PHILADELPHIA (CBS) – You’ve probably heard of shrinkflation and greedflation before. Here’s another one to add to your vocabulary: tip inflation.
Shoppers say they’re seeing more and more tip requests in more unusual places.
“Actually, I prefer not to call it tip inflation, but tip invasion,” said Thomas P. Farley, “Mister Manners.”
It’s the unwelcome shopping surprise that’s making social media buzz.
“And they talk about the 18% tip already included in the bill. Girl it’s water,” said one TikToker.
Tips, a staple of the service industry, now go well beyond that.
“In the drive-through and they asked for a tip,” said one TikToker.
On TikTok, you’ll quickly find that people aren’t too happy about it.
So what’s the deal?
“It’s a relatively new phenomenon,” said Dipayan Biswas, a marketing and economics professor at the University of South Florida. “I see it becoming more widespread.”
Professor Biswas has been involved with tipping for ten years. He says this new tipping trend started with the digital kiosk boom, then the pandemic “added extra flow to that fire,” plus inflation and more companies allowing tips to make jobs more lucrative at your expense.
“Like I’m sick of tipping properly?” So that’s my biggest concern that it could actually affect the industry where it really matters the most,” Biswas said.
Farley, an expert on etiquette, said, “The very concept of a tip is that we reward a service worker who makes less than minimum wage.”
Farley has a “tips without hesitation list,” and only three people make it:
- server
- bartender
- washroom attendant
“I really wonder where is the line? If you’re going to be in your doctor’s office or dentist’s office one day, you’re going to tip,” Farley asked.
His top tip when shopping for Christmas to avoid tipping: pay cash. But if plastic is a must, “you have to take your stand, you don’t have to feel guilty about it,” he said.
Saying “no” has power.
Uke Washington