Re: As If Being Expected to Tip for Everything Wasn't Bad Enough...

In article <2a4sui1b7l149k3d2mtu0t0rvqtqf1gem3@4ax.com>,
 shawn <nanoflower@notforg.m.a.i.l.com> wrote:

On Sun, 10 Mar 2024 19:33:48 +0000, BTR1701 <atropos@mac.com> wrote:
 

On Jul 12, 2023 at 9:53:27 PM PDT, "BTR1701" <atropos@mac.com> wrote:
>

\- rant
 
Lately I've been noticing the proliferation of tip jars and tip prompts
just about everywhere. You're now expected to tip the McDonald's guy who
slides your burger bag across the counter to you, for gawd's sake.
 
I was at a place called Souplantation, which is basically one huge
40-yard-long salad bar. You take a tray and a plate when you walk in the
front door, you walk down the salad bar and add ingredients to your salad
along the way, if you want one of the soups, you grab a bowl and fill it,
you take a cup and fill it from the machine for your drink, and at the
end there's a scale that weighs your items and a cashier to ring it up
based on weight. And sure enough, there was a tip jar there and when I
paid by card, I got a prompt asking me to leave a tip with choices 20%,
25%, and 30%.
 
For what?
 
I literally did *everything* myself. I made my own salad, I poured my own
drink, I ladled my own soup, I got my own condiments, yet I'm supposed to
add anywhere from 20% to 30% extra onto my bill to tip the guy who did
nothing but push *one* button on his register to total up my order's
weight?
 
And as if this wasn't bad enough, now I'm starting to see signs like this
in restaurants around town:

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/6egz5eom3pc2n503ldusl/Tips.png?rlkey=h8sjxno
4581t1hmqmvtvuc08q&dl=0
 
Restaurants are charging a percentage to use your credit card. Maybe they
were already secretly doing this, but I've never seen one boldly state
that you will be charged an extra 3% for not paying cash.
 
Customers are not supposed to be paying the credit card processing fee.
In many cases, it's against the merchant agreement.
 
Know how people will fix this problem? They'll take the 3% from the
server's tip. Which means the servers are going to ultimately be the
ones who get screwed.
 
-/ rant

>
Now the robot at the automated convenience store wants a tip, too.
>
You go in the store, there are literally no employees anywhere, you pick
your item off the shelf, take it to an available self-checkout register,
scan it, swipe your card, and you're presented with a screen that asks if
you want to leave a tip with various amount choices, starting at 20%.
>
Leave a tip for who? There are no employees here. Am I tipping the
corporation that owns the store? Because hell no.
>
Leave a tip for what? No service was provided to me. I did literally
everything myself.
>
The store is literally just a giant vending machine. I wonder when those
are going to start asking for tips, too.
>

You are tipping the employees that are restocking the shelves and
those in security watching you on the camera.

Why does this principle only apply to food?

When I go into Barnes & Noble no one expects me to add 20% to my book
purchase to compensate the employees for keeping the shelves stocked
with books.

I guess I should say no one expects that *yet*. It's probably coming.