Tipping culture (a.k.a. lack of livable wage culture) has gotten so out of control that even a grocery store (you read that right) is now asking for tips at check out.
People are frankly fed up with having to tip for what feels like everything.
For example, you’ll go by a bakery to pick up a few treats. You pay with your card, and then the person swivels around their checkout screen.
Staring back at you is the option to leave a precalculated 15%, 20%, or 25% tip with the click of a button. The cashier is right there, so you end up panicking and make the split-second decision to leave a 20% tip that you didn’t budget for.
Unlike many other countries, it is the norm in the United States to tip in certain scenarios, like leaving a tip on your restaurant bill for the server or giving your hairstylist a bit extra for the service.
Tipped workers make below the legal minimum wage (which already isn’t a livable wage) because it is expected that their tips will cover the rest of their pay.
While Americans are used to tipping at restaurants and bars, more and more places are now seemingly expecting a tip. It’s become especially popular at places that have a touchpad at checkout.
In a viral video, this woman and her boo were confronted with this screen at the most unexpected place—the grocery store.
In the TikTok, Ev (@incrediboii) explained that she and her boyfriend stopped by a small “bougie” grocery store in Austin, Texas called Tiny Grocer, which they normally wouldn’t go to. But they just needed to pick up a few cheeses, hard meats, and wine for their date night, so they stopped in.
She knew it would be more expensive than at the grocery store she normally goes to, and it turned out to be $40.
But here’s where the surprise kicks in.
The cashier turned the tablet around after Ev paid, and Ev was confronted with a screen asking for a 25% tip.
“I look at her and my jaw like [dropped],” Ev said.
As she walks back to the car with her partner, Ev is still in shock.
@incrediboii #stitch with @minna ♬ original sound – Ev
“Did they just ask for a tip? They just asked for a ten-dollar tip on a forty-dollar grocery bill,” Ev said.
The video has more than 150,000 views and over 180 comments.
“TIP??? FOR A CASHIER?????” the top comment read.
“They need to cancel tipping and pay livable wages,” a person said.
“Dude I started asking “Do you get this tip?” And like 50% of the time THEY SAY NO!! Like we are tipping high-ups at this point like NOOOOO,” another wrote.
Update: In an email, Tiny Grocer owner Steph Steele explained that the location has a mixed business model that includes a sandwich shop, deli, coffee shop, and grocery store.
“Many people would like to tip for these services,” Steele said. “… Unfortunately these register systems do not allow you to ask for tips on some areas and not others.”
“I would want to encourage people to make the right decision for themselves. There is always a no tip button on these,” Steele said. “No one expects a 20% tip on groceries. There is always also a custom tip if you would like to leave $1 or $5 for any order. This power still lives in the hands of the consumer.”
The Daily Dot reached out to Ev for comment via TikTok direct message.