Does tipping encourage better service? Here's what experts say
CTV
Tipping is meant to empower customers and motivate workers to deliver quality service, but some question whether the prevalent practice actually enhances customers' experience.
Customers are expected to tip in many situations, but some doubt the practice motivates workers to provide exceptional service.
Bev Burgess, a retired teacher from Medicine Hat, Alta., is among the Canadians who say they're no longer sure that there's a correlation and are raising questions about tipping culture in Canada.
She says she's been prompted to tip when merely buying ice cream at a food truck and when her grandchildren get haircuts. She says she's also expected to tip when she gets her nails done and gets oil changes, and it all adds up.
"I think this whole tipping business has gotten way out of hand," Burgess said in a phone interview with CTVNews.ca.
What adds to her frustration is situations when she has no choice. In one case, she said, she was automatically charged 14 per cent for a tip, even though she didn't receive her meal until nearly all her companions were finished eating.
Burgess said she still usually tips workers when given a choice, but it's because she feels like it's an obligation, not necessarily because the service she received met or exceeded expectations.
"I don't think we as customers should be made to feel we have to supplement their income. I think that's wrong," Burgess said. She says workers do deserve the extra money, but she believes employers should provide them with living wages. "I'm already paying them for a service they are charging me (for). Why should I have to give them extra money? ... They should do a good job whether they get a tip or not."
