What is the new tipping trend?

The proliferation of touch-screen payment tablets has accelerated since the end of Covid lockdowns, allowing shops and establishments to solicit tips, usually by offering a choice of predetermined percentages. This trend has its own moniker: Tip trap. And it is not restricted to the restaurant sector.



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Reason #1: The pandemic It goes back to the pandemic, says Shubhranshu Singh, a professor at Johns Hopkins Business school. He says during the pandemic, we started tipping people we didn't use to tip and we started tipping more than usual as a way to support essential workers at a time of crisis.

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In America, tipping is optional in name only. Legally it's voluntary but if you slink out of a restaurant without leaving a gratuity of between 15 and 25 per cent, you're likely to be chased by a waiter demanding to know why.

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There is no legal obligation to tip. But the restaurant owner or manager can certainly ban you if they want for not tipping. In restaurants where there is a “server” you are getting a service beyond just being cooked a meal. Of course they have a right to expect you to pay for that service.

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There's no way you can refuse to tip in an establishment where tipping is the practice and not make someone feel bad, since it will have a real impact on their earnings. If you are serious about your principles, you should exclusively patronize restaurants with a no tipping policy.

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At table-service restaurants, the tipping etiquette and procedure vary slightly from country to country. But in general, European servers are well paid, and tips are considered a small bonus — to reward great service or for simplicity in rounding the total bill to a convenient number.

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Japan. Unlike Spain, Japan is a country where you should not tip at all; it's actually offensive. In the majority of Japanese restaurants a bill is not brought to the table. Instead, payment is accepted at the bar, so even trying to leave a tip for the waiter can be tricky.

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Industry insider: common consensus says 15-20% is considered a normal tip, but honestly any amount less than 20% is considered a bad tip. If I (or the other servers I worked with) got less, we wondered what we did wrong. We weren't money-hungry monsters, though. There is a reason we expected 20% if we did a great job.

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Just as in Japan, it is not customary to tip in China. Tipping in China is generally uncommon and can even be considered rude or embarrassing in some circumstances so when taking a taxi, enjoying a refreshing drink or tucking into a delicious meal there's no requirement to leave any gratuities.

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People may not have the money for a tip and are embarrassed at leaving a small tip. They think you'll think they “forgot” rather than they were cheap.

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Tipping in Spain works differently: The customer actually has the option to not leave any tip at all. However, restaurants expect a 10% tip on each bill—although it's not a formal rule, and that percentage is much lower than tipping practices in other countries.

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If you ask locals “Do you tip in Italy?”, they'll explain that while they sometimes leave a small tip, it's generally not necessary. In Italy, gratuity (or una mancia, pronounced oo-nah MAN-chah) is considered a bonus for exceptional service. And it's not often that you'll find a tip jar at a register.

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