
As an American, in such circumstances I usually make a bit of a scene about clicking "No tip". There's absolutely no reason to tip when the only service was running a cash register.
I rarely tip. If I do, it's only to round up the amount. For example if a meal comes to £37, I'll say just to round it up to £40. Even then, I don't do it all the time.
That's exactly how it is in Slovakia. People often just round up. You give them 50€ note for your 47€ bill and say "keep the change," and even then, they sometimes ask, "Are you sure?" Card tipping isn't really a thing, so most people don't tip because they pay with a card. Tipping used to be more common when people used cash and hated coins in their pockets
If tips are virtually compulsory in the US, I don't understand why they don't just add this cost to the food/service prices upfront to avoid all the angst over the ridiculous tipping culture. Customers shouldn't have to top up wages. If a business can't afford to pay its staff, it's not a viable business. Simple.
I agree. Better to increase the minimum wage and make the employers properly pay there staff. Customers are already being gouged by high food prices. They don't need to be guilted into paying even more so that the servers can make a living wage.
@@randomxnp Arguably it rewards annoying intrusive service in which waitstaff get right in your face to ensure they get noticed, while good waiters who remain invisible until needed, and just do what's needed unobtrusively, are easily forgotten.
@@randomxnp NO, its pure BLACKMAIL. TBH: I have travelled to the US many times in over 40 + years, BUT in the latter years have rarely visited BECAUSE of the 'tipping' culture getting out of hand. In the last 10 years _(bearing in mind Covid also stopped me flying anywhere),_ I have ONLY visited 3 times for very 'special occasions'. Here in the UK, we tip if we FEEL we have had really GOOD service. Also, even if a menu says 'a 12.5% service charge will be added to your bill', we have the right NOT to pay it and have it removed from the bill. But the point is, the customer decides to tip or not tip, they should NOT be obligated or be made to feel forced into it !
I could be totally wrong but I have a sneaking suspicion it's about taxes. If you pay it all to the business, they have to pay more corporate tax. Pay it directly to the server & the business makes, on paper, less each tax year. It may even work out better for the server, who pays their taxes on their earnings at a lower rate than the business would, meaning they get to keep more of it than if they were on a fixed minimum wage. I have heard Americans on Twitter explain it that way before. Still a bonkers way of doing things, but there may be some method to the madness.
I don't think this video will be controversial, but I do think people will enjoy discussing the topic! As an American who lives in England for several months of each year, I definitely had a "culture shock" returning back to Texas last year and seeing how the tipping culture here has become MUCH worse! It's madness! I made a video about my feelings and heard from so many Britons that they NEVER tip. I know that tipping isn't big in the UK, but I didn't realise how many people do not tip AT ALL! Furthermore, I heard many stories from Britons that they visited the US and were harassed or guilted... or even chased down the road... by servers pressuring them to leave a 15 or 20% tip! That made me sad to hear. People should never be pressured to leave a gratuity.
When I visited thw US on business in the 90s I ordered some drinks for the others and paid what was asled. A colleague mantione "you should have tipped" so I called hte waitress back and gave her the tip.
Google: Why are we called Britons? The use of Britons for the inhabitants of Great Britain is derived from the Old French bretun, the term for the people and language of Brittany, itself derived from Latin and Greek, e.g. the Βρίττωνες of Procopius. It was introduced into Middle English as brutons in the late 13th century.
@MagentaOtterTravels I don't remember tips being expected in restaurants in the 70s Dara. I used to go to a Chinese restaurant every week. Stopped going in the 80s because married, mortgage = no money. In ancient times (before 1970) the postman and the dustmen expected a tip at Xmas. They never got anything from my dad. Did I mention his parents were Scottish? 😂Taxi drivers always expected tips. They also tried to charge American tourists in London higher fares before they were forced to display their prices.
I'll be blunt, considering I have been working in minimum wage agency jobs since losing my job during covid as the company I worked for discovered they could save a fortune by closing places down and using working from home etc, going out for a meal now is a rarity and I might round stuff up, but I doubt I would go any further than an extra fiver. There is no way I would pay an extra 20%.
Hope the work situation picks up mate. The 20% in the US isn't extra. It's just paying the staff's wage directly, as the employer only has to pay them about $2 per hour. If the employer had to pay them minimum wage, that 20% would just be added on to the cost of the meal. Daft system but not exactly the same as the UK tipping, where any tip is an added bonus on their basic wage.
I hate going to restaurants in the USA because of this. The thought that I'm supporting slavery 150 years after it was ostensibly banned leaves a sour taste in my mouth. I haven't found that restaurant prices in the USA are less than Europe, quite the opposite.
What utter bullshit. If they are not tipped enough they get as much as staff in a supermarket. Why do you think that is slavery? They are paid. By definition not slavery. Or you could tip and good staff can get decent pay, more than UK serving staff.
@@randomxnp Federal minimum wage (for supermarkets) - some states can be higher - *$7.25* an hour (2024 figs). For food service workers, the employer only has to pay *$2.13* an hour, providing they make a total of $7.25 *with tips.* So yes, you're absolutely subsidising the business food owners. Tipping originates from 'noblesse oblige' in Europe - for aristocrats to favour servants - and it is very much seen as a legacy of slavery and indenture.
@@wessexdruid7598 "you're absolutely subsidising the business food owners" What a ridiculous statement. The business's only source of income is the customer. That is not subsidy, it is payment. They are just making the payment directly to the waiting staff rather than through the company, "...very much seen as a legacy of slavery and indenture" That does not mean it is. Tipping was not normal in the US until well after slavery was banned and the last indentured service was paid off or the debtor died. Many things "seen as" are not any such thing.
@@randomxnp Just because you say something is ridiculous doesn't mean it is, either. Now enough - you have your views - just don't expect Brits to agree with you, who know it can work differently (and give employees much more resilience).
Only time I've ever tipped is when the family had Xmas dinner at a restaurant, the kids had thier own little table and the waitress dealt with the kids hand over foot, she was brilliant, and earned herself a 50 quid xmas bonus.
@@grahamstubbs4962 dont think she got paid a flat rate to work xmas mate, most likey time n a half or tme in leu. either way she kept the kids well entertained and earned her 50quid.
I'm English, and I rarely tip. In a restaurant, what does the waiter do other than carry the food from the kitchen to the table? It is not my place to reward someone for doing their job. On the rare occasions that I have tipped, it is because of service above and beyond carrying out their job, for example, the taxi driver who has been more helpful that is usual, or a waiter who has added to the experience of eating in their restaurant. I do not drive and use Uber a lot. In annoys me after a trip when asked to rate the driver (acceptable) and to give a tip (optional but annoying). Today, I paid almost £15 to get to a medical appointment and back home. A total of 7 miles. Uber expected 2 tips for that. I gave none as I'd paid for the service and got what I paid for, no more and no less. If people think that I am stingy, so be it. Thankfully, I've no intention of going to the US.
To be fair, in restaurants in the UK. tips are often split with kitchen staff (good) and the manager (bad). I have no problem with paying 10% extra as an optional choice to increase wages for people who work there, as long as the food is ok. Couldn't give a flying one about the service unless they bring you the wrong thing three times or something...
Most Brits Do tip when they are on holiday in countries where wages are lower. And they are happy to do so! Often tips to waiters, room maids, bar staff in hotels are fairly substantial. For instance a £10 tip to the lady who serviced your room for a week equates to 4000 Lira in Turkey, which is a reasonable sum to a person who may only get 500 Lira an hour.. I once saw a Turkish waiter running after a British customer because he had left too large a tip!
In the USA, everyone gets a tip. Someone points you to your seat at a theatre and they're expecting $5, go into a supermarket and do self-checkout and you're still asked to leave a tip. In the UK, many restaurants have a cover charge, a service charge and still expect a tip. It's disgusting, all of it. People should get an acceptable wage for doing a decent job.
Not sure why anyone would tip on top of the service charge... The service charge IS the tip. It's optional. And if the service wasn't good enough, I would ask for it to be removed.
@@dib000 that is not common though. I find it convenient, as I often don't have enough cash for my preference, a cash tip, and many which don't add it do not offer.
Which is EVERYONE'S right... Even if a menu say's that a 'discretionary 10%, 12.5% or 15% service charge will be added to the bill, you can ask for it to be removed and they MUST do so, its the law.
@@wessexdruid7598 That's right. There are 3 parties here: the bosses, the employees and the customers. The bosses and the employees both want tipping to continue, because they both make more money out of it, at the customers' expense. It's down to the customers to push back, and they're not doing it sufficiently. That's why tipping has gotten 'out of control'.
Not just Brits- Aussies, too. When I tip, I want all the staff to share, from the cook to the bottle washer, I've had some exceptionally good service in the US, but mostly it's worse than at home, so the argument tipping incentivises better service just doesn't align with my experience.
I had an American server chase me to the door because we hadn't left him $5 on the table. Extras had already been paid in "gratuity" ($10) on the bill. Doing the same job in the UK at the time I gave him a tip "give good service, people leave money; give bad service they don't!" 3 families had been seated after ours yet they all had their drinks within minutes. We had been left with a jug of water. 1 family had eaten and left and half of our table had almost finished their meal, before the other half were served their meals cold. And this clown expected us to leave him extra cash.
You can throw me firmly into the 'I'd rather die, than tip' category. In my whole working life, (I'm 70) never once, did i give, or receive a tip. The employer should be Totally responsible for the wage of the employee. However, if a person is working for himself, and they do a good job for me, I'm quite happy to give them a nice bonus.
In 2008 me and my wife went to Chicago for a week. On one of the mornings I ate in the hotel restaurant. The bill came to 6 Dollars. There was only the manager in the restaurant but he expected a tip. I refused to pay the tip. On the penultimate evening we had dinner in the restaurant. The bill came to just over 50 dollars. I again refused to pay the tip because it was expected. I gave the waiter 20 dollars in cash instead of giving it to the restaurant so the greedy manager, hopefully, didn't get his hands on it. It's about time America had a proper living wage for the hospitality industry instead of relying on the public to bump up the wages.
@@cplcabs The meal was 6 dollars, and the manager demanded a tip, on the night before they left the manager gave them a bill for 50 dollars so 5 meals for 6 dollars £30, which I assume had been paid each time and gave the server a 20 dollar tip.
As a British, I feel that the American way devalues the idea of tipping. The purpose of tipping is to show your appreciation of the skill/effort an employee has put in on your behalf. It signifies that someone has gone above and beyond; making it all but mandatory completely removes the point. I don't thank people who wont hold a door open for me because it would be meaningless when I thanked those who do.
100% it does. I've heard people say the service was terrible, but they know they rely on tips for their income so they still tip. That's literally rewarding shoddy service. How about if they rely on it so damn much, they actually put some effort in and earn it?
@@Poliss95 Doing more than that which they are contractually obliged. For example a shop assistant offering to help you move and load the 60" TV you just bought into your car. Or a waiter informing you a reservation just cancelled and you can move to a better table. Anyone who goes out of their way to help you even when their shift is ending/already over. There are a lot of people who will do the minimum as outlined in their employment contract/managers instructions; there are many who will do more than that and then there are some who go the extra mile. To the latter go the tips.
In Europe it's standard to have a higher basic wage AND PAID SICK LEAVE, so that if you are too sick to work you can stay at home and still pay your rent.
Food is actually cheaper in the UK than the USA (33% groceries, 7% eating out) before tips. I see even self-service checkouts in the USA now ask for tips, seriously WTF! The USA is now basically an experiment in hyper-commercialisation. Contrasted to Japan where tipping is often seen as insulting.
I go to work. I get paid wages. No one gives me a tip so why should I fund someone else's wages at the expense of their boss not paying them a living wage!
You've answered your own question there champ. You get paid a living wage. If a server relies on that 20% (in the US) to live on & you don't pay then you're robbing them of their livelihood. It's different here in the UK where all workers get a living wage & tipping is optional.
@@McMonkeyful erm no. I'm not robbing them of there livelihood. There employer is robbing them by not paying a living wage. That is not a customers responsibility.
@@creakybones2407 In the UK you're perfectly within your rights to not leave a tip. Staff get paid a living wage. In the US system, many waiting staff are paid a special tips-based hourly wage of around $2 with the 20% service charge going directly to the server, rather than too the business and then to the employee. So morally, paying the 20% tip is expected, or the server is effectively not getting paid (or paid next to nothing). All of this was explained in the video. So in the US system, as bizarre as it it, you ARE responsible for paying the server. It's swings & roundabouts, because if the employer paid a living wage, they would have to raise the prices to cover that cost & the customer ends up paying the same amount either way.
@@McMonkeyful Incorrect, by law if they don't get tips the employer must bring them up to minimum wage. So if they don't get enough tips they will be paid more than $2 per hour
As a Brit 🇬🇧 I hate service charges at restaurants with a passion and always ask for it to be removed from my bill. I am paying for a meal in which the businesses costs should have been factored in. I also do not appreciate when the bill is different to the amount advertised.
Tips = servitude. The Victorians had strict etiquette about how much you should tip each of the staff, when you stayed for the weekend at a country house. A sliding scale from butler downward, but they were all lined up outside when you left, to say goodbye and accept the appropriate amount! (And you'd probably never be invited back if you undertipped the butler. Of course if you were Edward VII you'd probably leave one of the maidservants with a baby on the way, but that was another matter.) My first introduction to the concept of tipping in the 1950s was the annual Christmas box tip to dustmen, milkmen etc. Mum handled that - and also if we were out for the day as a family and had tea in a teashop or café, Mum would pay the bill (typical working class family, dad handed over his pay-packet on Friday and mum handled the ration books and the budget for the week). After some thought she would leave a few coins discreetly under the edge of a plate, for the waitress to find when she cleared the table after we left. (Never a waiter, we couldn't afford the sort of restaurant that would employ men waiters!) It was very discreet, and embarrassing. So I've grown up with the concept that if you give someone a tip you imply that they are your servant. And I feel embarrassed that they are willing to accept 'servant' status. In later life I was relieved to discover places where tipping was banned or frowned upon - Soviet Russia (where it was presumably political doctrine) and Japan. Frankly the US usage of tipping to mask its primitive approach to paying a living wage is horrendous, and should get them blacklisted from any list of civilised peoples.
A family of Americans came to my local pub a couple of years ago, and they insisted on tipping the landlord (who also happens to be a friend, and is also the owner of the pub), despite his protestations. The father then went on to declare that the prices were too low, and the landlord ought to raise them promptly. Needless to say, the locals were horrified at that particular suggestion. Here in the Cotswolds we already pay far too much for our beer, without somebody from the USA coming along and recommending that it becomes even more expensive and sets a bad example by tipping the owner of the place. Fortunately, we have resident Americans who count our tiny town as home and they have "gone native", so there is no more silliness about tipping pub owners or raising the price of beer from that quarter. They can probably no longer return home as they have had their ways corrupted. Rumour is that some of them actually drink tea too.
I hate tipping. On my trip to America tipping stressed me out so much. I didn't know who to tip, how much to tip so I ended up guessing. I'm sure I tipped people who didn't need tipping at some points and I probably tipped both way under and way over throughout my holiday. It all added up to a more expensive holiday than other countries I've visited.
I've noticed a lot more places in the UK (at least in my county) have started adding tip requests on the card payment screen. Does my nut in because you literally have to hit no while the server is looming over you, or feel pressured into a yes. I don't usually suffer from social anxiety, but there's something about "no tip" button while server literally watches me do it that sets me off, so I then feel pressured into tipping and I hate it. Need to get over myself and just hit no. I've worked wait and bar staff jobs, they're not easy, but they're not any harder than most min wage jobs. I still work min wage which sorta makes me extra against tipping because it's like brother, we earn the same, and I don't get tipped because of the min wage job i do, why are wait staff the one special case?
I always refuse these. The more strongly they ask for it the less likely they are to get it! Even if I am going to tip anyway I will pay the listed amount by card and then tip with cash.... This is especially important when I'm dining on expenses. The price of the food is covered and goes on the company credit card..... The tip is not reimbursed and not allowed to go on the company card
My biggest issue, as a tourist visiting the USA, is having to decipher the secret code. No advertised price is ever anything remotely like the actual price you end up paying. There's always a tip or a tax and/or an undisclosed fee that locals might be used to but it's far from obvious to the newcomer. I don't want to make any kind of political statement about tipping culture by tipping the wrong amount, I just want to know what I need to pay before I commit to it.
I went to a restaurant in St. Louis with a few buddies. We forgot to tip. The manager approached us in the parking lot and told us that we forgot to tip. I just moved to the UK. Thank goodness I don't have to mental math to figure out how much a meal is gonna cost me.
I am shocked and disgusted that you were followed to the car park. As if you had tried to run off without paying. Tough luck on them that you didn’t tip. How dare they! Wow.. smh. It’s pretty fkd up.
So if you employed an architect firm to design your extension, but the one who turns up say they pay me very little you have to make up my wages? Please leave me a tip. Just stupid - why should it make ANY difference what job you have? Tips are not part of your salary they are optional
When I lived and worked in US I once took a group of employees out for a Christmas dinner. The waiter got VERY upset because I didn’t give him a 20% tip. Asking repeatedly ‘was everything ok?. As the bill was $800 I told him firmly that was not prepared to pay him $160 for carrying our food from the kitchen 10 yds to our table. I think I left about 10% and felt abused. Frankly it’s ridiculous to pay 20% !
As a Brit, I definitely fall into the tipping good service and absolutely not tipping bad service bracket. I'd much rather pay more for stuff knowing that the staff are actually getting fair pay. It always amazes me that folk in the U.S. get angry about customers not tipping rather than employers being allowed by law to exploit their staff and under-pay them.
I'm a nurse, and I used to cringe when patients tried to give me gratuities. It was not acceptable, if they wanted to contribute, we directed them to The Hospital League of Friends, they're a voluntary body at each hospital. Who raise funds for smaller improvements through their kiosks in the hospital. They organise the library cart, small grants for the less well off patients and a hundred and one things. My last Nhs hospital they used to make a breakfast baguette to die for in their little kiosk just downstairs from my old Operating Department.
The real reason why Brits hate tipping is they feel in their jobs (unless they work in an industry which accepts tips for their work, which is less likely) they are not tipped so why should they tip others? If I bought some food mail order I would expect it to turn up and be of acceptable quality (i.e. safe and whatever would be expected of that food). If not you would demand a refund. They would not expect a tip, the best they could hope for is a repeat order.
I'm an Australian I don't hate tipping, it's as you said it for service above and beyond, but if someone demanded a tip I would wouldn't give them the time of day.
I have visited the United States once, staying in New York for a week. Knowing full well the ridiculous ‘tipping culture’ I would face, I chose to carry my own bags so I wouldn’t seem rude not to tip someone. I tipped taxi drivers, but in restaurants, which in New York are very expensive, I only tipped when the service was really good. Even then I only tipped 10% as I felt that was suitable. One evening I had very poor service and I flatly refused to tip the waiter, who then got his manager involved to try and force me to give him a tip. The manager agreed and tried to detain me at the restaurant. I had to threaten them with calling the police if they didn’t let me leave and that worked very quickly. Simply put, the tipping culture in the US is abysmal. No-one should have to tip if they don’t want to, and they shouldn’t to be made to feel like a criminal if they choose not to. UK system is much better because employers pay properly, which cheapskate American employers should legally be required to. Broken system in a broken country.
the arrogance of some people eh? I feel like I would probably get in some arguments if I visited the US. if I do tip I normally just round up to the nearest 5 or 10
Brit here. I don't 'hate' tipping per se. I just hate when it's mandatory, even when the service is bad. Pay people a living wage. Tips (if any) should be for exceptional service. I was in New York recently and got particularly bad service from a waiter. In that instance, I simply refused to tip, but in other instances I followed the practice even if I'd have preferred for the staff to get a decent wage to begin with, and have that baked in the meal price.
The Insider Food channel did a fast food comparison USA v UK not that long ago - typically US prices (without tipping) are ~20% higher. You have to pay for all those extra chemicals somehow...
I think the accurate description for Brits tipping is it is circumstantial rather than expected or required. A Brit will commonly tip when a job/work is Large, strenuous, exceptional or common in that local society. However a Brit will always firmly believe the Employer is responsible for providing a decent wage to it's staff and any society that does not has questionable business practices if there is no shortage of wealth.
I'm from the UK. When I'm in the US, I hate the tip culture. Why sould I have to tip at a fast food restaurant, if it's table service then yes I tip 15% some times 20%. At the bar I also hate having to tip, if its not table service, but most of the time the tip is added to the bill even if you're sitting at the bar. And Don't get me started on the toilet attendance...... I have seen the tip option appear at the till in some supermarkets in America, hell no. I'm not tipping the cashier, after all I want to bag my own groceries. When I go to the US, I always take some real Cadbury's chocolate bars, and before I check out of a hotel I always leave one bar of chocolate and around $10 to $20 tip for the cleaner. I use the LYFT app for taxis, and tip up to 25% depending on good conversation with the driver. I also send a lot of time in Cyprus, and its much like here in the UK. When I go to the pub and get a drink from the bar no tip. If its table service then its €1 as standard per person sitting at the table. If you have only had 1 round of drinks, then €1 is acceptable. But after a couple of rounds then its €1 each. Nice and easy. Buts its best to pay by card, tip in cash, that way you get the best service. My local supermarket out there does home delivery. You do your food shop, and they drive you home for free. So I always tip, depending on the driver I tip €2 or €5 at Christmas €20. Its a great service you never have to wait more then 5mins. So a well deserved tip.
I don’t tip because society says I have to. Alright, I mean I’ll tip if somebody really deserves a tip. If they really puts forth the effort, I’ll give them something extra. But this tipping automatically, it’s… for the birds. As far as I’m concerned, they’re just doin their job.
Have seen americans getting kicked out of pubs near me for trying to tip as it caused so much indignation 'why are you trying to tip me? do I look poor?'
TIPS originally stood for. "To Insure Prompt Service". Dry tea leaves used to be imported from India/Asia and both High society and lower social classes both wanted to buy it. It was a rare commodity and the rich didn't like queueing with the lower class when waiting to buy it. So the sellers created the acronym TIPS and created the tip box. Richer buyers used to pay "To insure prompt service" and basically jump to the front of the queue. This is why British only tip when they have had good/exceptional service from the waiting staff. If the waiting staff ignore you or treat you poorly, then you feel like you have been treated like a lower class person and therefore don't feel obligated to pay the TIP as you only received the basic level of service. If you treat me like a Higher class citizen then I play the part and act like one by giving a tip. If you treat me as lower class then I play that role and not feel I need to give a tip.
What I found weird in the US was the sheer number of service employees doing jobs we don't have who expected tipping. Valet parking, guy to open the hotel door, someone who wants to take my cases to my room and a server in a bar (I walked up to the bar and the expression on the barman's face was like I had complimented him on his sister's sexual prowess). When I did not tip this bar server at the right time, she asked "Don't you tip your bar servers where you live?" "Your job doersn't exist = we go to the bar ourselves." Percentage tipping servers isn't logical. If I order pasta or lobster at twice the price, the server does the exact same work. The chef might have worked harder, but the server did the same.
Tipping is a sign of appreciation of exceptional service, and even then 10% maximum. Here in the UK, we might tip at restaurants, but in pretty much no other circumstances - certainly not in bars... ever! When in America, I bought a beer and paid for it and the bar tender actually said 'how about a tip?', to which I just drank my beer and left the bar.
Friends and I nearly got chased out of a restaurant in NYC after we tipped them the UK standard 10%. A helpful local chipped in with "it's 20% or nothing" before it turned nasty!
Another thing I've remembered... and I'm not sure if this is still true, or is even widespread. We befriended a barman, and every few drinks he would give us "one on the house". He said he used it as a way to get bigger tips because the owner wouldn't know about it! UK pubs usually "meter" the drinks (or at least tally volume sold with sales) so this wouldn't work here.
@@vkdrk Yes. That was the way it was put to us. If you have had bad service, you tip nothing. 10% is an insult. Once you know this, it does make "cheap" US restaurant prices look not quite the bargain they appear on the door menu. They really are not that cheap when you factor in the tip, but they do allow headline "get the customer in" prices for the proprietor.
As an Australian, the one thing I totally HATE about the USA and Canada is the tipping culture. Because wait staff rely on tips, they want you in and out as fast as possible instead of the mostly relaxing, take your time, restaurant experience elsewhere in the world. Getting a $5 tip for exceptional service would be unexpected and a big deal for a waiter in Australia.
In pubs and bars in the UK, if you choose to tip bar staff it takes a particular form; when you place your order you end with the phrase ' and one for yourself '. The common practice is that bar staff will add the cost of the cheapest alcoholic drink on the menu to your order and add it to tip ' jar' in some very touristy areas unscrupulous staff have been know to add the cost of the most expensive drink assuming tourists will be unfamiliar with this practice It's also common in the UK and other parts of Europe for tips to be pooled and then shared among all staff including kitchen staff in restaurants ( known as the tronc system). There has been controversy in the UK when management, especially in chain restaurants, have asked for a share of the tronc since tips are not usually shared with management or the senior chefs in restaurants
I mean, in theory you're buying them a drink, which they can choose to drink at the end of their shift. However, it's not a problem if they take the cash value instead... tip jar just smacks of management taking a cut though. Either take the drink or politely refuse, I'm offering it to you, not them.
@@fumblingman1691 That's not the custom. If you tip in a pub/ bar in the UK you'd normally only do this at the end of the evening, not every time you order drinks. Since in most busy pubs you're likely to be served by different bar tenders throughout the evening the ' and take one for yourself ' is always understood to be a tip for everyone.
@@robt2778 Absolutely not. It is likely that people will only buy a drink once, but definitely not at the end of the evening. Punters are most likely to buy the barman a drink with a large round, which is rarely at the end of the evening, as a sign of appreication for a difficult order. Alternatively, often you might get one at the beginning of the evening, by folks grateful to be there. It's nearly only groups of people or older gents who buy a drink - the custom tends to be observed most by older folks. Groups are rarely still together by the end of the evening and more sensible drinkers will have left long before then. Perhaps some unscrupulous "pub managers" have convinced some bartenders or punters that having a drink bought is the same as a tip and should be shared - I can see some chains trying to pull this con - but the clue is in the name; you're buying someone a drink, normally as part of a round. You're not giving them money, and you're not showing a general appreciation for everyone under the roof. This is that creeping Americanisation. This has been the case since before my grandfather ran his spit and sawdust east end pub back in the 1950's and certainly for the last 20+ years I've been behind the bar at different establishments. I must say, I've not worked in a fancy wine bar, but even when I worked in a cocktail bar in a fancy northern restaurant it was the case.
Most, but by no means all, place use a tronc system as you say. This is partly because in most places I go to eat, the server who takes your drinks order is often not the same as the person who takes your food order, who may or may not be the same person who brings out the food etc. In other words, there isn't one server who deals with all aspects of your visit. There are exceptions of course, but at least in my part of the UK and the pubs and restaurants I visit, you will have several different people involved in serving you. It is also worth remembering that at least in the UK, the servers are not competing with each other; they are working together in competition with other eateries. Generally, where I go, tips are not expected and indeed in places where I eat regularly, they expect you not to tip and are just happy to have a regular customer.
There used be a practice in the UK of settling a bill at a restaurant by card but not including a tip on it and instead leaving cash on the table, typically under a plate or saucer, for the serving staff to find. The reason for this was that some restaurant owners would keep the tip for themselves rather than pass it on and diners wanted to avoid that happening. However, last week the Employment (Allocation of Tips) Act 2023 came into force and means that employers now must pass on the full amount of any tips. This Act also shows how it can be some time between Royal Assent and a law, or parts of it, actually coming into force and is an example of a Private Members Bill actually becoming law. The vast majority of laws are proposed by the government of the day. There are ballots for individual MPs to propose a law. A topic in its own right for a possible video.
Well, you are completely wrong. We do not hate tipping. What we cannot fathom is how people depend on these tips just to survive rather than having a decent wage.
Regardless of tips, bosses should not be able to get away with paying less than minimum wage or no wage. Is that not a form of slavery? When I was in Portland Oregon visiting my brother, the woman in a Starbucks cafe gave me the evil eye because I didn't put money in the tip jar. I didn't realise you were also meant to tip shop workers. I mean why should she get a tip for giving me a mug of coffee that I'd already paid for? MENTAL!!
I cannot imagine why America's put up with this, tipping should be for doing a good job, not to bail out employers who are allowed to get away with not paying a fair wage. One of many reasons why I am put off visiting America.
So do I. I will usually leave a cash tip though, unless they get all arsy about removing it. By law, service charges in restaurants are entirely optional and can't be enforced.
I was brought up never to tip as it is insulting to suggest someone is not properly paid for their job, the price is the price, that’s where the tipping debate should end. 🇬🇧
It's the 'hidden cost' part that really frustrates. Like shops in the US not including the tax on price tags. It's so hard to know how much you'll actually end up paying.
From Australia and do not tip, recently I was in Hanoi doing a tour and we were told not to tip at all. The two Americans turned around and tipped the guide which put us all in a bad light. Total arrogance.
I don't think the Americans were rude... I think they were just trying to be polite. But as an American who lives in England part of the year... I see both sides. I have stopped tipping as much. And in situations where I am with people of other cultures/countries, I try to follow the general consensus and not tip.
@@MagentaOtterTravels They may have been trying but Americans on this subject often say how tourists should learn the local customs yet often fail to follow this themselves. One of the reasons Brits despise the American tipping culture is because of the way it's seeping in over here. In the last few weeks I've had food order apps ask for tips before I even place the order(!), seen tip jars at order counters when the food is collected at another counter (!) and even had my barber give me £5.00 in change despite there being notes in the till in the clear hope I would tip. Americans are creating expectations and I can understand why some British tourists feel totally justified in following that American example and taking our tipping culture with them.
@@HuwBass Japan especially... They can be extremely insulted if offered a tip _(mind you, less so in major city's - because they understand American tourists don't know any better - but definately in the rural areas)._ To a Japanese worker, their whole 'pride' _(and worth ethic)_ is by delivering the BEST service they can... They don't want to be offered, what they perceive as a 'bribe' for their service or job to be done right.
One thing I hate about it is it assumes the only part of the service was the wait staff. What about the cooks, pot washer, cleaners, chef? And the employer should be responsible for paying staff fairly.
Pay people properly! Tip if service is Exceptional! - Entitlement to tips is a terrible culture. No one is going to come after you but boy will they make you feel uncomfortable and even harangue you verbally.
As a Brit I'm about halfway between those two points - I see it as something that reflects the level of service, but not necessarily the quality of that service if that makes any sense. So I'll tip in a restaurant or a cafe where they bring food to your table, but not in a pub* and not in a 'cafeteria'-type place where you have to put your tray back in the trolley afterwards! But I'll always tip whether the service was good or indifferent. I'm more aware of the 'need' to tip post-Covid especially in the hospitality sector as it seems they need all the help they can get. If an entire industry is using it as a cynical ploy to cut labour costs (as in the US) I'm less happy about that but unilaterally withholding a tip isn't going to change that, it just hits your impoverished waiter in the pocket. Academic for me as I've never been to the US and I tend not to go to 'chain' restaurants either. *Just a quick point about British pubs which some Americans may not be aware of - it's very rare to get table service so that is probably why most of us don't tip, it's just not part of pub culture. I usually take my glasses back to the bar before leaving anyhow :-)
It isn't that Europe/Britain doesn't like tipping - it's just that what the US does is not tipping. A gratuity is supposed to be above your pay for things that go beyond what your job is; whie in America it is an expected suppliment to cover the shortfalls in the US social system. And I particularly hate how fake and toxic it gets. When my wife went to a spa we had 20% added onto the bill up front, and the clerk said with a straight face "I added it for your convenience". No you didn't you lying little toerag! You added it because if I kick off and tell you to rmove it we're going to get crappy service. And this was at Saratoga Springs in Disney - so not exaclt like we were coming in cheap regardless.
Maybe it's better to describe it as more similar in principle to Mafia protection money instead of tipping, the way it works in America? It's the same mechanism, but the "consequence" for not paying it isn't violence, but hassle and social opprobrium instead.
