The experience of travelling abroad and having to work out what exactly you are supposed to tip is a frequent cause of awkwardness and potential fury. In fact, it’s often enough to make a traveller worry that they may have irreparably damaged the standing of their compatriots overseas and potentially hastened the prospect of war.
Perhaps then the most treacherous place for nervous tippers to travel to (or just those generally terrified of any form of confrontation with a stranger) is the US. Woefully low-paid workers rely on their tips, and therefore do their utmost to earn them – usually by competing to become a patron’s new best friend.
The differences in culture over when to tip and what for are so fraught with danger that it should be included in the list of things a pilot announces upon a plane’s descent into a destination
The American dream
One of my brief trips to New York led to so much fretting over which services I was actually expected to pay for that I ended up having to carry around large wads of one-dollar bills in my pocket. Just arriving at my hotel resulted in the cab driver opening my door and waiting expectantly for some sort of donation, even though I’d already paid by card for the suspiciously roundabout route from the airport. $10 was promptly dispatched.
Then an overly enthusiastic man leapt towards my bag and offered to carry it to my room, even though (despite my weedy appearance) I’m more than capable of carrying the small laptop-sized case myself. Ignoring my protestations, he eagerly followed me to my room, placed the bag down before standing in the doorway, and blankly stared at me for a painfully long time until I handed over another $10.
Later that evening, to wash away the trauma of all the earlier awkwardness, I went to a local hipster bar. After ordering a bottle of pathetically weak American beer, I was shocked to find that – having paid and walked a mere four steps away from the bar – I was confronted by the barman, barking in my face, “Hey buddy, where’s my goddamn tip?” I sheepishly handed over yet another sizeable bill. It was only when I returned home considerably poorer than when I’d left that I realised tips should only be a couple of dollars.
Culture shock
However, other countries have different policies. In Argentina it is even illegal to offer a tip, which is exactly the sort of forward-thinking economic decision that the country has become known for and others should take note of. While not banned in Japan, tipping is considered highly offensive. France is, mercifully, one of the few countries where a tip is factored into a bill by law, and so their waiters don’t require any additional payment – although that could also be why they’re always so notoriously rude.
Even in the UK, where service charges are now usually added to a bill, these social hurdles are prevalent. While English workers would never dream of asking for a tip outright, they will almost certainly attempt some sort of unpleasant revenge if you don’t offer one.
Yet the habit of service being added onto a bill in advance causes some people to become irrationally furious, as though it’s prevented them from deciding just how much the poorly paid staff deserves to get. In reality, of course, they’re upset because they can’t get away with not paying anything without rudely asking for it to be removed, and therefore causing that most un-English of happenings – a confrontation.
Mental arithmetic
There are more areas where this awkwardness emerges: how much am I supposed to tip at the barbershop? £2? £5? But he’s ruined my hair and made me look like I’m about to start my first day at school – £10 it is. The differences in culture over when to tip and what for are so fraught with danger that it should be included in the list of things a pilot announces upon a plane’s descent into a destination. “Welcome to such-and-such! The weather is 26 degrees, the local time is 3pm, and for god’s sake, do remember to give waiters at least a 10 percent tip.”
Alternatively, perhaps the only way around these frequent cultural clashes is some form of global standardisation. Instead of wasting time trying to restore economic prosperity, solve global warming and end all conflicts, the UN should focus its expertise on eradicating the horrific suffering that is caused by differences in gratuity cultures.
