How to Tip More Effectively
Under normal circumstances, employers can be expected to reduce wages when customers increase tips. But these aren’t normal circumstances.
Not the most effective tipping method.
Photographer: Lewis Geyer/Digital First Media/Boulder Daily Camera via Getty Images
I went to the movies recently, and when I bought my ticket I was asked if wanted to leave a tip. I said no. Should I feel guilty for being a cheapskate? Requests for tips are spreading, not just from the convenience-store clerk who sells you a bottle of water but from the firm that services your mortgage.
If you frequent what we economists like to call the leisure and hospitality sector — that is to say, if you ever go out for lunch or dinner or a drink, or to watch a movie or a show or a sporting event — you may have noticed that not only are tip requests more common, but requested tipping rates are higher. Which raises the question: If you tip more, will it help workers?