Tipping is an essential cornerstone of American culture—so much so that 95% of people say they tip at least sometimes, according to Forbes. But as the gig economy grows, with services like Uber and DoorDash becoming commonplace, the question of tipping or not tipping feels a little more ambiguous.
In fact, one in three people say they feel pressured into tipping, while 18% of them admit that they feel uncomfortable about tipping as a whole. TikToker Dustin Anderson (@therealdustinanderson) would probably count himself as being one of the 18%, as he revealed in a new video that he was “done” with tipping.
“I’m not tipping anymore. I’m out, I’m done,” he declared. “It used to be you give a tip if somebody gave exceptional service. When’s the last time you’ve had exceptional service?”
“It’s just expected,” he added. “They bring you a bill at the end and they’re like, ‘Here, just fill this out, ‘20%, 25%’ like, no, you did your job! They made food and you carried it to my table. You got me a diet Coke, thank you. That’s doing your job. You don’t get 25% because you did your job.”
He then went on to insist that he’s “not the bad guy” as he implored restaurant owners to tell him “what it costs.”
“What does it cost for me to get my food and also to keep the waiting staff from having to join a cartel?” he asked. “Like, I want people to be taken care of. Just tell me what it costs.”
As the clip went viral on the app, amassing 1.4 million views as of Saturday, viewers couldn’t quite make their minds up about tipping etiquette.
While some insisted that tipping is “just what you do” for services, others argued that tipping had become “out of control.”
“I don’t mind tipping at restaurants but at Subway, the car wash, bars, nail salons… it’s everywhere,” one complained.
“I’m a nurse and I never get a tip,” another lamented. “It’s my job and 75 % of the time people are yelling at us.”
Yet, other commenters from the service industry emphasized the importance of tipping to their survival. “He’s obviously never been a waiter because tips is how they make their living,” a commenter wrote. “They’re paid on that basis.”
Another said that if you’re not going to tip, “make sure you tell your server before you order so they can focus on their other tables.”
“Don’t expect a refill, or your ranch or your plate cleared,” they added.
Either way, one thing both sides could agree on is that servers are definitely not paid enough.
“Server minimum wage is way less than standard minimum in most states,” a second server explained, while a third pointed out that “if you don’t tip, the servers owe the company money.”
Dustin didn’t immediately respond to the Daily Dot’s request for comment via Instagram direct message.
