A British woman has shared an insight into how American tipping culture works after revealing how much extra she made during one shift.
I’m going to say a controversial take here and say that the American obsession with tipping isn’t the worst thing in the world. Over in the states, it’s expected that you tip around 15–20 per cent of the total bill, with some places expecting as much as 20-25 per cent.
Which is steep compared to tips we’re used to leaving in the UK sure, but there’s nothing worse than receiving a bill and having no clue whether or not you’re about to make a major faux pas.
At least in the US, everybody knows where they stand.
With that being said, have you ever wondered why waiting staff in the US get so caught up over the amount of dollars left under a paid bill?
A lot of this is due to the fact that servers could be paid as little as $2.13 (£1.74) p/h depending on location, which means that a generous tipping culture if often a lifeline for workers.
Here to take us through how much you can make in tips is British waitress Megan Gulyard, who currently lives in the US state of Florida.
In a TikTok posted towards the end of last year, Megan provided a breakdown of how much each table she’d served had left her in response – and it seems like a shift being lucrative is completely down to luck.
Tips ranged from one group of diners leaving no tip, a paltry $2 (£1.63) and an extremely generous $60 (£49) throughout what Megan described as a ‘quiet’ Thursday evening at work.
Later on in the clip, Megan totalled her earnings for the night, which included $57 (£46) in card tips with a 2 per cent deduction, as well as cash tips which brought her grand total to $99 (£80) in tips.
“Which isn’t too bad for a Thursday night considering how slow it’s been.” she added.
This figure appears to be about average for Megan, who revealed in a previous clip that a weekday shift had pulled her in about $115 (£89.50).
Her earnings also sparked a debate amongst viewers, with several people surprised at how high tips can be in the US.
@megangulyard sadly this is america and servers rely on tips to make up their wage. Yes i can get a ‘better job’ but on nights that are good, i can make a lot, this is not a long term job. Its extra cash. #britinamerica #britishmum #britishinamerica #britishserver #servertok #serverlife #serversoftiktok #serverproblems #workingmom
“My daughter is a waitress in the uk and had a table of 20 spend over £500 and gave her a tip of £6,” one person noted, while a second person questioned whether or not a tip should be a ‘bonus’ or an ‘expectation’.
A third said: “An evening shift with 99 dollars plus wage is way more than what someone in the uk would earn.”
On second thought, maybe mandatory tipping culture is just as confusing as whatever system we have over here.
