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Tipping in Australia - Dailytelegraph (1 Viewer)

seremify007

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Interesting article but it really depends on the type of establishment you're dining at. It's nowhere near as bad as the US where everyone expects a tip regardless of how crummy of a job they've done and what they're doing.

For me, I think my propensity to tip definitely increased over time as I got older (and maybe earn more?). Even when signing on credit card receipts, I usually add a nice round number in multiples of $5 depending on how happy I was or if they took a photo of my gf+me. A generally positive attitude from staff will yield a better tip, and I'll be sure to let them know who it was that delivered good service which warranted the tip.

Before rustic jam jars with jaunty little signs shouting “Show us your tips!” started popping up on coffee shop counters and Sunday brunch receipts came garnished with a special “gratuity” section right above the signature line?

I know I’m going to sound like a total tight-arse but here’s my two cents (no pun intended — I really am that cheap): Tipping in Australia stinks.

Twenty years ago tipping in Australia barely existed. We used to roll our eyes at the Yankee-ness and wankiness of it all. Remember when Dougie the Delivery boy dared to ask for a tip in that old Pizza Hut ad?

A grunt and “Work hard and be good to your mother,” was all he got.

These days we linger at tables long after the plates have gone, agonising and arguing over how much extra we should leave, all the while trying to figure out how we can pay the mortgage and not seem like arseholes at the same time.

Just keep the change? No way, maybe a lazy tenner? Hang on, what if it’s not 12.5 per cent?

I asked a mate who runs a fancy Sydney restaurant what he thought was reasonable. “Always tip, at least 10 per cent,” he said.

As they say, you should always back Self-Interest. It’s the only horse you know that’s really trying.

According to the global traveller’s bible Lonely Planet tipping is “common but by no means obligatory” in Australia.

So why do bills always come in a little black folder at the end of a meal like we’re all in the Bourne Identity? Or the change at the bar that’s put on a plate instead of in your hand just because an unusually handsome bartender cracked you a beer?

That’s not a transaction, that’s a dare: If you touch those coins you’re tighter than a wine stopper — and let’s not get started about corkage.

Even if you pay by card these days even the machine is in on it. “TIP?” the screen quizzes you before you can punch in your PIN number … It seems a bit rich when you’ve just spent an hour stopping all stations at the local sushi train.

Unlike the appalling American system where wait staff are paid a miserable few bucks an hour and depend on tips to actually make a decent living, here the minimum wage is about $17 an hour and usually much more — as it should be.

So why do we feel obliged to heap an extra 10 per cent on top of that just for walking out the door?

Don’t get me wrong. I am more than happy to tip for exceptional service. If a waiter goes out of their way to snag you a great table, you tip. If you’re dining with a particularly annoying friend who heaps their order with gluten-free/lactose-intolerant/paleo-approved demands, you tip generously. Hell, I’d pay them just to take her.

But somewhere along the line, tipping has become an expectation, whether you’re noshing at the Duck’s Nuts or grabbing a takeaway coffee and a stale bit of raisin toast.

What finally tipped me over the edge was a recent stay at a hotel on a work trip interstate. I’d ordered a club sandwich, which at $28 was the cheapest item on the menu, and naturally it was delivered to my room along with the bill in a smart leather folder.

“I’ll just need your signature,” the nice young man told me.

It was then that I realised there was a room service delivery fee of SEVEN BUCKS — plus, the receipt asked for a “gratuity” on top of that.

I almost choked — and I hadn’t even taken a bite of the club sandwich yet.

REALLY?!?!? I thought. YOU WANT A TIP FOR RIDING THE ELEVATOR AND KNOCKING ON MY DOOR?!?!?

Still, I capitulated. There’s a limit to how outraged you can be when you’re wearing a bathrobe.

Maybe I’m a miser but the whole thing just leaves a bad taste in my mouth — unlike the club sandwich, which was, as it turned out, rather tasty. ThankyouverymuchChannelTen.

But, as I said, that’s just my two cents. You can keep the change.
http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/re...ally-has-to-stop/story-fnpug1jf-1227273386203
 

nrussell

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I didn't even think tipping existed in Australia as a commonplace practice... Maybe I don't go to nice enough restaurants.
 

OzKo

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I only tip when dining with a large group because it's a waste of time trying to divide the change up when no-one has the correct change.
 

Gary_Oak

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I do tip at medium class restaurants, its often generally keep the change thing, rather than to put extra money on top
 

Ethicks

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No, I'm a broke student just like the buskers and homeless losers using their dogs to try and get money they get nothing from me.
 

Trebla

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I do tip at medium class restaurants, its often generally keep the change thing, rather than to put extra money on top
This. However, if the service was exceptional then I would tend to deliberately tip a bit more on top of that.
 

_traveler_

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Having lived in the US on and off for a year. This growing trend in Australia is atrocious. The fundamental rights in which a worker has regardless occupation is to earn a basic living. That's the point of a decent minimum wage. I mean surely mid-high end servers get paid more than the minimum wage do they not (eg: Rockpool)?

Even if I had money, I wouldn't tip freely cause it just doesn't feel right. When someone in the US say is making $2-4 an hour and relying on tips for the rest I understand. If someone is making nearly $20-25 ph then under no circumstance would they deserve a tip if they did their usual thing.
 

Rafy

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It's not my responsibility to pay the worker, that's the role of the employer and in Australia we are paid a decent wage. These high wages are reflected in the higher cost of goods and services here. As such tipping is completely unnecessary in Australia and results in workers in the few industries where it occurs essentially double tipping on their pay. I don't know why hospitality workers think they are a special case. Most people don't get paid extra for just doing their job (even when doing it well)
 
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D94

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If they have exceptional service, then my 'tip' would be to go back to that restaurant/service again and also recommend it to friends. Any business should be more than happy to accept that, as with in any industry.
 

mreditor16

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If they have exceptional service, then my 'tip' would be to go back to that restaurant/service again and also recommend it to friends. Any business should be more than happy to accept that, as with in any industry.
Hear hear
 

asparagus

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tipping is stupid.

I feel like businesses try and push their luck by suggesting that i tip them a 'service fee', or and empty box with a gratiuity.

whenever they have the balls to add this on without asking me i cross it out, rewrite the subtotal and tell them to bill the correct amount.
 

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