After the COVID-19 pandemic ended, many Americans voiced their displeasure over a trend that has been dubbed "tipflation." Workers who, traditionally, were not tipped in the past were suddenly asking for tips — and Americans who were already tipping bartenders and waiters deeply resented...
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'Tipping culture cracking': Why tips are way down in America
After the COVID-19 pandemic ended, many Americans voiced their displeasure over a trend that has been dubbed "tipflation." Workers who, traditionally, were not tipped in the past were
suddenly asking for tips — and Americans who were already tipping bartenders and waiters deeply resented requests for tips in convenience stores, supermarkets, hardware stores, food courts and other places.
The Wall Street Journal's Heather Haddon, in an
article published on January 9, reports that Americans have been tipping less and lays out some reasons why.
"People are tipping less at restaurants than they have in at least six years, driven by fatigue over rising prices and growing prompts for tips at places where gratuities haven't historically been expected,"
Haddon explains. "The average tip at full-service restaurants dropped to 19.3 percent for the three months that ended September 30 and hasn't budged much since, according to Toast, which operates restaurant payment systems."
Haddon adds, "The decline highlights a bind restaurants find themselves in, as they face rising costs of ingredients and labor amid customer frustration over spiraling bills.
Americans,
according to Haddon, "have become increasingly grumpy about dining out."
"Many have recoiled at menu prices that have risen sharply in recent years, and are going out less and ordering less when they do,"
Haddon reports. "Some restaurants have added mandatory gratuities and service fees to bills, driving up bills and resulting in some diners tipping less."
