Imagine leaving school at 2:15 p.m. on a Friday wanting to grab a treat to head into the weekend. You go to the nearest frozen yogurt shop, make yourself the perfect cup of frozen yogurt, add all your favorite toppings, and head up to the counter to pay. Suddenly the cashier turns the screen around to show a tip request. Considering you did all the work creating your frozen yogurt, you do not know what to do, so why would you leave a tip? This is just one of many examples of modern tipping culture in America. 

Some places where tipping is now common include:

• Restaurants 
• Nail/hair salons
• Cafes/bakeries
• Movie theaters
• Assistant sports coaches
• Impound lots (AKA “convenience fee”)
• Dress stores 
• Self-checkout (airports)
• Fast food restaurants
• Grocery stores
• Plumbers
• Mechanics

To understand modern American tipping culture, it is important to understand where it comes from. Tipping originated in medieval times when servants were paid extra for doing their jobs extremely well. This tradition was discovered in the 1850s and 1860s by wealthy Americans on European vacations. In an aristocratic sense, they brought it back to the United States. 

However, there was a lot of anti-tipping traction, as it was deemed unfair for poor Americans to tip their servers on top of paying their bill. While this attitude virtually ended tipping in Europe, it extended tipping in America. 

This continuation of tipping in America was largely due to the end of slavery. Those who did not become sharecroppers worked as servants, waiters, barbers, and railroad porters. Employers in restaurants and railroads would usually not pay their workers, so the customers would give the workers a tip as a form of payment.

During the time of Reconstruction, tipping had been abolished in six states because it was seen as bribery. Despite the arguments against tipping, the practice grew throughout the South in the 1920s. Soon, restaurant owners realized the benefits of tipping; they could pay their employees far less by allowing them to rely more on the extra money from customers. 

A 1938 legislation says that tipped workers are only required to be paid a wage that adds up to the federal minimum wage when added with tips. This means that some tipped workers only get paid $2.13 an hour. This is one of the main reasons people feel pressured to tip at many businesses. 

There are many reasons why tipping has increased so much in recent years. These reasons include the pandemic, technological advances, and inflation. Tipping during the pandemic was a simple way for people to help out essential workers and contribute in a difficult time. With the new card systems quickly emerging, it has become easier for companies to “nudge” customers to tip on their purchases. Furthermore, the competitive job market and low wages workers are receiving are incentives to request tips at checkout, so that the companies can keep their prices lower. 

Erin Greenbaum, a customer at several establishments where tipping is accepted said, “I usually tip at restaurants, hair salons, nail salons, and I do leave a tip if we’re at a hotel for the cleaning person. I don’t think people should have to [tip], but if they have a tip jar and you want to tip you can. But if I’m going to a sit-down restaurant or a hair salon, I tip because they probably do not make a lot hourly.”

David Greenbaum, another customer at common tipping establishments said, “I think tipping on take-out is weird, to be honest,” and “I thought it was a little weird being asked to tip on a prom dress.”

Tipping has become a normalized practice in the United States and is spreading rapidly. This increase in tipping is causing more problems for workers who rely on tips. Many people are tired of being asked to tip so frequently, leading them to tip less at places like restaurants where the servers work mostly on tips. 

Emme Terry, a senior at Pentucket and a waitress and former hostess at Pub 97, gave her opinions on working for tips. When asked what it is like working mostly for tips, Terry said, “I think it is rewarding but also draining. You try to do your best for each table and some are very understanding and nice, but then some tables just don’t appreciate your effort and that’s hard.” 

Working for a tip makes workers feel more inclined to be polite and do their jobs better. Terry explains the difference between working as a hostess with a wage and a waitress working on tips. She says, “I definitely try harder when I work for tips than if I work for a wage. It’s less guaranteed working on tips than if I work for a wage so I try harder to make money with tips than I did working on wage.”

Tipping culture has changed dramatically over the years, and it is more prominent now than ever before. So what do you think, has tipping gotten out of hand?

‘It’s the Legacy of Slavery’: Here’s the Troubling History Behind Tipping Practices in the U.S. 

Has Gratuity Culture Reached a Tipping Point? | The New Yorker 

Tipping in the United States has gotten out of control, experts say. Here’s why 

Tipping has gotten out of control: Three reasons behind tip-flation : NPR.