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July 31, 2009
Recession blues
Here is a great example of how the economy works. People feel the pressure from this "global recession" we are having and spend less money. That means that they may order less food or eat out less times, or as I have noticed in my line of work (hospitality) - tipping less.
I realize this is a touchy subject, so I won't get into huge details or even come close to the 'autograt' debate. Instead, I'll just go over the basics again. From my experiences, it is safe to say that given an exceptional level of service provided by a server (meeting and exceeding your every needs, tailoring the dining/drinking experience to your tastes) a gratuity of 15% is average. Sometimes this varies and may settle anywhere in the 10-20% range.
It seems that 'recession' is a code word for 'only tip 10%'. Given the recent news that the 'recession' is over or close to it but that recovery will be slow, I propose a solution:
With exceptional service, show that you appreciate it. There's a good chance that that extra little bit of income will encourage a server to go out and spend that money, perhaps at a business that you work at. Maybe that increase will encourage your boss to stop cutting back your hours, or maybe to hire someone back part-time. When money is continually spent, it has a profound effect on the economy known as the money multiplier or maybe something else. I can get things confused - like things that I learned in an economics degree....or maybe just a quote from the movie Cocktail. Either way, when we spend money it has following on effects, where it continues to be spent by those down the supply/service line. This is why they say saving during a recession continues to hurt the economy and why banks are sorta screwing us over when they get government money as stimulus but then refuse to lend it out.
I will promise this, you spend more money on your server (again, assuming they deserve it through great customer service) and we will do our best to turn around and spend that money to stimulate our economy.
Posted by Dr.Unk at July 31, 2009 1:19 PM
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