A young woman has criticized the tipping culture in Australia and questioned why diners should leave a little extra money for basic orders.
Phoebe Parsons, a Queensland woman, said she was surprised by the number of places she was asked to tip during a recent visit to Sydney.
‘When did it become something that you suddenly decided to tip everywhere?’ he asked in a TikTok video.
‘At all. I’m not tipping you for doing the bare minimum your job requires to get a coffee to go, as if we weren’t in the United States, you’re making a good amount of money per hour. They earn less than the minimum wage.
Mrs Parsons said yahoo he felt “presumptuous to be asked for a tip before providing service.”
“For exceptional service, I would always prefer to tip cash to the host/server directly to ensure it goes directly to the host who provided the service I’m tipping,” he said.
Australians were generally expected to tip 10 per cent for a big lunch or dinner, but the cost of living crisis has left many watching every penny of their money.
Mrs Parsons received a lot of support for her stance.
Phoebe Parsons slams Sydney hospitality venues for expecting tips for basic work
‘I live in Sydney and I never tip! “I will always press zero and override the machine if I can,” said one commenter.
Another wrote: ‘I literally won’t tip anyone for basically doing their job!’ No, no, no! They get paid pretty well.
‘OMG Cairns is the same!!! And they also charge a 10% “surcharge” on weekends! It’s crazy!’ said another.
This commenter added: ‘Same goes for Woolies, they want you to make a donation at the end of a store. Like a “nah” to me.”
Tony Green, chief executive of the Australian Food Service Advocacy Agency, said tips helped keep businesses afloat.
“Tips often go directly to the employees, and not to the company itself,” he said.
‘But it helps with retention and that’s really important.
‘If employees get a little more benefit from providing excellent service, they will hopefully stay in that business longer. And that helps companies, indirectly, when they have excellent, reliable employees in their businesses.”