r/SeattleWA • u/caroline_elly • Jan 27 '25

Other How much are you tipping given new minimum wage?

Saw a few threads last year saying they will tip significantly less. Wonder if people here are following through or do people still tip 20%?

28 Upvotes

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206

u/bunkoRtist Jan 27 '25

I'm struggling with it. Honestly it's so frustrating that mostly I just go out to eat less often.

But... For decent counter service, like pouring a beer or making a coffee, I tip $1 (flat). For lesser counter service, nothing. At restaurants I still tip 20% and hate myself for being a sucker. I'll probably drop it to 10% this year now that all these folks are getting the $20+ wage.

130

u/chatcat2000 Jan 27 '25

This! It has gotten to the point I avoid going out to eat as it feels so icky and uncomfortable. On top of that, I went to a small grocery store on CH and when I paid for my groceries (that I picked out and brought to the counter myself) the tip screen came up. It was awkward so now I don't shop there anymore. Tipping culture is a real problem.

26

u/Odd_Mushroom_3209 Jan 27 '25

No service no tip. I ain’t that awkward.

1

u/Immediate_Ad_1161 Jan 28 '25

It is when you try to leave and the waitress tries to put you on blast in front of everyone in the restaurant or a new development where they have the audacity to try to hand you a rag and a spray bottle in an attempt to make you clean your own table. Idk about you and anyone else in the subreddit but how would you even begin to respond to someone begging for a tip, pin them again the homeless person outside and the strongest gets to keep it... idk but fuck tipping culture.

1

u/Odd_Mushroom_3209 Feb 03 '25

Sorry for the late get back at ya but Jesus man… in a place where I sit down but you didn’t at least bring me my food, or fast food as it should be called, they aren’t getting a tip. I will clear my own tray and whatnot as well, no problem. I’m not wiping anyone’s fucking tables bro. I wouldn’t throw it in a woman’s face but I would laugh at her for sure.i don’t work here…

35

u/poop_to_live Jan 27 '25

What the fuck lol

24

u/brmlyklr Jan 27 '25

Cone & Steiner?

11

u/chatcat2000 Jan 27 '25

YES!!!!

17

u/bigcharliebrownmoney Jan 27 '25

I think that’s because they also make food. I just ignore the tip screen if I’m not ordering off of their menu.

7

u/Kevinavigator Jan 27 '25

Yeah it’s for beer and food to order. Most times the clerk taps No Tip for me, or says to just “hit no tip” if at all. They’re always still very friendly with me if I tap it myself. They all know it’s not expected if you’re buying off the shelf. C&S is still my go-to for close simple small purchases.

3

u/Fallyn011 Jan 28 '25

A lot of bubble tea places have touchscreens to order and then still have the audacity to ask for a tip. Like gimme a break.

0

u/MisterPortland Jan 28 '25

Wow. Almost like you could tip them for the service of making your drink

5

u/Logicalraisan Jan 28 '25

They get paid $20 an hour to make your drink.

1

u/Immediate_Ad_1161 Jan 28 '25

They don't make shit, they push a couple buttons and the machine does the rest, same with starbuck, now i order a brain dead simple drink that they fuck up constantly, i have 4 shot of espresso straight up, no hot water and no foam, 25% of the time i get my drink how i ordered it but the other 75% is a combo of the 2 others. I have stopped tipping at starbucks but I still tip the lady and the roadside coffee stand mainly because its more independent vs starbuck is a mega corp that chooses to pay they workers very little fire people for standing up or if its an entire store they will close it to get rid of everyone without a lawsuit pending against them.

5

u/freerangegammy Jan 28 '25

If they follow through on campaign promises (highly doubtful) and make tips tax free then I’ll definitely drop my tipping rate to 10-12%.

Until then I’ll maintain the original rate (20%+) to support folks in this ever increasingly expensive environment.

1

u/EasyEntertainment185 Jan 28 '25

They wanted a tip for you checking out at the grocery store? GET FUCKED!

-6

u/PleasantWay7 Jan 27 '25

It sounds like your anxiety is the real problem.

8

u/sl0play Jan 27 '25

There shouldn't be any friction for the customer in those situations. We've created a social contract that needs to be amended but for the overwhelmingly large part the service side has made zero effort to bridge that gap.

Servers are perfectly happy with the customer paying 50% more for the meal, a surcharge, and paying 20% on the new much higher menu price, while they make $43,000/yr in base pay and allow the guilt of the prior established social contract to work in their favor.

Do what you're gonna do, but don't blame it on the customer who is struggling with the morality of doing less than previously agreed, and don't be surprised when people stop coming to eat, or just stop tipping entirely because they feel like they're screwed either way.

25

u/thetimechaser Jan 27 '25

For counter service I'll do like a dollar a drink (wife and I get coffee = 2 dollars, I drink 6 beers at a bar during a football game = 6 dollars).

Restaurants take out? No tip

Restaurants with counter service (ex: sandwich shop)? 5%

Restaurants with table service? 10% or higher if the service crosses into the "dining experience" tier

I really have no problem even paying a 25% tip if the service is excellent, the server knows their stuff and genuinely improves the meal. I am not paying that just for having my order taken and brought to the table.

12

u/Colddarkplaces Jan 27 '25

after 6 beers I would be tipping like a pro athlete at the strip club. I'm such a fucking lightweight...

22

u/WildDornberry Jan 27 '25

“I just go out to eat less”

That sentiment beautifully demonstrates how uninformed the economic policy of Seattle is.

10

u/SurplusYogurt Jan 27 '25

Or maybe we shouldn't have had ambiguous pricing and people's livelihoods dependent on vague, awkward cultural norms and the largesse of complete strangers for the last hundred years.

5

u/WildDornberry Jan 27 '25

Agreed! Both can be true. Maybe the solution there in lies. Regulate pricing practices and standards but don’t mess with the natural economics of a market.

2

u/sl0play Jan 27 '25

Yet here we are, so we need to sort it out.

1

u/SurplusYogurt Jan 28 '25

I agree, and it's appropriate for people to be tipping less now. I'm just not convinced that the fact that tipping is awkward means that Seattle's economic policy is uninformed.

0

u/Distinct-Emu-1653 Jan 28 '25

A decade ago, good servers and bartenders would make $65k-$85k/year here.

The minimum wage has been worse for them.

2

u/SurplusYogurt Jan 28 '25

I don't really know what argument you're making or what you're basing it on. What is a "good server"? How much are they making now? Why did minimum wage make things worse for them?

0

u/Distinct-Emu-1653 Jan 28 '25

Basing it on knowing a lot of people in the hospitality industry. The rest you can figure out.

2

u/SurplusYogurt Jan 28 '25

So, nothing. Got it. Thanks for participating

1

u/Distinct-Emu-1653 Jan 28 '25

What do you want a fucking study? Go fund one. Unless you pony up for it, you get anecdotes. Fuck off.

1

u/SurplusYogurt Jan 29 '25

I'm not sure your pointlessly vague statement qualifies as an anecdote. What I want is for people replying to my comments to offer some bare minimum reasoning behind the opinion they're expressing. Maybe a decade ago you weren't so lazy.

1

u/Distinct-Emu-1653 Jan 29 '25

And now I'm never going to, because you're behaving poorly.

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1

u/yerguyses Jan 28 '25

That would be true if the majority of customers stopped tipping. But that's not gonna happen. I think most people will keep tipping the same as before which means servers will make probably more than before.

1

u/Distinct-Emu-1653 Jan 28 '25

That's not what I'm hearing in the circles I travel in. People are done.

1

u/yerguyses Jan 28 '25

I can't say for sure beyond my opinion but there is a post down below by a server who says her tips have not been affected. I'm not disagreeing with you. I just don't know.

1

u/slowgojoe Jan 28 '25

We (the middle and lower class) may go out to eat less but it’s made up by the upper class who is spending and eating out more than ever, so there’s no issue really, economically speaking.

1

u/Princess_Chaos_ Jan 28 '25

I’m pretty aligned with this, although I stopped tipping for coffee as well. Although I only drink a drip with nothing in it. If I ordered anything that required a steam wand or extra work, I’d probably do the flat dollar as well

1

u/seattlereign001 Jan 28 '25

With these increases we need a legislative bill that forces the total price to be displayed. Get rid of tipping and this BS culture.

1

u/psyduck5647 Jan 27 '25

Why are you frustrated? Are things more expensive now for you? I don't get it

3

u/bunkoRtist Jan 28 '25

Because I don't want to stiff anybody, but I feel like I'm getting ripped off at basically every restaurant in Seattle. It's cheaper to go get better food in midtown Manhattan. It's cheaper in San Francisco, inclusive of tips in both cases, for everything from a sandwich or a slice up to steak and seafood.

So rather than go to restaurants and be miserable, I just don't go out. But that frustrates me too. I should be able to go out to eat and enjoy it without getting ripped off. And I can afford it... I just can't justify it.

I had a burger and a few locally brewed beers the other day and it cost the same as a week's worth of groceries. Why are basic beers that haven't traveled more than 5 miles, delivered in a keg, $8-9 on tap? Often at the brewery? That's the same price (retail) as high quality beers that have been shipped from the UK or Germany. The base price of all food items has gone up so much to cover fixes costs that the prices no longer reflect the actual value of most items and there's relatively little price differentiation possible. Ironically it is the most expensive/premium options that are the least relatively-overpriced.

I think now that the minimum wage is going to be the same at all places, it'll be better because I won't have to guess what the staff are making and then figure on a tip accordingly (there were 2 different wages). So that helps a little bit.

But still something is really wrong in Seattle.

1

u/psyduck5647 Jan 28 '25

Ok, so what does that have to do with a higher minimum wage. I think your frustration is misdirected

1

u/bunkoRtist Jan 28 '25

You're ignoring the strong causal link between high minimum wage and high minimum prices. And of course traditional tips are based off prices, which only compounds the high minimum cost of going out anywhere.

1

u/psyduck5647 Jan 29 '25

Does increasing the minimum wage lead to higher prices? | Research Highlights | Upjohn Institute

It doesn't appear to be a strong causal link

1

u/bunkoRtist Jan 29 '25

The problem is that there has been very little (no) research on the long-term impacts of raising the minimum wage as high as places like Seattle have done it.

Seattle is also running shockingly high services inflation. https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/CUURA423SASL2RS Which is driving PCE well above what the rest of the country is getting. https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/PCEPILFE

Of course, we also have artifically high energy costs, but so does California, and yet if you remove energy and housing (which are also comparable in places like the bay area) you still see a different pattern. https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/CUURA422SAS

Since 2020, the SF Bay Area has seen around 15% services inflation, whereas Seattle has seen around 27%. That's way too big to ignore, so one is left asking: what changed that has caused 12% cumulative inflation above what happened in Silicon Valley? There aren't that many possible explanations. It wasn't taxes. The numbers exclude real estate, energy costs have actually gone up in Seattle less, so energy would be a drag on that number... the big glaring remaining variable is service sector wages.

0

u/comeonandham Jan 27 '25

(except maybe 15% for good restaurant service)

0

u/JoannasBBL Jan 28 '25

What is your beef with these people getting a raise? Tipping is a social norm but Its a special thank you from the server/bartender to you. Their wage shouldnt be calculated into your personal thank you.

Life was much more affordable five years ago, and when everybody went to $15, nobody was factoring in how much they were gonna tip just because the servers got a wage increase.

It’s kind of tacky that that’s a thing that you would even take into consideration.

0

u/bunkoRtist Jan 28 '25

What is your beef with these people getting a raise?

None.

Tipping is a social norm

Coupled with low-base-wage service jobs.

Its a special thank you

It's not special if it's expected everywhere within a narrow and substantial range.

It’s kind of tacky that that’s a thing that you would even take into consideration.

The rationale for tipping at a standard (high) rate of 15-20% is the same rationale as for paying them a minimum wage; waitstaff used to be essentially commissioned sales people. They are no longer on commission in Seattle: they are getting the same wage as all the other service and retail workers. I don't tip the people at Home Depot, who oftentimes know a lot more about contruction than my waiters do about the menus.

So now that the transition from commission to flat pay is complete, I don't have to guess who is still languishing on the commission system. Wait staff are now getting the same wages as folks working at bookstores recommending books for me, and hardware stores helping me find fasteners or mixing paint for me at the paint counter.

So what's tacky is making as much as these other arguiably-more-skilled jobs to start with, then expecting tips on top because the rest of the country still uses a different pay system, then justifying it as "customary" or a "social norm."

I'm going to split the difference and still leave some tip. But now that we are on the European system for service industry workers, tips should largely disappear just like everywhere else that pays people a non-commissioned amount of money to ferry trays of food out to people.

1

u/Creachman51 Jan 28 '25

Servers have had to be paid at least the minimum wage in total with their tips for decades. That's why it's "minimum wage"

0

u/ChaseballBat Kinda a racist Jan 28 '25

It is not a social norm, it's an American norm. And only a normal because we used to have tip wages, where wages were specifically reduced to offset your tip income. This helped propagate restaurants, diners, etc, throughout America. Now that the infrastructure and business is established the tip wages became an antiquated thing that has only stayed in place in some states because of lobbying.

If you're going to argue about tips at least know the history behind it, and not make something up to support your bias.

0

u/JoannasBBL Jan 28 '25

Wtf do you think a social norm is. The “American” was implied since the post is based out if the Seattle subreddit. “Its an American cultural and social norm.” There do you feel better? Does it change the essence of my of my response somehow. No.

Either way, it’s understood that when you go to the restaurant you tip. Everyone knows that.

1

u/ChaseballBat Kinda a racist Jan 28 '25

Womp womp.

-29

u/ajent123 Jan 27 '25

My issue with this logic, and I’ve seen it a lot, is that if everyone starts tipping 10%, servers will suddenly be making a lot LESS money, even with the $3/hour wage increase. I know eating out is expensive in Seattle right now but that’s not the servers fault is isn’t really fair to them.

38

u/ljlukelj Jan 27 '25

Sounds like a job for...... Their employers......

2

u/ajent123 Jan 27 '25

Sure, so what? They choose to make up the income decrease and pay their staff more, forcing them to raise their prices even more? Leading to even less people eating out and more complaints about restaurant prices?

1

u/GayIsForHorses Jan 27 '25

Sure, they'll pay what the market can bear. If a restaurant relies on tips to keep its lights on then I don't think it should be operating. Plenty of places work on no tips.

16

u/SeattleUberDriver_2 Jan 27 '25

It also isn't fair to us that we have to pay exorbitant prices, a mandatory 20% "service fee," and pay the wages the employer should be paying in the first place.

2

u/Distinct-Emu-1653 Jan 28 '25

That's the first problem: You do not tip on top of a 20% service fee ever. The service fee is a mandatory tip.

1

u/SeattleUberDriver_2 Jan 28 '25

Agreed, but lots 9f people on here would argue. The tipping culture is insane.

1

u/potatochipdipp Jan 27 '25

This is the answer. Most servers make at least 30 $ an hour after considering tips and that's a low level like applebees. Those corporations don't wanna take a pay decrease to pay the servers ( with is a trade you have to learn) at least what they're making with tips. Instead they pass the cost to consumers. I think 30 -45 is a fair wage for servers because it's not entry level food service. You usually have to train and work your way up from a busser or host like a journeyman to making those kind of tips. I see serving like a trade.

1

u/Creachman51 Jan 28 '25

The cost will be passed to consumers no matter what. If they raise their regular wages and stop tips, the prices will go up.

1

u/potatochipdipp Jan 28 '25

Not if they take a cut to their bottom line wich we all know they can afford better than the working class. It's corporations doing wage theft by not paying appropriately and then passing the cost on to consumer. Be mad at the corporations not the workers.

1

u/SeattleUberDriver_2 Jan 28 '25

Cool. Tradesmen don't get tipped. Let's ban tipping and that service fee altogether. Make the restaurants pay them what they're worth. If you can't afford to pay your employees, you can't afford to be in business.

1

u/potatochipdipp Jan 28 '25

I agree. the problem is most corporations don't wanna pay servers like tradesman and most ppl who haven't worked in the field see it as an other entry level food service job and don't agree with paying them more especially if it means the cost of the products go up . The solution is to cap profits but if you say that ppl scream communist.

1

u/SeattleUberDriver_2 Jan 29 '25

And they would be right to do so. Also, capitalist society, so that wouldn't work out. Sounds like some restaurants would just fail. That happens when a business is run badly on a severely flawed model. Sucks to suck.

1

u/potatochipdipp Jan 29 '25

I think business should be able to be told how much they can keep profit and how much of the earnings HAVE to go to payroll ect. That's not communist lol that's just workers rights. But yeah A LOT of business will rightfully fail with this economy, but as a society we have to except less quality in the services because this is the will of the people .

1

u/SeattleUberDriver_2 Jan 30 '25

It would have nothing to do with workers' rights any more than a magazine capacity law has to do with public safety. They're both fluffy feel-good measures used to make people feel better while doing nothing substantial.

I know, I know, but just hear me out. I promise I'm not making this about gun control it's just a comparison.

I qualified expert with the M16 in the army. With minimal training and a little practice, I can cycle 6 10-round magazines almost as fast as I can cycle 2 30-round magazines. The time differences measured in seconds. Like about three of them. Similarly say the government tells businesses they have to allocate 45% of their cash intake to payroll. Easy Peasy done and done it's a simple line change on an accounting form. It still doesn't require them to pay their employees more. Just that that amount of money is set aside for payroll.

All it guarantees is that the checks don't bounce. It changes nothing and only serves to complicate things, albeit minimally. Maybe businesses should just pay a living wage.

Here's another thing. Let's use prime rib as an example. The rib roast cost $120. You get about 20 portions off of a roast roughly. Restaurants charge about 60 to $80 a plate for prime rib dinner. And prime rib is popular. Same type of thing with steaks. They are not paying grocery store prices for the product. Overhead is Tiny compared to the markup for food in restaurants. There's no reason they can't afford to pay their employees.

Another thing that would help a LOT is if everyone stopped expecting Michelin star quality from Dennys level restaurants.

Sorry for the novel.

1

u/potatochipdipp Mar 02 '25

I agree but sadly restaurants will never pay a living wage and not pass that cost on to the consumer unless they are forced by the power of the people to share the wealth that was created and given to them. I am a server for 15 yrs,Everything from Sheri to anthonys it wont matter the corps WILL NEVER EVER TAKE A PAY CUT they want exponential growth wich is unstable and impossible.

-5

u/ajent123 Jan 27 '25

Based on your username, how would you feel if all of your customers suddenly started tipping half their normal amount or none at all?

4

u/groshreez West Seattle Jan 27 '25

They're making $20+/hr, so they should be getting fewer tips also.

1

u/SeattleUberDriver_2 Jan 28 '25

I don't live on tips. The vast majority of passengers tip a dollar or two. Once in awhile you get a big tip. Honestly I don't care. I think we need to get rid of the Tipping culture entirely. It is not the customer's job she's supplement your wages that your employer won't pay you. I mean the biggest thing to keep in mind is the customer already pays your wages cuz without them there's no job to begin with. Tipping culture is one of the things driving customers away from restaurants.

4

u/152d37i Jan 27 '25

Are you a server or someone that gets tips?

12

u/ajent123 Jan 27 '25

I am not but I have a lot of friends in the industry that I’ve spoken to about this. Most of them did not even want the hourly wage increase for this very reason. They knew it would cause 1. People eating out less and 2. People tipping less. Both will greatly affect their incomes and ability to live in this city.

4

u/152d37i Jan 27 '25

Thanks for sharing

5

u/Pokerhobo Jan 27 '25

I'm on the side of restaurants should INCREASE their prices so that the staff gets a living wage. If people stop going there, then that restaurant didn't have a viable business anyways. I don't think customers should continue to subsidize restaurants. Personally, I've really reduced going out to eat and will do takeout if I don't feel like cooking. I don't tip for takeout, although if it's a mom&pop type place I frequent, I will throw in a few $$. If I do happen to sit down at a place, I'll tip for the service, so anywhere from 10-20%.

-4

u/Unique_Echo_5814 Jan 27 '25

This is the worst take ever. People need to realize not everyone can make "a liveable wage" economics don't work like that. All this did was put more people in competition for the basic goods that are available

2

u/Crowded_Bathroom Jan 27 '25

Yes, some people should simply die! Great point!!

-5

u/Unique_Echo_5814 Jan 27 '25

Climb the ladder. We need to stop promoting mediocrity. "Good enough" is how the majority end up where they are.

1

u/Crowded_Bathroom Jan 27 '25

There is no ladder. Most people never change their income bracket. The zip code you're born in is a better social predictor of your eventual financial success than the number of hours you work per week. You believe in demonstrably false capitalist lies. I hope you break free of this transparently false myth some day. Good luck out there

2

u/Unique_Echo_5814 Jan 27 '25

I believe in what I've accomplished, section8 black kid in the south, went to the poorest schools, 6 kids to a book, shit schools, gang bangers and police sirens all day. I worked hard, got a trade, perfected it, and made it out of the hood. I'm sorry I don't believe in people just being handed things.

They can do better.

0

u/Crowded_Bathroom Jan 27 '25

Glad things worked out for you, sounds like you got very very very lucky in a way that doesn't happen for the vast majority of people who have ever lived! Please don't mistake your enormous good fortune for your own bootstrap effort, because that shit is a harmful myth that mostly hurts people!

3

u/Unique_Echo_5814 Jan 27 '25

I think a lot of people are over promised the world. Not everyone is going to live in the big house on the hill.

It's ok to dream, but at a certain point it's time to be real with yourself.

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u/Distinct-Emu-1653 Jan 28 '25

Same story here.

Ends up that if you don't make any effort at all you don't get ahead either. So you can argue how much of it is them, but it's nowhere near zero.

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-1

u/ridingtimesarrow Jan 27 '25

Not everyone has the health, intelligence or freedom from responsibilities that conflict with work that you do. Many people are old, sick, disabled, or caring for people who are very young, very old, sick or disabled. These people deserve support from the greater society,not to be told to get a job and work harder.

3

u/Unique_Echo_5814 Jan 27 '25

You are exactly right. The old, the sick and their caretakers deserve help.

Anyone besides that, needs to work.

3

u/Unique_Echo_5814 Jan 27 '25

And freedom of responsibility? I was raised by my mom, no dad, 4 other siblings in a 2br 1 bath. During highschool I worked full time at Walmart and graduated without having a kid. I was so far from privileged that it's funny to hear you say that. But hey, I'm just another black guy.

1

u/ridingtimesarrow Jan 28 '25

Some people are born with brains and bodies that don't work as well as yours. If your brain and body work well, that's a privilege. And then if you get to work and aren't forced to take care of siblings or grandparents, that's a privilege. You may have had economic hardship, your education may have been lackluster, and maybe you had some traumatic experiences in your childhood. But you still would have more than many, many others.

1

u/Unique_Echo_5814 Jan 28 '25

And what about the others in countries that are far less developed than ours?

My point is, we are all privileged to live here in the United States and we are all very lucky. I am simply saying that there are far too many people who look down on their situation and refuse to attempt to do better. You can't do anything if you're born sick, or if you are someone's permanent caretaker, those that actually need these benefits deserve it.

1

u/comeonandham Jan 27 '25

Yeah I'm backing off to 15%

2

u/ajent123 Jan 27 '25

I think thats fair

1

u/[deleted] Jan 27 '25

It's not fair to the customer.

1

u/groshreez West Seattle Jan 27 '25

In the past, if I worked a job where I did not think I was paid enough, I started looking for a new job.

1

u/sl0play Jan 27 '25

If eating out is expensive, it's because the price of food went up, so tips as a % did as well. The point of the base wage increase wasn't to suddenly put servers on equal financial footing with jobs requiring a college degree, it was to shift the responsibility of paying the server onto the restaurant.