The Contented Cow Blog

Building Workplaces That Work

I’ve had it with efforts by an ever-expanding field of “service workers,” who, with a wink and a nod from their employers, seem determined to augment their earnings via not so subtle tip hucksterism. And no, this doesn’t arise from my being cheap. To the contrary, I actually enjoy leaving substantial tips for good service provided by relatively low-paid hourly workers. For service - as in leaning forward, delivering a full measure (maybe a little more) of what was expected or bargained for, lagniappe… but not a straight commercial transaction. I especially resent aggressive, unwarranted use of the tip jar by retail workers, entrepreneurs, and government employees (yes), who conveniently overlook the supposed nexus between low-wage workers, personal service, and discretionary income.

Two recent examples have pushed me over the edge. The more recent occurred yesterday in a north Florida Subway sandwich shop, where I witnessed two teenage girls being solicited for a tip, in halting English, by the guy who had just made their sandwiches. This clown acted as though he had just spent an hour custom crafting a three-course meal, rather than slapping turkey, lettuce and mayo on a bun before bagging it. He couldn’t pronounce “mayonnaise,” but the word, “tip” came out just fine… three times. Their transaction involved no more “service” than they would have gotten had they instead come in to the convenience store that housed the Subway and bought a lottery ticket.

About a week before, my dad and I stopped at a rest area run by the state of Maryland while en route to Washington, DC. While visiting the men’s room, I couldn’t help but notice the tip jar, complete with an overt, solicitous note next to the not so clean sink, ostensibly placed there by a restroom attendant. Since we were in the men’s room, I seriously considered leaving another kind of donation in the cup.

Four consecutive stops on a recent Friday afternoon involved visits to a car wash (tip jar), Starbucks (tip jar), a self-employed, six figure earning massage therapist (tip jar), and takeout from a Chinese buffet-restaurant (you guessed it.) As fee-happy as the airlines have gotten, I keep waiting to see one of those suckers bolted to the back of the cockpit door on commercial airliners. When you think about it, why not? $5 for an on-time departure, another $5 for smooth air… Oh, and you want us to land this thing, too?

It seems ironic that, as the level of personal service in America deteriorates to an all time low, the tip jar, and accompanying entitlement mindset are becoming ubiquitous. An inescapable consequence is the forced transfer of the payroll obligation from the employer to the customer. My ire is directed not at the employees who are slyly setting up their own private cash registers (who, after all doesn’t want to make more money?) but the managers who let them do it, or conspire by underpaying their staff. I’m as much a capitalist as anybody, but if you are running a business, and you hire people to do work for you, you have a payroll obligation to meet. Your customers didn’t take your people to raise, and you really shouldn’t put your folks in the unenviable position of having to beg customers for their paycheck.

That’s my two cents worth. Your comments, as always, are welcome.

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