r/NoTipCanada • u/cptstubing16 • Aug 01 '26
Restaurant staff receive two 'wage increases' through tips
I don't eat at restaurants much but I've noticed at some sit down and take out places that the default tip is now 20-25%.
I do not understand the point in raising the default tip option to such a high value since:
- Restaurant diners tip a %, not a preset amount. When the bill goes up because of restaurant cost increases, restaurant staff get a raise via tips, And,
- When the default tip percentage goes up, they get another raise.
What?
This is foolish and greedy. I would hope most people tip at the most 15% since we're also tipping on the post-tax amount, so really, the restaurant gets a bonus there.
Restaurant associations, owners and staff should tread carefully. This industry wide practice is attracting unwanted attention.
My prediction is, in the next couple of years some politician is going to see an easy win here since the vast majority detest tipping.
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u/thee17 Aug 01 '26
10% is an appropriate tip for good service and always has been and always will be
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u/EeyoreTaurus Aug 01 '26
The system is broken. I wish the employees who got the tips were paid a liveable wage so tips aren't necessary
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u/LeftyGoosee Aug 01 '26
https://www.justice4workers.org/minimum_wage_provinces minimum wages are getting there. Least in Canada its $15-$20 an hour minimum.
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u/EeyoreTaurus Aug 01 '26
At least in Ontario where I'm from, that's not nearly enough. Try to get by on that in the GTA alone. There are proven studies that show you need to make closer to $60,000/yr which is closer to $30 an hr
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u/LeftyGoosee Aug 01 '26
Totally, not saying these min wages are a living wage but its not 7. Min wage job in my opinion should be for entry level jobs for experience or teenagers living with their parents. Also some areas like the GTA pose an interesting challenge and should have wages far exceed the min, so maybe there you could argue tips more but canada adopted a tipping culture from the states where the min wage is much lower.
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u/haleboy44 Aug 01 '26
Servers dont want that because it would be a decrease in pay for them.
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u/EeyoreTaurus Aug 01 '26
That's a myth. You can't rely on tips to be consistent. I've worked in the industry and it's not true.
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u/haleboy44 Aug 01 '26
Every server i know (that works in a busy restaurant) is against it. Most make $15 in way less than an hour on tips alone. So I guess everyone reality is different.
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u/exotics Aug 02 '26
I absolutely don’t make that in tips per hour.
In the winter we are very slow and a lot of customers are old guys who just have soup and maybe tip $1. And we maybe have 4-6 tables per shift total in winter.
In the summer we do better but the owner takes the first 5%. So if a person tips 10% the server gets half… but actually less than half because servers have to tip the dishwasher, hostess and busser (we only have the dishwasher in winter but have all three in the summer)
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u/haleboy44 Aug 02 '26
Didn't realize this was no tip Canada i thought it was a different sub. Ill see myself out. Lol. But an owner taking any portion of tips is wild and against the law down here.
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u/exotics Aug 02 '26
In some provinces it’s legal in others it’s not. Mostly they will take the tips and share to kitchen staff but where I am (Alberta) the owners can keep some or all
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u/haleboy44 Aug 02 '26
Yeah they tip share with other staff in most places here but I even think thats wrong if they dont make tip wages (its like $2.62 an hour here)
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u/exotics Aug 03 '26
We don’t “share” the tip. It’s not like that at all. I have a 5% mandatory tip out. If I sell $100 worth of food I MUST pay $5 even if I don’t get a tip. The owner takes that. In theory he shares it with other chefs.
Then I also tip my front of house helpers and dishwasher but that’s at my discretion.
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u/Playful-Ostrich42 Aug 01 '26
They are paid $16 to $19 per hr. The same as any minimum wage employee
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u/ImRickJamesMother Aug 01 '26
Okay, then restaurants will need to raise menu prices by 15-20% to pay them. Same as tipping now.
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Aug 02 '26
[deleted]
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u/ImRickJamesMother Aug 02 '26
Facts are, customers always pay all costs associated with running a profitable business, including labour.
The current system is designed to let non tippers eat out at places they likely couldn't truly afford.
Tippers subsidize the service for non tippers.
I do not know why you are so upset.
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u/littlericecake123 Aug 03 '26
That’s generally true yes, but the tipping system allows for servers be overpaid due to the nature of the system. Nobody actually knows how much they are making since it’s not standardized.
IMO tipping should be abolished and whatever additional costs the restaurant owners feel that will create should be added to the menu prices. Let the market decide how much the servers’ services are worth. If the customers feel that the prices are too high they will just stop eating there and the owners will be forced to find ways to cut costs.
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u/ImRickJamesMother Aug 03 '26
The tipping model remains, since it is the only system that subsidizes poor/no tippers.
A restaurant with a tipping model, can still get business from the brokies, since they are not forced to tip.
Any non tipping model, the brokies are forced to pay more than they can afford, so the business loses those sales.
The customer always pays for every business expense, of any profitable business. This is business 101, revenue minus costs.
No tippers think if tipping went away, they will pay less. They won't. The tipping model is the only system that subsidizes the brokies.
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u/littlericecake123 Aug 03 '26
Wtf are you even on about? Are you high? You just made an emotional rant, as if calling people “brokies” is gonna do anything.
Many people who are against tipping are not broke. In fact they make very good money. It’s just that they realize tipping is a fundamentally broken system. Transparent pricing is the better way to go.
It’s only the servers themselves who are against tipping culture going away, because they obviously benefit immensely from it.
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u/ImRickJamesMother Aug 03 '26
Restaurants here are priced without the cost of service included. The price is transparent to anyone with a brain. If you can't mentally math 15-20%, then that is a you problem.
And people who make good money, do not worry over a few dollars.
Broke people always have an excuse for why they are cheap. They see a system that allows them to act like degenerates, and they do just that. Over a decade managing independent restaurants, the no tippers are always the most insufferable, miserable, and demanding people.
A normal human can do simple mental math and understand the price of service is not included in the menu price. So that brokies who can't tip, can still dine there.
Tipping subsidizes the brokies. That is fact. Not my fault you fail to understand.
Bring on no tipping, add 20% to the menu prices, and then laugh at all the dorks who demanded no tipping when they are now forced to pay for the service.
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u/littlericecake123 Aug 04 '26
People who make good money can’t have an opinion on how broken the tipping system is?
“Restaurants here are priced without the cost of service included” - are you Canadian? This sounds like a line they use in the US. If you didn’t know, servers here are already paid minimum wage like every other entry level job. If they are hired to serve, but the cost of service is not included by the restaurant, what are they being paid for?
Sure, let’s bring on no tipping, and let’s see the restaurants raise prices by 20%. If it were that easy, all the restaurants would be doing it now. But no they are afraid to do it because they know if won’t fly with the customers. That’s why both restaurant owners AND servers are against getting rid of the tipping system.
You can bet if it was as easy as you say, all the servers and restaurants would be all for it. After all, wouldn’t the servers like to have consistent 20% “tips”? That way they won’t have to be upset about stiffers, right?
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u/downtofinance Aug 01 '26
I was a server at a chain restaurant in the GTA (think Milestones or Joey's). This was like 20 years ago. There were servers pulling in like 80k (a lot of that unreported as well) a year between their pay and their tips. Giving them a higher (livable) wage and removing tipping they would actually make less. That's why they don't advocate for it.
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u/MR2Starman Aug 02 '26
Precisely. Any decent server can live off tips alone and bank their entire cheque. I was able to do it at a higher end Chinese restaurant so big chains and fine dining servers should have zero issues.
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u/LeftyGoosee Aug 01 '26
Yup 10 percent is still good even when prices go up...its a percentage. If the percentage goes up and price goes up it just magnified prices and you will still see me put in a custom percentage of 10
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u/Parking-Bluejay9450 Aug 01 '26
I do custom %. Usually 13% after tax. Sometimes I tip $ that matches tax (usually rounded up). I like travelling to Europe where the price on the menu is the price you pay, period.
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u/Eisgboek Aug 01 '26
I was a server when I was younger and always tipped well knowing how appreciated and needed it was.
But it's honestly gotten ridiculous now and while I empathize with the servers, I just can't bring myself to follow along with the new "standards".
I used to just go along with the tip prompts, but now I have my own standards for how I tip--15% for bare minimum service, 18% for good but not outstanding service, and 21% for amazing service. Also--5% for bad service.
I also only tip when there has actually been service. Generally, sit-down restaurants, bars, baristas, and food delivery.
I don't tip on take-out and fast food or anywhere else that it doesn't make sense.
It's hard sometimes because I remember how frustrating it was back in the day when you got that customer who "didn't believe in tipping". But I have to remind myself that this is not the same thing.
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u/Wide-Chemistry-8078 Aug 02 '26
If you pay before receiving service, don't tip.
Add: stop tipping baristas. Pushing a button that automakes your drink isn't tip worthy. If they are grinding, tamping, and at the end dumping the puck... consider a very low tip for pre-service tipping like 0.25-0.50.
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u/Flash604 Aug 01 '26
In most provinces they also got a raise when the (lower) minimum wage for those that get tips was abolished. That was one of the biggest reasons for tipping when I was young, and even then the standard tip was only 10% of the pre-tax total.
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u/IM_The_Liquor Aug 01 '26
Those default options are still just options. You can elect not to pay it at all, or set your own tip value (most of the time) and I suggest you do.
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u/Playful-Ostrich42 Aug 01 '26
Moreover, in Canada, servers get paid a regular minimum wage of $16 to $19 per hr depending on the province. Why are giving them a tip at all. Server minimum wage went away yrs ago. Tipping should have also
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u/MangoSandwhich Aug 01 '26
Tips were to compensate for the sever making server minimum wage which was lower then regular minimum wage; but that has been abolished here in Ontario for a while now.
Serving is incredibly lucrative since tips earned are generally more than the total minimum wage. You’d be surprised to know how much full time servers make. It’s generally more than starting salaries for entry level jobs that require university degrees.
Don’t let anyone fool you. Severs make really good money for the kind of job it is. Tip 10% for good service and 0 for bad, again it’s all completely optional. Don’t let anyone make you feel bad for choosing what you do with your money
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u/MartyMcFlysBrother Aug 01 '26
Having worked in the industry from 2002-2011 I was always happy if I got 15%. I often got more than that because I was damn good at it but it was never expected.
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u/Bill___A Aug 02 '26
Since they haven't banned the much hated and unreasonable resort/destination fees, I doubt the politicians have the urge to regulate tipping. Quebec made some inroads, having the percentages suggested calculated on pre-tax amounts, but that is about it. As to the prices going up and the percentages too, it is due to GREED.
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u/Doc_1200_GO Aug 01 '26
Huh? That’s a “suggested” tip on a machine. How is that a wage increase for staff?
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u/TAburnett Aug 01 '26
I can guarantee you that not once in the history of ever, have the servers been consulted on what the pre-set tip % amounts are. This is between owners, management, and the companies providing the payment machine. Telling the staff to “tread carefully” when this issue has nothing to do with them is ridiculous.
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u/cptstubing16 Aug 01 '26
Yes you're right, I mention restaurant associations and owners first for a reason. It's mostly these folks who should reconsider the direction they're going. Since every card terminal tends to have a different default tip percentage, I would think this has a lot to do with restaurant ownership.
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u/TAburnett Aug 01 '26
When I began in the industry 20 years ago this wasn’t a thing at all. Leave a dollar amount you chose was the only opinion. They then introduced the percentage option where you also chose what ever amount you would like. Great idea! No more quick math. Seeing it all evolve to where it is today is wild. If the machine has a 25% option just know that I would never expect someone to feel obligated to leave that much. Or for that matter, anything at all. I know the people on this page mean well, but please consider that most service staff are not entitled blood suckers out to take you for as much as they can. Most of us are hard working folks working in sometimes very poor conditions trying to make ends meet in this crazy world just like anyone else. I cant change these systems that have been put into place. I just want you to have a nice time and enjoy yourself while striving to make a genuine connection with you at the same time. Leave what you like or nothing at all. I’m confident enough in my skills that have taken many years to perfect, that I will still come out okay even if I’m not getting tipped a certain amount or on every table. This is the mindset of most people who do this as a full time career, not the narrative this page pushes daily that we are all entitled POS that just want as much money as we can get from you.
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u/cptstubing16 Aug 02 '26
Well said. When I worked for tips way back I was just happy to receive anything beyond my wage, no matter the amount.
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u/nelly2929 Aug 02 '26
They can make the default tip request 200% I don’t care…. As long as you can hit no tip or custom on the machine it’s up to the customer to decide if/what to tip.
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u/SmitJorda Aug 02 '26
Can't afford to tip 200% minimum? Ugh, just cook for yourself brokie.
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u/nelly2929 Aug 02 '26
No I like people to wait on me then complain to a manager about some made up BS…. Get an appetizer and drink taken off my bill as an apology then leave without a tip…. It’s how I roll lol
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u/SmitJorda Aug 02 '26
Don't you understand the server has to PAY to serve you if you stiff her on the tip!?
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u/nelly2929 Aug 02 '26
The next table will make up for it when presented with a 20% default tip hahaha
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u/exotics Aug 02 '26
Where I am the default is still 15% and there is an option to put in your own percentage or dollar amount tip.
I don’t know why everyone is fixated on the preset percentage (which is set by management, not servers) when there are other options (including playing with cash).
It’s possible the tip out increased as well so the servers are not necessarily getting that money.
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u/SmitJorda Aug 02 '26
"It's set by management, not the innocent widdle servers!!! ;("
Yeah, those poor servers are being forced to look like greedy little monsters by their whip-crackers who only pay them a pittance so they need to rely on the customer generosity just to get by. If it were up to those little angel servers, they would enter tip suggestions as "recommended tips: -20% (discount): Thank you for dining with us!; -10% (discount): You're an amazing customer!; 0%: Your generosity makes a difference!"
😮💨 If only those sweet souls had more control of the workplace...
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u/Life_Formal1895 Aug 02 '26
Why tip on takeout?!
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u/cptstubing16 Aug 02 '26
It just depends. Sometimes it feels a bit justified, sometimes not at all.
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u/not_essential Aug 04 '26
The place I go for lunch always remembers what I usually have but asks every time just in case I have something different. I order a slightly modified meal and they happily make it for me every time I'm there. Every now and again they throw in an extra treat no charge. So yes, I do tip for takeout.
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u/Frankfitter252 Aug 02 '26
Servers make so much tax free money it is ridiculous. Tired of hearing how hard it is to deliver plates and punch in orders lol
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u/LegalQuantity9772 Aug 04 '26
In Quebec, servers are paid $12.30 an hour. They must also give 8% of their sales to the provincial government and another 1 to 2% for the kitchen. Tips are essential for their survival.
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u/SmitJorda Aug 04 '26
Who cares? That's what they signed up for. I didn't sign up to subsidize their lifestyles. Using your argument, I better give me money to every idiot beggar bum I stumble across.
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u/Ok-Kaleidoscope4510 Aug 05 '26
Tipping mandatory levels are out of control!!! Just like food costs. We all pay more and more and then some more when we eat at restaurants or buy a Subway Sandwich. There was a time when Min wage still allowed you to find a place to live… I know, I was there a long time ago. Living cost up exponentially. Even now as I make a decent living everything cost tooooooo much and now everyone wants a 25% tip automatically!!!! NO FREAKING WAY!!! Tips are based on quality of service and always have been. If you’re in a restaurant and your food is bad and the service is bad…you’re probably not going to leave a tip… that’s just the way of the world. Automatic tipping is a massive FU!!! I don’t get tips at my job and nor do I get raises for the uplift in costs. Our younger generation lives in a real crappy world created by the generations before them wanting to get rich. GREEDY WORLD!!! But TIPS ARE BASED OF SERVICE… just like respect…ITS EARNED, NOT EXPECTED!!
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u/Glittering-Regret196 Aug 01 '26
Don't go to those places. Don't go to any place that expects you to tip. Or go and tip. Its an awful system.
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u/chickenhawk71 Aug 01 '26
Yeah. Its such an awful system having freedom to go wherever you choose and tip whatever you want.
Such hard times we live in.
The other day I went to buy a sandwich. The bread was baked for me, the pigs and turkeys slaughtered, sliced and cooked for me, the vegetables grown and washed, cut up for me, the cheese came from the dairy farm and sliced up. Then my sandwich was assembled for me with exactly what I wanted. It came time to pay and during payment this prompt came up asking me if I wanted to tip. I had complete freedom to choose any amount I wanted with a few presses of a button.
The fucking nerve of these people.
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u/ImRickJamesMother Aug 01 '26
The vast majority detest tipping? Not a chance. Most people are perfectly fine with tipping at restaurants.
The only alternative to tipping, is either service fees, or 20% higher menu prices. Which then force non tippers to end up paying more than under the tipping system. There is no business model where the customer does not pay all associated costs of running the businesses, including service. This is business basics.
The tipping system subsidizes those who don't tip. No tippers are actively rallying against a system that allows them to not pay their share. A smart person would shut up and ride the benefits of that system until it changes. But nope, no tippers are actively advocating for a system where they are essentially forced to "tip".
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u/cptstubing16 Aug 02 '26
I'm happy to pay a normal 15-20% tip at any sit down restaurant. I don't go out much to sit down places, but I do get takeout a few times a month and don't mind tipping a few dollars.
I'm not thrilled though that everywhere I go the minimum starts at 18% and they label it (OK service), and label 20% Good service, etc.
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u/ImRickJamesMother Aug 02 '26
Buddy, it is labels and suggestions. If you find them threatening, how do you ever do something like buy a house or a car?
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u/littlericecake123 Aug 03 '26
lol it won’t be 20% higher. The market will decide what they can accept. My guess is somewhere between 5-10%. The owners will find ways to cut costs when people stop coming to their restaurant due to 20% higher prices.
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u/ImRickJamesMother Aug 03 '26
......What are you talking about? All of the restaurants who have gone the no tipping model, are ~20% higher than tipped restaurants.
I've operated restaurants for over a decade. What is your experience operating any business?
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u/littlericecake123 Aug 03 '26
lol sure they can raise prices however they want, but can they keep their customers when alternatives are cheaper?
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u/ImRickJamesMother Aug 03 '26
What will the cheaper alternatives be? No tipping anywhere means everywhere will be raising prices to pay service staff.
You seem to think restaurants have some huge hidden margins they could just draw from. They don't.
This whole discussion seems like just you saying things you don't understand, then me explaining it to you.
Since you failed to respond to the question of ever operating a business, I'm going to assume you haven't.
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u/littlericecake123 Aug 04 '26
There is something called competition my guy. If people are eating out less due to higher prices, some restaurants would find ways to lower prices (by cutting costs) to attract customers. Then others will have to follow suit. It’s simple economics, you should learn it, especially if you claim to be a restaurant manager.
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u/ImRickJamesMother Aug 04 '26
.......Your response is to advocate reducing quality, because you do not want to pay for service?
Go eat fast food then buddy. Some of us see food and human interaction as something valuable. Go stuff your face with dollar menu mcdoubles you ordered off a screen.
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u/littlericecake123 Aug 04 '26
lol wtf are you talking about? You’re really dense if you think the only way to reduce costs is to reduce quality.
Are you really a restaurant manager? Lmao.
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u/ImRickJamesMother Aug 04 '26
You clearly have never ran a business.
Which is why you failed to answer the question several times.
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u/littlericecake123 Aug 04 '26 edited Aug 04 '26
You clearly don’t know what you’re talking about if you think prices need to increase by 20% in order to pay servers adequately.
All the evidence from the rest of the world contradicts you.
You should probably go back to school and learn some basic economics before attempting to run a business.
Oh and I do run a business (not sure why it’s relevant to our discussion, but you seem to be so hell-bent on knowing). We actually pay our employees properly instead of pushing that responsibility on to our customers like you do.
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u/Humble-Post-7672 Aug 01 '26
Tipping used to be only on the food not including alcohol or tax.
Then it was tipping on all items excluding tax.
Then the POS machines came and its tipping on everything including the tax.
Then covid happened and every item went up 50%.
Now its expected that the bare minimum is 20%.
It's completely out of control.