While leaving the restaurant after a heavy meal, one of my friend stopped at the exist , returned to the table and handed a small sum of amount to the waiters who served us the meal. It was a good gesture for the services that we received at the place. The extra amount paid to the waiter above the dinner meals was the reward for their services and timely taking care of our requirement. We often like to reward the good services and that reward has now been termed as Tip.
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The practices are not only.limited to restaurant. I also often, tip the service boy who works on my two wheeler. Over the time, customers would give a small amount of extra money to service workers for exceptional service and this practices has started to be termed as tipping. We often find people tip for many reasons, including:
Expressing gratitude: Tipping is a way to say thank you for good service.
Conforming to social norms: Tipping is often expected or required in certain situations, like at upscale restaurants.
Helping low-wage workers: Tipping can help some workers earn more than the minimum wage.
Rewarding good service: Tipping can encourage workers to provide their best service.
Buying future service: Tipping can be a way to buy good service in the future.
Gaining social esteem: Tipping can be a way to impress someone or feel superior.
Addressing inflation: Tipping can be a way for businesses to pay their employees more without raising prices too much.
Historically, people "tipped" as a way to incentivize good service, essentially giving extra money to a worker like a waiter or a servant to show appreciation for excellent work, often seen as a way to "ensure promptness" and reward them beyond their base pay, which was typically low; the term "tip" itself is thought to come from the phrase "To Insure Promptness".
One of my village boy, who works in a bar restaurants has been earning handsomely because of customer tipping him regularly. Belonging from a poor family, such tip would prove blessing in disguise for them as it becomes a extra source of income.
Customer satisfaction and control.
Tipping is considered necessary because it serves as a significant portion of a service worker's income, often supplementing their low base wage and incentivizing them to provide excellent service in order to earn more tips. Essentially, it is a way to directly reward good service and encourage employees to perform well.
As in the case of the my village boy, he had significantly lower hourly wage than the standard minimum wage, relying heavily on tips to reach a living wage and live happily. By tipping generously for excellent service, customers can encourage staff to provide a positive experience and go the extra mile. Tipping allows customers to directly express their satisfaction with the service they received, giving them a sense of agency in the services offered
Tipping Consideration!
There are always differrnt viewpoint on tipping culture across the globe. Tipping customs can differ significantly between countries and even regions within a country, so it's important to be aware of local expectations. Tipping can be a complex experience that can feel both rewarding for service workers when they receive good tips, but also stressful due to the pressure to consistently provide excellent service to ensure a decent income.
Some argue that the reliance on tipping can lead to exploitation of service workers, as they may feel pressured to perform excessively to earn tips. On the other hand, some restaurants are moving towards a service charge system, which distributes a set percentage of the bill to staff, eliminating the need for individual tipping.
In India, we have dual aspect to this practices. While many restaurant doesn't promote tipping culture, on the other hand there are certain places where the service boys or girls themselves ask for tips. Be it a hotel attendant, or a chauffer, or a waiter or any other low wage worker. They alwsys keep a high.hope from their customers for additional income.