There was a time when tipping was meant for certain services, now it’s spread beyond to services that never relied on them before, leaving the question of who are we supposed to tip these days?

Tipping has become something expected of customers any place they go. Some experience guilt and shame when they don’t. The idea of tipping is now stressful.

What started in the 19th century when wealthy Americans brought the custom back from their travels in Europe, quickly being tied to the service industry. Tipping evolved into a way employers didn’t have to pay their worker’s minimum wage expecting customers to pay up the difference.

Tipping feels like it’s everywhere in your face now. The option is at a kiosk or the jar sitting on the counter in places like local coffee shops, ice cream shops, drive through places or picking up takeout. In the past it was only considered in the dining industry for servers and bartenders.

Life is already expensive. Inflation is an issue for many.

Customers who are already potentially low on money that want to treat themselves shouldn’t feel guilty about tipping a large percentage because the employer doesn’t want to pay the employee more.

The expectations have changed in recent years, a 15-20% tip for good service now the suggested percentage is 20-25%.

Servers and bartenders really shouldn’t have to “earn” their wages, especially when faced with factors out of their control with what time or weekday it is or the generosity of the customer. Which often leads to inconsistency, giving money to services that may or may not have been good.

It now feels like a social obligation rather than a voluntary reward.

In recent years the laws have changed to where the back of the house is considered in with tip share. Tip pooling is required to share earnings with the workplace.

A solution may be to rethink tipping, instead of relying on customers, businesses could start a transparent fair pay wages that provide the employees with a living wage.

In other countries, either tipping is nonexistent, or service charge is included in bill already, so customers don’t have to stress about the appropriate tip.

Something like that could work in the U.S., creating a more straightforward environment for both workers and consumers. What about going back to basics where tipping is rewarded for going above and beyond.

Tipping gradually got out of hand in recent years. It was shifted from being a reward for service into an expectation in nearly every transaction, leaving us confused on who are we supposed to tip and how much.

The question remains, who are we supposed to tip and how much?