Some Tip

My very first fare yesterday afternoon was an American banker who travelled from the Darling Harbour Convention Centre to the Shangrila Hotel. An international banking conference is being held in Sydney this week. My passenger was aged in his sixties and despite the distance from home was happy to be here. He left a small tip. Class.

My last fare at 2.30 this morning was a young staffer at a five star hotel who bitched over the swarms of bankers staying at his hotel. ‘The older guys are okay’, he said, ‘but the younger guys are pushy, arrogant fucks. It’s like they’ve all had personality bypasses - either that or they left them at customs on arrival’. ‘That’s assuming they boarded the plane with them’, I suggested. ‘No wait’, he said, ‘they probably left their personalities in a safety deposit box at their home banks’.

What had upset my passenger most was an overheard conversation amongst a group of bankers in the hotel lobby. ‘They laughed how great it was not having to tip in Australia’. ‘Mate, I understand’, I said. ‘It’s the same for cabbies. Sydney Airport advertise that tipping in Australia is not normal and there is no need to tip taxi drivers. Bullshit. Tipping is simply a reflection of good service. It’s an acceptable and well established practise and for them to say otherwise is outrageous’.

My passenger totally agreed, ‘It’s the same now in hospitality. For some reason tourists have got the idea that tipping is unnecessary. I don’t know where it’s come from. The Aussies and Americans still tip but the rest, forget it. Well as far as I’m concerned they can get stuffed, I look after them when I’m ready’. He left me a small tip. Class.

Comments

[Harry Buttle]

A question, what in your opinion, constitutes "good service" in a cab, after all being polite and delivering the passenger to their destination by the most practical route is surely the minimum acceptable standard?

[Link]

Minimum acceptable standard, probably doesn't include being polite or 'being' anything other than a driver who will take a passenger safely from A to B. I'd be interested in Adrian's take on this. I rarely tip cabbies (I rarely take taxis), unless its a keep the small change because its easier than fumbling around for loose change. This is embarrassing both ways because its usually a pretty paltry sum; a sort of damned if you do damned if you don't scenario. But tipping a cabbie because he has been nice or entertaining doesn't gel with me. I don't think people should be financially recompensed for having decent manners, or good personalities? Or should they? Hospitality is another arena, altogether. I once had a Yank sling me a twenty as he walked in the door of the restuarant I was working in. I thought that was smart as it guaranteed him good service. A tactic which had obviously worked well for him in the past but carried with it both a risk and an element of basic faith.

[adrian]

Good question Harry. 'Minimum acceptable standard' should be a given but the reality is somewhat different in Sydney cabs. For example, the mere fact only 3% of drivers are born in Sydney works heavily in my favour. Passengers like my...

- command of English with an Australian accent
- life long knowledge of most Sydney localities, with some history thrown in, if asked
- ability to placate and satisfy the most demanding passengers, within reason
- totally safe and efficient driving technique which delivers them to the destination without drama, usually resulting in a cheaper than normal fare.

Granted, this should be standard stuff for a professional driver but it ain't. And passengers know this so they're more likely to tip for better than 'normal' service.

Conversely however, on a goods for service arrangement, if minimum standards are not met passengers should be able to adjust the fare down to reflect the service provided. Theoretically at least.

[Greg]

I find tipping practices here to be inconsistent, but welcome the many opportunities where it's not required, as opposed to back in the States, where it seems nearly everyone and their dog gets a tip. In restaurants and cabs back there, where the minimum wage is set below that for other service industry jobs on the assumption that tips will make up the difference, 15-20% is just social justice applied directly. But every Australian I know tells me that tipping here is not required, optional even on those occasions when I'd most expect to tip. Because tipping isn't a precondition, like in some European countries, where the bill includes a preset 15%, or a consistent practice to address offset wages, it seems to work here as a way of addressing or obtaining extra or special treatment. It is a relief not to have to calculate an additional payment at every turn. It was bad enough back in New York, adding 8 1/4% to every purchase because the sales tax wasn't every included on the price tag, unlike the GST here. But while the cab driver who took me from the airport yesterday, for example, couldn't speak English comprehensibly, he understood enough to deliver me to my destination efficiently. Sure, I left a tip, but on examination, more from learned habit than anything else. I'd be interested to know if cab drivers who don't own their own vehicle are paid a wage or rely entirely on fares & tips.

[SurferCam]

I used to be a Banker - I know exactly the people you are talking about, and it's half the reason I left the industry.
I used to live in the U.S. where tipping is the norm and you're right, it is a reflection of the service you receive - crap service equals crap tip. Great service equals great tip.
I normally always tip cabbies and at restaurants.

[Cabbie X]

As a cabbie in the states, I'll take a swing at some of this.

Minimum Acceptable Standard - I should be polite, I should get my passenger safely to their destination using the shortest route possible unless otherwise directed. I should load and unload bags at the airport.

Now, is that all I do? Nope. If you need a hotel/restaurant/bar recommendation I'm your man. Want to hear jokes? Cabbie stories? Want me to listen to your tales of laughter or woe and actually care? That isn't required, but it's what I offer. I try to quickly ascertain what each passenger is looking for in their ride, and provide it. Each ride is an entertainment opportunity, a learning experience, even a therapy session.

That is what we cabbies can offer if we're on our game, and for that we do appreciate tips. I never require them, or ask for them. But if your ride consists of something more than just "Take me to xxxx Street", show your appreciation.

[Miles]

"Sure, I left a tip, but on examination, more from learned habit than anything else."

So true. I tipped $5 on a $10 fare the other night, because I felt bad about it being such a short fare - despite the fact that the cab had taken forever to arrive, the driver was rude, smoked in the cab, and generally just a dickhead, and I ran 40 minutes late for my own birthday dinner. I miss the days when I did't feel compelled to pay extra on every hospitality based thing I pay for. I'm starting to think I should pull back on my tipping habits and only tip when I feel they've really gone the extra mile for me and deserve it. Basic service shouldn't earn extra money; they should charge the proper amount in the first place.

[Lisa]

My usual deal is "keep the change" unless I'm really broke that week (I'm a student). Also, if I'm running late and I ask them to get there quick, I make sure I tip a bit ($10 on a $30 fare) as I realise that they probably made the fare a lot lower than usual. I refuse to leave them anything if they talk on the phone while driving (this happens way too often). Unless your wife went into labour, there is no excuse for such rudeness and disregard for my safety.

[AdventureGirl]

I almost always tip my cabbies in Australia but I rarely tip them in Dubai they've inflicted their smell and bad driving on me too many times and now I'm pissed off.

[Marcia]

I'm from the U.S. and have long dreamed of visiting Australia. Every guide book and Australian tourism site I have ever read says tipping is not expected--not in taxis or restaurants or anywhere service is provided. Twenty years ago it was suggested that tipping could be insulting to some. Now the advice is tipping isn't expected but leaving a modest tip is fine if service is exceptional. Chances are good that many of the tourists who are stiffing service providers believe they are following local customs.

[Walter]

In my former life as a US cabbie, I always found that my tips went up if I could engage the fare in good conversation (or were smart enough to notice when the fare didn't want to talk). I also found men better tippers than women.

[Pam]

On my first overseas trip to the US a couple of years ago I was disgusted at the blatant demand for a tip. It came as the opening spiel on almost every journey and expectations of tips written on menus etc. As a normal working class person who has to plan and save for a holiday, the extra 'standard' 20% on top of the poor exchange rate made a big difference to my holiday.

I do not believe that we should pay extra to receive good service - in Australia or anywhere else. Exceptional service however, certainly has me reaching into my purse because it is so rare.

Where taxis are concerned - I have taken quite a few in recent times and the standard seems to be that I am required to not only direct the driver to where I want to go (even in the CBD) but look up the Melway for him so he has a visual reference. If I'm not on my guard, it is not unusual to be taken on a 'scenic' ride to my destination where the fare can be $6 more than exactly the same ride the previous day. I do pity the poor tourists.

Of course, there are exceptions to the 'rule' (pity this rule appears so substandard) as I'm sure you are. You mention the 3% - I think it's even less in Melbourne to the detriment of our city.

[Dean]

Wow. This post has attracted a lot of attention.

Here's my 2 cents worth. I've always lived in Melbourne and use taxis a lot. I live close to the city, so my usual cab fare is only about $12. I know this fare is hardly worth the effort for the cabbies, so try to tip them a bit.

If the driver doesn't ask me for directions, drives safely (but efficiently ;) and doesn't give me attitude, I'll give them a $20 note and let them keep the change. That's about 60% tip.

If they ask me how to get from Melbourne CBD to South Yarra, but still get me there, I'll take $5 change, giving them a 25% tip.

If they ask for directions, still go the wrong way, and stupidly risk my life or the life or random pedestrians, which happens a lot, I get all of my change - no tip.

Sorry Adrian and other cabbies - don't take what I've written the wrong way. I have the utmost respect for *good* cabbies.

As for restaurants, I try to tip 10-15%, depending on how good the service was.

[Dean]

Sorry to double post, but what Lisa said. Taking or making personal phone calls while you're driving = no tip for you!

[Walter]

Dean's stance is reasonable. There is no reason why anyone should pay for poor service and a taxi driver taking the long way around is cheating a passenger (or trying to). Never did it myself, wasn't worth my time. Dislike of a driver taking calls is a subjective matter (unless the call tends to make the driver drive poorly).

[Link]

It seems that tipping or not, reduces us down to our lowest and most common denominators--greed and our hunger for money. If I don't tip, regardless of what kind of service I've received I am resented and reviled for it. A sincere thank you, being clearly appreciative and paying what's owed, 'adds up' to Jack shit. Noice. Some people can barely afford to take taxis let alone give extravagant tips.

[Yobbo]

Foreigners here shouldn't listen to Adrian. Tips are not expected in Australia for anything. Taxi drivers included. Their wage is guaranteed by the state and Taxi drivers in Australia charge higher rates than anywhere else in the world.

Nobody receives tips in Australia for anything, and anyone who complains about not receiving a tip is just trying to rip you off.

Service workers in the US receive tips because the minimum wage in such industries is $2 an hour. In Australia it is $17.50 an hour. The extra cost of paying staff is passed on to the consumer by way of higher prices in bars/restaurants/hotels. If you tip you are simply paying twice. Don't do it.

If any taxi driver in Australia badmouths or scowls at you for not tipping, you should report him to the Taxi company and/or the tourism ministry.

Very, very poor form Adrian.

[redcap]

And $17.50 an hour still isn't much, Yobbo, especially on a slow night. I say tip if the service has been good.

I'm enjoying your blog, Adrian. You've got a nice, chatty writing style - you sound like a born story teller.

[Yobbo]

"And $17.50 an hour still isn't much, Yobbo, especially on a slow night."

Actually $17.50 an hour is the same whether you are standing around doing nothing or run off your feet.

And it is a lot more than $2 or $0 an hour which is what waiters and bartenders in America are paid. Which is why tipping is required there. And why the drinks/food is cheaper. The idea is you pay the waiter/bartender. In Australia they are paid by their employer. No need to pay them twice.

And by the way redcap, what about people that earn less than $17.50 an hour?

If a 16yo kid who works at McDonalds takes his mum out to dinner once a week, why should he tip the waiter when the waiter already earns more than he does?

Do you tip your plumber, removalist, or hairdresser? All these people get tipped in the USA.

The reason we don't tip them here is simple - THERE IS NO TIPPING IN AUSTRALIA AND NEVER HAS BEEN.

[Yobbo]

"Sydney Airport advertise that tipping in Australia is not normal and there is no need to tip taxi drivers. Bullshit."

No Adrian, it's not bullshit. it's 100% correct. Tipping is not normal in Australia and you know it.

[adrian]

Their wage is guaranteed by the state and Taxi drivers in Australia charge higher rates than anywhere else in the world.

Bullshit Yobbo, how does a regulated fare equate to a guaranteed wage ? Cabbies aren't like other public transport workers on fixed salaries. We're small businesses competing against each other for a decent share of that regulated fare. Some nights you get lucky and others you don't. And higher rates than anywhere in the world ? What evidence are you relying on to make such a statement ?

In a previous post you posited this same dodgy theory, on Sept 16, 2005 11:03:32 AM. Which I refuted on Sept 17, 2005 2:47:08 PM. That you never replied then suggested you agreed with my response. Poor form indeed.

Also I've explained in the above link how tipping is an established practise. That you obviously don't yet plenty do, says more about your own practise than demonstrates a general rule.

Mate, you're just pissed off Sydney made the AFL Grand Final and Freemantle didn't. Plus I didn't go for your recent Girl Friday. Say it ain't so, Yobbo.

[Yobbo]

"Bullshit Yobbo, how does a regulated fare equate to a guaranteed wage ?"

They don't only regulate the fare, Adrian. They also regulate the number of taxis on the road, and the number they allow is way below the actual number demanded.

You know this as well as anyone, don't play stupid.

"And higher rates than anywhere in the world ? What evidence are you relying on to make such a statement ?"

The evidence of me actually being most places in the world and finding cheaper taxis everywhere. The only possible exception being Japan.

"Also I've explained in the above link how tipping is an established practise."

"Keep the change" is not tipping. It is a custom that has arisen mostly as a result of drivers refusing to carry change, and the lack of patience required to sit around and wait for him to locate $1.30 in his bumbag.

Just because you keep saying tipping is established practise doesn't make it true. See Here

[Lee]

I'm not even going to waste my words on Yobbo! Not in the mood at the moment!

[Jimbo Jones]

I'd argue your contention, Yobbo. Whenever I tell a cabbie or a waiter to keep the change, it's because they deserve it. And it's usually 5-15% of the metered fare/bill.
Being a stingy scot, I'll stick around until the four horsemen come for that change.
In fact, the last "keep the change" that I did was a $6 fare for which I handed over $10. Partially because the fare was a short piece of crap, but that would have only gotten you up to the nearest dollar. As it was exactly $6, my cabbie wouldn't have gotten anything out of me.
As it was a large tip for the size of the fare, the cabbie recognised it for what it was and thanked me quite well. I nearly handed him another fiver for that, but I didn't have one.

Never having been out of Australia, I can't speak to the cheaper fares everywhere else, but I'd imagine that the service is reduced also. And if it wasn't, then tipping would be damned near required rather than just suggested.

[Lee]

Hear! Hear! Jimbo Jones! :)

[Yobbo]

Whatever Jimbo. The only place in the world that Taxi drivers receive tips is in the USA, where everyone receives tips for everything.

Australia, like most of the rest of the world, has no tipping culture.

[Lee]

You are totally incorrect, Yobbo.

[Hardened skeptic and (long ago) cabbie]

I'm with Yobbo again here, if not quite 100%.

A tip is a gratuity. You don't have to pay it. The fare rates (which are set and regulated) should be set to allow a reasonable living for the person doing the job. Maybe they should be set higher, but that is a different point. In any event, I think the remuneration of taxi drivers is comparable to similar work, and any driver who thinks otherwise is (generally) free to take the comparable work instead.

For most people, if they are paying for it themselves, taxis are pretty expensive. A lot of this is because the restriction in the number of plates, even if its starting rationale is to ensure that the drivers who are on the road can make a reasonable living, ends up just being capitalised into the price of a plate and hence, in the case of non owner-drivers, factored into the pay-in rate.

If tipping were even morally obligatory in the way that Adrian seems to suggest, then it should go both ways. I should be able to "clip" the driver's fare for a bad job. Of course, that way chaos lies, and the only time that ever arises in my experience is when a driver realises he has done a really stupid and wrong thing in terms of the route to be taken, and despite the rules about shortest and most direct route, it is, for all practical purposes, at the driver's option. Maybe that has happened to me 3 times in my life - I can only actually remember it happening once.

People who tip when somebody else is paying are just making big men (people) of themselves at another's expense. Unless they need to use the services on a recurrent basis for the benefit of the person who is actually paying, there can be no justification for this.

I'm counter suggestible: I really don't like someone who assumes they will get a tip, ie, restaurants which go slow on bringing the change. I can wait for a long time for that kind of change!

I also find systematic tipping a bit demeaning, to both parties. Why should anyone do any other than a reasonably good job, even their best, for a fair price? In my line of work I have clients who, want to, in effect, tip me, and make extravagant promises to that effect, most of which I do not generally believe but which I also find embarrassing. I tell them I will be happy if they just pay my bill.

As to taxi-drivers' beliefs about their value-added services, in my opinion, except in relation to tourists, these are over-estimations. I have sometimes, but only rarely, had drivers who have done such a good job that I am moved to pay them more just because of that. Mostly I don't ask anything so special of them which would give scope for that. I know where I want to go and I am prepared to pay the driver the fare for going that way. Driving a cab in these circumstances is not rocket science or even brain surgery (and I wouldn't dream of tipping my brain surgeon). In my opinion, most of the skill in being a taxi driver, other than knowing the way, relates to the taxi driver's management of the driver's own work (ie, knowing where to be when to get the best chance of the best fares) and management of difficult passengers in interests of his own safety, rather than how the driver does the individual job.

I don't want a taxi driver being agreeable to me just because he (OK, giving up on non-gender specific formulations now) thinking I might give him a few dollars at the end of the ride. I expect him to be agreeable to me, or else shut up: I will afford him the same treatment.

I don't expect the driver to reduce the price to me because I have been agreeable to him, though I think it probably happens on the rounding down principle referred to below. I don't ask for a reduction (though I sometimes think I ought to) when the taxi driver bores me to tears about his sometimes quite objectionable opinions or his personal problems on which he seeks my professional advice, though I have learnt to keep quiet about my profession for my own protection.

I admit I am stingy. But I do tip sometimes. My fare home is somewhere between $20 and $25, depending on the time of day and the traffic and where exactly I start the ride. But actually, I mostly tip on the "rounding up" principle, depending on what change I can make or notes I have, and how the fare came in compared to what it usually is. It's pretty random, except I guess I will be more relaxed about it when I am in a good mood, and will wait for the change to the cent if the trip has been particularly bad.

Conversely, in Sydney, plenty of drivers (and not because I have asked them, but because we have got on well and it is more convenient) will also tip me on the "rounding down" principle. I really like that, not because I am getting some super bargain (because it is never that much, and the round downs are happen less frequently than and are on average less than any round up that I apply) but because it shows we are relaxed with each other and being sensible about trivial matters.

[Lee]

Whew!

[adrian]

Yobbo and Hardened skeptic, people in Australia tip/round-up, whatever you want to call it. It's an undeniable truth. That many have always done so simply bears this out. Ask any cabbie or hospitality worker if it's normal. Of course it is. End of story.

[hardened cynic (and long ago cabbie)]

Well, I know I got carried away before, but if that is the "end of story", you ended somewhere else than where you began.

You started with a whingeing hotel service person who has overheard Americans rejoicing that in Australia tipping is not necessary, to whom, on his leaving a small tip, you dipped your lid (CJ Dennis is the reference here). The necessary implication was that people should tip for good service (for which it is "a reflection") and that if they don't that is bad behaviour on their part.

Your "end of story", that people in Australia have always tipped/rounded up, is true but without the moral judgement on non-tippers and the claim to some sort of entitlement (even if only moral) to a tip for good service which you started with.

It's nice to see you have changed your mind!

[redcap]

Sorry, Yobbo, I presumed you meant $17.50 an hour when there were actually fares to be had. Presumably, if there aren't any fares, the hourly rate dips. And yes, since $17.50 an hour isn't a hell of a lot, less than $17.50 would be crap too. But it's still no reason not to tip.

[Yobbo]

Redcap, we were talking about hospitality workers (eg. waiters, barstaff). Not cabbies.

In Australia they get paid whether the restaurant is empty or not.

[IB]

I lived in Western Australia for 9 years (left in 98), and the cabbies there NEVER accepted a tip, even when I said "keep the change" they would never let me out the door without giving me change (sometimes to my embarressment as I was already halfway out the door).

So unless things have changed, or I looked exceptionally poor, i don't think there is a tipping culture in Australia. I did used to tip the bellhop at hotels - but who doesn't do that?

I agree that Australian taxis are among the most expensive in the world - compared to Malaysian, Hong Kong, Singaporean or even US and London fares, Oz taxis are expensive.

[mina]

Everybody I know feels weird about tipping here because it's definitely not the norm in Australia. Note: I'm Asian and spent half my life overseas.

I've done a lot of the "keep the change" thing when I have a $20 note for a $15 fare and the responses from cabbies here have been quite varied. Some were delighted, some were indifferent, some were confused and even some who wore indignant facial expressions - like wondering if I was loaded with cash and showing off by being dismissive of $5(note: I'm an underpaid young worker fresh out of uni, that $5 means a lot to me).

Once while on a holiday in Victoria, I slipped the hotel concierge $20 for being so helpful and friendly. He was taken aback because it was the first time that anyone had tipped him. His reaction wasn't exactly ecstatic nor was it fully angry, he just looked at me as if I just made a giant faux pas. Maybe the tipping was like implying a master-servant relationship instead of professional service? *shrugs*

In restaurants, there's a similar range of sometimes delighted/sometimes indignant reaction with tips. If the service is exceptional, me and my friends leave $10 to $20, which can seem like a lousy tip if it's a big bill but 99% of the time, the waiters/waitresses expected absolutely nothing.

It's just getting too weird everytime I get an awkward reaction from tipping, so from now on, I'll just go with the Australian way and not tip.

[Lee]

Well, I was always thankful for tips when I received them when I worked on tables. I didn't 'expect' them but I felt rewarded for a job well done. I didn't feel like a 'servant' when I received them. Neither was I embarrassed nor angry or confused. If I didn't get a tip from a table that didn't matter either, but I found most diners did leave tip. And I every time I've been taken out to dinner, a tip has been left. And, after working in the hospitality industry in all manners...from waiting tables, to managing resorts and motels, and cheffing, when I go out to dine, even alone, I tip...I always have done so. Of course, if the service and food has been diabolical, no tip. On the other hand, if the food has been exceptional and the service not so good, I will give a tip to the chef! I guess this is an 'individual' thing...tipping.