Tipping

[John81]

Here in this little town, back when kids delivered the papers for very little, we always tipped them come Christmas. Now the papers are delivered by adults making much more money and there is no personal contact anymore so I don't know of anyone who tips for that anymore.

[jchahl]

I get tips from about 40% of my customers at Christmas. It's gone down, though, since I started.

[okjac80]

We had to buy rubber bands and the plastic bands. It played havoc on our car as well. We were putting new brakes on that thing about every 3 months, not to mention tires and gas.
THe way we did it was that we basically paid "wholesale" for the papers and sold them retail. THe costumers sent us the payments and then we paid the newspaper office weekly for the papers we delivered. So if someone didn't pay their bill, we ate that money. It stunk! I remember the numbers vividly......we delivered about 300 papers daily and had a rack route of about 6 racks and 4 or 5 stores....I can't remember. We were SUPPOSED to make $900 a month, but I don't remember us ever doing that. It was more like $750-$800 a month. Oh, we also ran "corrections"....if someone didn't get their paper, etc, we took it back out to them.
7 days a week..no days off.
I remember when I went into labor w/ Erin (our first child), Michael was able to be with me when I first got there, but had to leave while I was in active labor to deliver the papers, but made it back in time to welcome Erin into the world. Then he turned around and had to leave around 2am to deliver the next day's papers.
I remember everything being dinged with black ink: the walls of the trailor, the light switches, the car, clothes, etc. It was a constant battle against the ink!! LOL
After we quit that and Michael joined the Air Force, it was a long time before I could get myself to read a paper!! To this day I refuse to have it delivered. I saw enough papers to last me 3 lifetimes!! LOL

[jchahl]

haha... I know what you mean about the ink everywhere. My brakes always need fixed too.

[okjac80]

haha... I know what you mean about the ink everywhere. My brakes always need fixed too.

my dad taught Michael how to change them, so we bought them at AutoZone since they had a lifetime warranty. We would just take them in every few months and get free ones. I think they hated us over there!! LOL

[Danny Carlton]

I used to deliver pizza and was surprised to find that I got bigger tips from people living in mobile homes than people living in mansions (or big expensive houses).

If I got 5% I was happy.

[okjac80]

I used to deliver pizza and was surprised to find that I got bigger tips from people living in mobile homes than people living in mansions (or big expensive houses).

If I got 5% I was happy.

hahahaha, ( I am saying this as a person who has lived in several trailors!), they know what it is like to work hard for little pay!

[deafnva77]

are we suppose to tip the UPS man too? Sometimes they come unexpected that I don't have cash in hand. Like if someone decided to surprise me a gift. They usually leave the package on the door though.

I don't order newspaper so I don't know anything about tipping, nor how to give them any tips. I do have a newspaper box (everyone who ordered newspaper do), I supposed that where you can place the tips although it can get stolen overnight and you can't get up early in the morning enough .

I do tip the hairstylist and pizza guy though.

I never tip my USPS guy though. I feel he is a gov't worker and they are suppose to deliever mail from our tax money rather I have mail or not.

[kevinmiller]

From what I hear, UPS worker make very good pay. Don't think they need any tips.

[Annie]

People I have tipped (and will in the future): taxi driver, pizza delivery guy, valet parking attendant, waitress/waiter, bellboy, grocery boy, room service, bus driver, hair stylist. (I'm sure there are more.)

People I would not tip: Starbucks coffee server, waitress/waiter at a buffet, UPS man, mechanic/tow truck. (I'm sure there are more.)

I refuse to tip anyone who is ripping me off, like most auto shops, or who is supported by tax dollars. When I do tip, I tip generously. People who get my tips are those who are working hard to provide me a service...not making lots of money just by standing around or performing a quick and easy task.

[HappyChristian]

Just for clarification - UPS is not a government job. They do, however, make good money! And they have good insurance plans. Same with mail carriers. The USPS is supposedly privatized now, even though there is a federal Postmaster General. Those folks make good money. My hubby used to work for the USPS before we moved here for him to go to college. He ended there making $13/hr. Maybe not a lot by today's wages, but in the late '80's that was pretty decent, for someone who had only been there a couple of years. And the insurance was great - paid 100% of our bill for Joshua's birth, which went over $20, 000 just for him!

ok and jc - I hear you about that ink!! I get tired of the papers, but I do read them. I'm with you, though, ok - once my hubby's done, I doubt seriously that I will want one delivered!!!

[John81]

hahahaha, ( I am saying this as a person who has lived in several trailors!), they know what it is like to work hard for little pay!

Research consistently shows that poorer folks give a larger percentage of their income to charity than do those with far more disposable income. It makes sense they would tend to tip better as well.

[JerryNumbers]

Someone once said, "If you can't afford to tip, don't eat in restaurants." That is a very unfair thing to say to poor people, of whom eating at a restaurant would probably be a special occasion.

I don't mind tipping in a restaurants, but it bothers me to be told I should or that I have to and or for it to be added onto the bill and or told how much it should be.

If I understand it right, waitress have to file as if everyone gives them a certain percent for tips, that sounds rotten to me.

I might add, I don't like the swanky places, the small home owned greasy spoon looking places seems to always have the best food and the waitress are usually better and more caring to their customers.

I remember when a quarter was a big tip.

[John81]

Someone once said, "If you can't afford to tip, don't eat in restaurants." That is a very unfair thing to say to poor people, of whom eating at a restaurant would probably be a special occasion.

I don't mind tipping in a restaurants, but it bothers me to be told I should or that I have to and or for it to be added onto the bill and or told how much it should be.

If I understand it right, waitress have to file as if everyone gives them a certain percent for tips, that sounds rotten to me.

I might add, I don't like the swanky places, the small home owned greasy spoon looking places seems to always have the best food and the waitress are usually better and more caring to their customers.

I remember when a quarter was a big tip.

A tip is supposed to be for services rendered. It's uncalled for, and unbiblical, for a person to give shoddy service and yet expect to receive the same tip given to those who provide good or even exceptional service.

Some businesses have all the waitresses put their tips in a jar and then they divide them evenly at the end of the shift. That's a poor, communistic practice. Anyone familiar with such places likely knows of those who do as little work as possible knowing they will reap the benefits of those who do good work and then some covering for the lack of work of the others.

When growing up 10% was the baseline for most tips. More for exceptional service, less for poor service. Tips had to be earned, not simply expected.

[JerryNumbers]

Right, but in America some have made tips to be a must.

At one time when someone left a tip the waitress would be thankful, them not think all that much about someone who did not leave one. But now when someone does not leave a tip, the waitress talks bad about them.

!0% has always about what I left.

I recall seeing someone leave a penny once, they said that was all the service was worth. Being a waitress or waiter is not the job for some, some just do not have the knack for it.

I've gotten one tip in my life, Many years back I drove a ready-mix truck. I was at an elderly mans house and he was pouring something, can't remember what it was. But as I was leaving he came over to me and handed me a 50 cent piece. Actually I was puzzled, no one had ever did that so I said, "Sir, you don't own me nothing, here, take this back." He replied, "No son, you keep it, I really appreciate how helpful you were, I would never had got them done without your help."

That amazed me, but once I was sent out with a load of ready-mix concrete, when I got to where it was going a fellow came out of the house and pointed to a place and said, "I want it over there, its a 14' by 12' building."

Where he pointed to was a level spot, no forms, no nothing, and he thought I was suppose to make him a 14' by 12 foot foundation for the building he wanted to build. He learned a much needed lesson that day. He went back inside and called my boss, a few minutes later he came to the door and said, "Your boss wants to talk to you on the phone. My boss told me to get in my truck and get away from there as quick as I can for I can't talke no sense with that man.

After that incident the boss always checked on people he did not know who order ready-mix concrete to make sure they knew what ready-mix was all about.