Latest news with #serviceworkers
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
In Utah, tipping fatigue has bottomed out. Is it time for an intervention?
According to study results from Lending Tree, in 2023 Americans spent $78 billion on tips at 'restaurants, bars and other places where food is consumed away from home.' In New Hampshire — the best tipping state in the country — tips accounted for 16% of the money spent on eating out, including at full-service restaurants and limited-service restaurants. Nationally, the average was 6.75%. In Utah, tips accounted for 4.09%. The lowest in the nation. And that's pretty embarrassing. Sure, these numbers may not tell the whole story, since the whole study is always difficult to encapsulate in one single study. Yes, it gets a little murky when you consider that 4.09% includes limited-service restaurants as well as full-service restaurants. Because I was never taught that we were supposed to tip cashiers and now I'm prompted to pay an extra $5-$10 anytime I buy anything. Tipping fatigue is real. I've lived it. We're all being presented with tip selection screens at the end of what feels like every single transaction. Buying a soda. Filling our cars with gas. Talking to a stranger. And there are absolutely compelling arguments to be made for eliminating tips all together and paying service workers a living wage. Because really, no one's income should be contingent on customers' generosity and or moods. But even considering the nuances, any which way you slice it, the fact remains that Utah is the stingiest state in the country when it comes to tipping. And I just can't stand for it. I feel the need to stage an intervention with my entire state. I imagine us all gathered in a giant living room somewhere. Actually, no, we're probably in a church cultural hall on metal folding chairs because that is a space that can accommodate a lot more people and at any given time there are approximately one million chairs stored under the stage of any Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints meetinghouse cultural hall. We're really good at setting those chairs up and taking them down so preparation and cleanup would be a breeze. If I were put in charge of leading this intervention, which I never would be because I hate confrontation, but if I were, I would look in the eyes of those among us who have been tipping 4% and tell them to imagine being a service provider for our gigantic families. The thing about Utah, notoriously, is that we have a lot of kids. Kids are so wonderful. A blessing really. But also, they're not fully formed humans yet. Instead they're on the training wheels of life, and the only way they can learn to be in society is to be in society. This discourse pops up every so often online — do babies and children belong in public life? In restaurants, on airplanes, in hotels, and so on? I'm very much on the side of yes, of course they do, because how else will they learn proper behavior in restaurants, on airplanes and in hotels? But that doesn't mean it's always a smooth learning process. In fact it's often pretty bumpy. Babies cry on airplanes and kids scream while getting their hair cut and they all leave food messes in restaurants so catastrophic that one might feel justified in calling FEMA. We once took our toddler with us to dinner with friends at an Indian restaurant. I don't know how it's possible, but by the end of the meal there was more rice on the floor than had been served to us at the table. The rice had somehow multiplied. Exponentially. And covered the ground beneath not just our table, but surrounding tables as well. I don't remember my daughter actively flinging spoonfuls of rice around the restaurant but maybe she did it when my back was turned? The staff was incredibly kind and told us not to worry when we apologized. But we were horrified and left the largest tip we'd ever left anywhere, as a way to apologize for the minor human-made disaster our offspring had caused. And I guess I just assumed that more parents had similar experiences and that would bring up our tipping average. But the numbers don't reflect that. So I would conclude the intervention by reminding everyone that no one deserves more monetary gratitude than the service workers who help our many, many children with their many, many messes, and do it with a smile.
Associated Press
05-06-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
AmeriCorps must restore grant funding and members to states that sued over cuts, federal judge rules
The Trump administration must restore hundreds of millions of dollars in AmeriCorps grant funding and thousands of service workers in about two dozen states, a federal judge ruled Thursday. U.S. District Judge Deborah L. Boardman granted a temporary block on the agency's cancellation of grants and early discharge of corps members, but only for the states that sued the administration in April. The federal lawsuit, filed by Democratic state officials across the country, accused President Donald Trump's cost-cutting efforts through the Department of Government Efficiency of reneging on grants funded through the AmeriCorps State and National program, which was budgeted $557 million in congressionally approved funding this year. The 30-year-old agency oversees several programs that dispatch hundreds of millions of dollars and tens of thousands of people to serve in communities across the country. Boardman also said all AmeriCorps National Civilian Community Corps members that were discharged from their service terms early should be reinstated, if they are willing and able to return. But Boardman allowed the 30-year-old federal agency for volunteer service to proceed with its reduction in force, denying the states' request to restore the majority of staff that were put on administrative leave in April. AmeriCorps employs more than 500 full-time federal workers and has an operating budget of roughly $1 billion. The lawsuit was filed by officials in Maryland, Delaware, California, Colorado, Arizona, Connecticut, Washington, DC, Hawaii, Illinois, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Washington and Wisconsin.
Telegraph
30-05-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Trump is about to send tipping culture into overdrive
'When I get to office we are not going to charge taxes on tips, on people making tips,' Donald Trump promised on the campaign trail. 'If you're a restaurant worker, a server, a valet, a bell hop, a bartender, one of my caddies –your tips will be 100pc yours.' The billionaire president has stayed true to his promise. The bulk of the tax cuts outlined in Trump's 'big, beautiful' tax and spending bill, currently before the Senate, reward the wealthy. But one populist clause within the legislation is a plan to scrap federal tax on tips – one of Trump's key campaign pledges. The tax break is popular with US service workers – everyone from hairdressers to restaurant staff – but may not be so popular with customers. American tipping culture is already in overdrive, and people hate it. A policy that was once the sole domain of the restaurant and hospitality sector has rapidly proliferated since the pandemic. Takeaway coffee orders now prompt demands for a few bucks extra and even stopping by a news-stand for a paper or some gum can lead people to pay an extra 20pc on their bills. Many Americans have noticed this creep and don't like it. As one Reddit user put it online: 'What the f--- am I tipping for? Is it not bad enough that I just paid over $5 (£3.7) for a small bottle of water?' Trump's tax break is likely to push a wave of new jobs to adopt restaurant-style tipping policies and will incentivise businesses to restructure their employees' pay, so that they receive a larger proportion of their income from tips. Maurice Obstfeld, former chief economist at the International Monetary Fund, says: 'Number one, this is going to induce new employers to classify more compensation as tips.' It may already be happening. Chris Bakke, a San Francisco entrepreneur and investor, wrote on X recently: The message, which may have been a joke, was in response to news that the US Senate had passed the No Tax on Tips act – a bipartisan bill proposing a tax deduction of up to $25,000 for cash tips. It is separate to the president's proposals, showing the broad support for the policy across the political spectrum. My barber just offered me a $1 haircut if I tipped him $50. — Chris Bakke (@ChrisJBakke) May 20, 2025 $15bn bill Both Republicans and Democrats present the policy as a boost for blue-collar workers. However, economists warn that people could end up with lower baseline pay as a result of the changes, putting more pressure on customers to top up earnings. That means even more social pressure and financial pain at the checkout. The plans laid out in Trump's tax and spending bill offer the same level of tax break as the No Tax on Tips act. Under the current law, staff are required to report tips to their employer if they total $20 or more in a single month. Businesses then include the tips in salary calculations – withholding federal income tax, social security tax and Medicare taxes. The new exemption will only apply to tips paid in cash, not by card. Workers must earn less than $160,000 per year to qualify and be working in occupations that 'customarily' receive tips. The US Treasury will publish a list of these occupations when the bill is passed into law. The total cost to the public purse will be around $15bn per year. The impact on American consumers and tourists visiting the US will also be huge. Abir Mandal, senior policy analyst at the Tax Foundation, says tax exemptions on tips will create 'perverse incentives' for employers. It will encourage businesses to make employees source more of their wages from tips, with a lower proportion from their salaries. Expectations for tips could also become far more widespread, and bigger. Chris Edwards, a tax expert at the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank, says: 'I think different job types will shift their types of compensation. You can think of all kinds of professions where it could become more normal.' Luggage handlers at airports are an obvious potential example, says Mandal. 'They are given a salary. You can give them like $1 or $2 for carrying a bag, but in general they are paid a wage. If this thing takes off, perhaps their income could be reconfigured so that they would make a lower wage but expect a larger tip per bag.' Covid tipping point Tipping has always been the norm in US restaurants, but something changed during the pandemic. More people had food deliveries and wanted to show their appreciation for drivers, widening the tipping net. At the same time, wage growth accelerated sharply as the economy reopened but restaurant bosses and other small business owners struggled to match it. As a result, demands for tips grew. 'The expectation of tipping has grown quite dramatically,' says Stephen Barth, an attorney and hospitality law professor at the University of Houston. 'It was already growing and then during Covid it expanded exponentially.' The share of bakeries asking for tips has soared from 36pc to 49pc in the five years to July 2024, for example, according to analysis of payroll data by Gusto. Among coffee shops, the proportion has jumped from 56pc to 72pc. 'For a lot of small businesses, they run on very tight margins, which means that owners couldn't always raise wages. Tips let them pay more to their employees without hitting their budgets,' says Nich Tremper, senior economist at Gusto. The growth of electronic payment terminals, such as Square, has also made it easier to request tips. Whereas with cash it was up to a customer's discretion, now they are confronted with a menu of tip options and have to actively opt out. Even some card machines now have this as the default option. Tips are even now entering shops. The share of retail businesses using tips as part of their employees' pay nearly doubled in the five years to July 2024, rising from 3.86pc to 6.6pc. One in six health stores, 16.2pc, now pay their staff partly in tips. If Trump's bill passes, tipping will become even more important to staff wages, but potentially also more irritating to give. 'Only cash tips will be untaxed if this legislation passes. There may be added pressure on consumers to pay tips in cash. It'll make things awkward. And people already hate tips in America,' says Mandal. The change to federal tax policy is likely to trigger a wave of similar policies at a state level, he adds. States typically try to conform their own taxable income in line with federal policy. That may sound good for workers. But Barth says it amounts to just a 'subsidy for employers'. The tax break will reduce pressure on employers to raise wages and companies could actually cut workers' base pay as a result, demanding they make up the difference through tips. It hits at the heart of what many customers dislike about the recent transformation in tips. What was once a way of showing appreciation for good services has transformed into an expectation with no real link to the quality of experience. If you don't tip, it's not a sign that you're unhappy with the service – it's a signal you're a bad person. Obstfeld is scathing: 'This was a campaign promise that was made to essentially pander to voters and the economic rationale for it is basically nil.' The public may soon share his anger as demands for tips mount up.
South China Morning Post
26-05-2025
- South China Morning Post
Man in Japan arrested for forcing store clerk to shave head in apology
A man in Kyoto has been arrested for allegedly forcing an electronics store employee into shaving his head in a dramatic act of apology – an incident that has cast fresh light on Japan 's deep-rooted customer-is-always-right culture and the country's recent move to curb abuse against service workers. Police detained the 49-year-old suspect on suspicion of coercion on Thursday for an incident which happened just days after a new ordinance banning customer harassment came into effect in Tokyo. The rule is Japan's first legal effort to address kasuhara – a term used to describe unreasonable or aggressive behaviour by customers – and was prompted by mounting reports of mistreatment across the service sector. Though it carries no criminal penalties, it aims to serve as a deterrent by formally prohibiting verbal abuse and excessive demands against employees, according to The Asahi Shimbun. The head-shaving case underscores the sort of incidents the rule is meant to tackle. On April 4, three days after the ordinance in Tokyo took effect, the suspect reportedly called a store in Kyoto's Minami ward to complain about a faulty set of electric hair clippers. He demanded a replacement, which a 42-year-old clerk agreed to deliver personally.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
What Services Or Tasks Do Customers "Never" Remember To Tip For But Seriously Should?
On the internet, tipping culture is one of the most constantly debated topics. And with the rise in app-based services like food delivery, home decor setup, and beauty treatments at home, there are never-ending opinions about what to tip for and how much. Related: Eat At Some Popular Restaurant Chains For A Day And I'll Guess Your Hair Color So we want to hear directly from people with their boots on the ground. If you work in hospitality, care, or other service-based industries, what's something that people rarely tip you for but really, really should? Related: Make A Really, Really, Really Pretty Disney Princess Dress And I'll Let You Know Your Ideal Home Design Style For example, do you tip the shampoo person at the hair salon? Yes, according to hairstylists. How about baristas? Or your dogwalker? Tell us your thoughts in the comments or in the anonymous form below. The best responses may be featured in an upcoming BuzzFeed Community post! Also in Community: Curate A Summer Pinterest Board To Reveal Your Summer Aesthetic Also in Community: Create The Dress Of Your Dreams And We'll Tell You What You're The Goddess Of Also in Community: We'll Reveal Your Most Attractive Feature, But First You Have To Enjoy A Rainbow Of Foods
