Tipping culture in the UK has sadly evolved from a gesture of gratitude for exceptional, above average service to an expected, and most of the time awkward part of dining out. Once considered a discretionary, rare, and hard-earned reward, tipping is now seen as insinuated and obligatory, with many businesses and service staff depending on customers to subsidise their wages.  

We are seeing what our neighbours across the pond have been dealing with over the last decade, the expectation and insinuation of a tip, where service staff often rely on tips to supplement their wages. In the US, federal minimum wage for tipped employees are notoriously low, forcing workers to depend on tips. While here in the UK we have a minimum wage law that applies to all workers, though tipping still plays a significant role in service-based industries. No doubt many of us have experienced awkwardness and pressure to tip, even for subpar service, because we know it directly impacts our server’s livelihood. This raises a crucial question: shouldn’t service workers wages be included in the price of our meals on the menu?  

No doubt many of us including myself have worked waiting on tables either before or even now during our studies, but our sympathy can only go so far. Tipping should not be weaponised as an excuse to not compensate service staff properly. 

I’m not suggesting we stop tipping in general-  tipping is a wonderful thing most of the time. It’s a goal for us to strive for and pursue when waiting on tables, a respectful sign to know we have delivered excellent service and a way for customers to express their gratitude. What we should advocate for is a return to traditional restaurant service culture, where once we have paid for our food, we are not awkwardly shown a couple of options of how much we want to tip.  

A growing trend in the UK is the addition of automatic service charges to bills. This can sometimes leave customers feeling like were paying more without seeing an improvement in service we receive. Shouldn’t we be expecting businesses to take responsibility for paying their employees a living wage, rather than placing the responsibility on an optional extra charge on customers? 

A living wage shouldn’t depend on the kindness of strangers. 

Image Credit: Daniel from Pixabay