A server’s TikTok video educating viewers on what they may not understand when it comes to tipping workers has gone viral, causing many to debate who bears responsibility for such a culture in the U.S.
User Dean Redmond (@deanredmonds) took time after working a 12-hour shift to present three “misconceptions” about tipping practice in a video he stitched from another creator, in which she listed people she would refuse to tip in 2024.
The first thing Redmond noted in his video is that workers receiving tips are not owners, and therefore have no control over the credit card machines equipped with tipping prompts that plague customers.
“None of the service workers you’re yelling at for asking for a tip on your to-go are the owners,” Redmond clarified in his TikTok, which has been viewed over 145,300 times since it was first posted on Dec. 29. “We’re not begging you for money. If you don’t go through that prompt, you can’t even pay us!”
Redmond’s second point centered around the fact that preparing to-go orders entails much more work than customers realize. After having to determine what customers are asking for, a process that often involves confusion and “screaming,” he has to package all the order items and label everything.
“Meanwhile, when I go and take an order from a regular table sitting down, I just take the order and put it in and bring out the food. That’s, like, three things to do, and you always tip me and don’t complain about that,” he pointed out.
Many people tip for services like haircuts and hotel bags without complaint, Redmond noted. And it isn’t as if workers always expect or demand tips, either.
“If you don’t want to tip us, don’t,” he concluded. “But don’t complain to my face, because I’m not complaining to you when you have a $250 to-go bill and you decide to hit the skip button and then yell at me for it.”
@deanredmonds #stitch with @Justice #restaurant #storytime #serverlife #tipping #tippingculture ♬ original sound – Dean Redmond
Fellow service industry workers shared their own frustrations with tipping culture in the comments.
“When I was a barista someone said they weren’t tipping just for me to hand them a drink… idc but ma’am I actually had to make that drink,” user @marianaprice reflected.
“I understand maybe not tipping the same percentage for to go orders but when it’s a 10+ item order AND they want me to label each item with a diff name at least something would be nice,” another viewer explained.
The Daily Dot reached out to Redmond via Instagram direct message.
