NORFOLK, Va. — If you’ve bought anything at a store recently or paid for a service, there is a good chance you have been asked if you want to leave a tip.
As people are asked to leave more gratuity, there’s more confusion about how generous they should be, especially around “the most wonderful time of the year.”
In fact, according to a recent Bankrate survey, “thirty-two percent of Americans will seek advice about how to tip around the holidays, including from friends or family, the internet or social media.”
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If that’s you, let’s break down the numbers.
Bankrate says 15% of U.S. adults will increase how much they tip this holiday season compared to last year. Another 44% plan to tip the same amount, while only 13% say they’re decreasing how much they tip.”
I wanted to know what workers are impacted by the fluctuating tipping culture.
My curiosity led me to Changes City Spa in Norfolk; a place where the technicians are commonly tipped, sometimes more-so this time of year.
“[When it comes to tipping], it's a relationship between the client and the technician,” said Norma Dorey. "So, if they feel taken care of, they're going to take care of the technician on the other end."
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Norma Dorey is the owner and president of Changes. She says her staff factors in tips to their budgets.
“It could be their lunch money for the day,” she said."No, truly - or their back-to-school kid’s clothes. I mean it is purposeful, for sure."
Hair stylists and barbers are the second-most tipped behind servers at sit-down restaurants, Bankrate reports. Even so, it’s still only about 50% of people who leave gratuity.
Of the lowest on the list, the company says, are coffee shop baristas.
“I think counter tipping has kind of gotten a lot of negativity, where you're like, like, you're just at the counter, and you're buying a cup of coffee, and they want you given the choice of tipping— that's kind of looked down on a negative,” Dorey says.
Recent surveys back Dorey’s comment up, finding the number of people who tip has gone down since 2019.
But why?
Some say the onus should be on the company to pay better, and others think they are being asked too much.
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So, when I overheard Ewa Karweta asking to leave a tip for her stylist, I wondered if she had so-called tipping fatigue.
After a moment in thought she said, "I don't know, you know. I don't, I don't know. For me to that, that's just a sign of respect, right? Especially if someone has done a really good job."
She told me tips actually help put her through college.
“For me because I’ve done similar types of jobs. I tend to over tip,” she says. “I tend to tip more because I know that there's a lot of people that don't tip. So, I'm sort of evening things out.”
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Consumer experts say it’s the common advice to tip twenty percent, but to adjust based on the service.
“[Our stylists] should look at it as a gift. Some people can't give a lot and some people can,” Dorey says.
More people may also be adjusting their budgets this holiday season as inflation is still high.
When you do go to pay make sure you read your bill carefully and you check to see if there are any automated service charges, so you don't end up paying twice.
