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It's that time of year again when everybody's looking for a handout, and those of us with means are expected to dole out extra cash to the help as thanks for simply doing their jobs. And just because this sucker's going down, that doesn't mean you're off the hook when it comes to holiday tipping, or so says the rich liberal elitist media. Despite citing surveys that at least 30% of respondents plan on tipping less (or zilch) because of the recession, the latte sippers at WABC insist "you've got to do your best to give something, particularly cash."
And they're probably right—these people do a lot of shit work, and even shit work is now harder to come by, and they probably have several unemployed relatives mooching off them right now, and everything costs a lot more, too. Still, etiquette expert Patricia Fitzpatrick says you might be able to get away with tipping a little less this year if you include an "effusive" thank-you note in the envelope. Because depending on how important you are, the recipient might be able to get some cash for it on eBay?
Anyway, we went over all the basics last year in our definitive guide to how much to tip everyone from your super to your paperboy. NY1 has more on the subject, as does Charles Dickens, whose protagonist Ebenezer Scrooge famously dismissed Christmas as "a poor excuse for picking a man's pocket every twenty-fifth of December." Of course, Scrooge says that early in the story, before he gets confused by those hallucinations and starts throwing money away on that family of grifters with the fake cripple kid. By the way, how much are you tipping your trash collectors? MSN says it should be at least $20 each.
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I work in a hotel and I'll say "ain't it the truth"...it has been much leaner!!!
I'll tip the same as last year to my co-op employees.
I didn't get a raise, but I still have a job.
i will tip the same as last year...nothing
my tip is always "you're white and you're a doorman? there is something wrong there" and then I run really really fast.
Tip your trash collectors??? Are you fucking kidding me???
here's a tip, be thankful you have a job,
it's tough out there, that's an understatement.
it's so bad I'm thinking of renting out my Pb so people can get out of their misery.
what happened to that guy on here who was tired of his assets dwindling down to zip and was thinking about leaving us, us meaning this world.
We need to really do away with the concept of tipping here in the US and pay service works real wages.
works=workers
So I live in a really big building with roughly 20-25 employees. (It's big, but not some luxury place -- though we do have doormen.) Trouble is, at $50 a pop, tipping them all would cost at least a grand. I like these guys, but $1,000? I just don't make that kind of money.
Ok, I'm sure I'll get the standard "if you can't afford whatever ridiculous amount it costs to live here, move back to [insert Midwestern city]." But anyone else got a view on how to handle that? Can you get away with tipping less when there are lots of employees? If it were 5 or 6 guys, $50 each would be manageable -- but I've owned cars that cost less than $1000.
I'd rather give something than nothing -- but if they're going to be insulted when I slip them a $20, I won't bother.
McDonalds gift certs!
My friend is having trouble making rent and desperately looking for a second job because people are tipping half or nothing at all at the restaurant she works for (a very good, well established restaurant). While I think end of year tipping is always tricky, to stop tipping at restaurants is cruel - these people make nothing if not for tips, and it's part of going out to eat. I agree that perhaps tipping shouldn't work this way, but in the meantime these people are being screwed. If you can't afford to give a decent tip, then maybe you can't afford to eat out? It's part of it.
Gothamist_Cynic, I agree. Building workers should not be forced to subsist on tips. And residents should not be forced to come up with thousands of dollars in baksheesh every holiday to make up for it.
If I were to tip as NY1 and MSN suggest, I'd not only wipe out my gift budget for the holidays, but my savings, as well. I just can't do it.
Elisa Winter, I do agree with that. I'd like to see the culture of tipping done away with altogether and restaurant employees make a decent wage, but when I go out to eat, I'll leave at least 20%.
I think holiday tipping and tipping for direct service are two different animals. Leaving $5 or $10 after a $25 meal isn't going to break the bank for anyone. Doling out hundreds of dollars to all your buildings' employees isn't quite the same.
Well even with the hard times upon us I am going to double the amount of tips I gave to the hardworking people in my building last year. Fortunately for me we have no people working in our building.
I usually tip 12-20%.
But I'm pissed that it's suddenly 'expected' at places to tip that much. It used to be 10% for good service, 15% for great, and 20% for exceptional and amazing service. It was based on earning the tip.
What's with the sudden 'tip creep' mandated by the industry? Keep it up, and there's sure to be backlash.
Good point tingo. I was at a class reunion last week and it was at a "Country Club", actually a golf course that had a catering space, nothing fancy. So there I was buying a bottle of Bud for $3.25 and leaving a dollar tip. After about six I give the broad a twenty and she gives me change for a ten. I corrected her and she didn't bat an eye. It wasn't like she was being rushed I was the only person at the bar. She tried to scam another $10 off of me while I was giving her a 30% tip for opening a bottle of beer. WTF?
How does one tip a trash collector? We're talking about the New York's Strongest, right? What do you do, tape a card with cash in it to the trash bag?
I gave my doorman $40,000. And it took forever to find a bank that had Phillipine currency.