Has Tipping Culture Gotten Out of Control?

Guest Opinion

By Soledad Demeuse | June 29, 2024

Imagine this: You’re on your way home from a long day and decide to stop at your favorite market to get a pre-made sandwich and a bottle of water. You make it up to the check-out desk where the cashier scans your items and asks you what kind of tip you want to leave.

You’re standing there wondering whether it’s appropriate to tip someone who took five seconds to do something they already get paid to do, but don’t want to feel the guilt of saying “no tip” wash over you as the person is staring at you, waiting for an answer.

This is a feeling that’s becoming too familiar to many Americans in the last few years. Thanks to the new advancements in tipping technology, the practice has started to lose its purpose of showing gratitude and has become a norm in too many places we shouldn’t accept.

According to a recent study from the Pew Research Center, 72 percent of U.S. adults have felt that tipping is expected in more places today than five years ago. Markets, grocery stores, pharmacies, and more have all started to use card readers to urge customers for tips. Some even say that they’ve found themselves being asked to tip at self-checkout machines.

With all these places asking for tips, it makes people wonder who the money is going to. If I knew where I was tipping, I’d probably be more inclined to do so, but the lack of detail just leaves me irritated.

Recently, I attended a concert for country artist, Zach Bryan, and of course I had to get some merchandise. When I went to the stand, the card reader gave me the option to tip 15 percent, 20 percent, 25 percent, a custom tip, or no tip. I already was paying $120 for a single hoodie, so I hit “no tip.”

The woman at the stand did nothing except turn around, grab a sweatshirt out of a box, and hand it to me. I’m sure she’s already getting paid for doing a simple job, so I felt there was no reason for me to tip. However, when I’m standing face-to-face with an individual who’s helping me, I can’t help but feel rueful when I have to hit “no tip” on that card reader.

Sometimes, it’s hard to remember that these people are already getting paid for their job and most of the time they aren’t going the extra mile to help me. With the pressures from society to pay the extra money to help those around me, it can be hard to say no, especially when many people are fighting to survive.

To put things into a larger perspective, my grandmother moved to the U.S. from a small town in Spain when she was a young adult and claimed that tips have never been normalized in her home country. Even today when she visits Spain, she says that people still look at her American husband strangely when he tries to leave a couple of euros on the table for their server at a restaurant.

There, instead of forcing people to compete for who can make the most money with tips, the Spanish government provides everyone with various services like free healthcare, which may be a system that helps save people from the pressures of feeling like they have to tip and pay extra money.

By no means am I saying that Americans should stop tipping service industry employees like servers, but the line needs to be drawn at some institutions. As someone who works at a restaurant, I know that tips are what some people live on, so it’s unfair to take that practice away from the people who work extra hard to get their funds to live. I’d rather save my money for those who rely on tips and spend hours taking care of me rather than someone who already gets paid above minimum wage to do their job.

So how do we draw the line? There’s one simple answer: we can’t. Since COVID-19, societal expectations have drastically changed, and it’s going to be hard to revert. People around the country are already questioning when it is appropriate to tip and how much they should do so. The building resentment for the pressures to tip at these abnormal places can hurt the people who actually need it.

The most we can do as individuals is stay mindful when prompted to tip. Think of who it’s going to, why they’re asking, and what kind of service they gave you. Tipping should feel like an act of appreciation, not an obligation. We may not be able to change society entirely, but with a more rational mindset, we can create a more rational tipping culture.

Soledad is a current student at Traverse City West Senior High. She loves to write and is working on exploring her career options as she gears up for college.