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Data source: this Reddit poll that I made some time ago: https://www.reddit.com/r/poland/comments/x297te/do_you_tip_in_restaurants_in_poland/ .
Tool: Google Sheets.

The results must be treated with a grain of salt: I got 2393 answers and the subreddit's community is most likely far from being a representative slice of Polish society. The poll was also quite simple due to Reddit polling limitations.

Nevertheless, the results are interesting. The respondents were divided almast perfectly into thirds both on the amount they tip (10%+, just a few PLN, nothing) as well as the frequency (always, only when the service was exceptional, never).

Bear in mind that there's no tipping culture in Poland akin to USA. Tipping is optional and happens mostly in restaurants with service if ever. Looks like it's a hot and divisive topic anyway.

as a Pole, I am ashamed of these results

Me too. I blame American pop culture. Tipping is ridiculous if you think about it.

Tipping is a disgusting American custom.

You may like it or not but it's been a thing in Poland to an extent for decades, even in the interwar period when we weren't nearly as influenced by American culture. So it's by no means a recent cultural import from the USA.

You tip for the service, unlike buying a product a good service means a good tip, that rewards people good at there Job and punishes people doing the bare minimum.

It also allows people a job with relatively low skill to earn a decent rate of income.

Fully agree

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The fact that it's standard practice is disgusting. I don't think wrong for exceptional service is bad. In the US, you have to tip even if the service is shit. And since they don't show the tax on the final price, you end up postponing anywhere from 20-35% more for a meal or service.

Why?

American "tipping culture" in restaurants looks like a nightmare. I am expected to pay additional money just because the restaurant manager don't want to pay their employees fair wages. I see a "$10 meal!" advertisement, but no way I'm going to pay $10 for it in the end, unless you want to make the waiter cry (I've read stories how US waiters were reacting to people who simply forgot to give them tips).

In Poland it's simple - "20 PLN" in menu means 20 PLN. Nothing more. No hidden additional mandatory tips, no hidden additional taxes. And it's awesome.

It's the manager's duty to ensure good service, preferably with wages good enough so that employees will care about not losing their job.

dead wrong. that’s how it’s framed. you tip so managers don’t have to pay their staff that gets paid under minimum wage. it’s a terrible manipulative practice that needs to end, America and elsewhere

If you have to, it's not a tip, it's a bill.

Very similar to Croatia, but it grew exponentially worse since 1990.

>unlike buying a product a good service means a good tip

Why? Why isn't the service built into the price? What even is good service?

If I go see a psychiatrist or physician and they make me feel better, offer me coffee, and make me feel at home, then you can say that's great service. Yet no one tips their doctors. We even find that unethical as a society. The reason we tip wait staff is because we know they get paid shit and are guilted into doing so.

We tip waiters 15 - 20% just for doing their job. Rarely is the service "exceptional", because by definition, it can't be.

Why shouldn’t it be regulated just like any other job? I mean I don’t get tipped, but work well.

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you don't have to, it's just considered rude.

Here the service is especially good when it wasn't shit

He is ashamed because the tip number is so high. 100% Should be No

How is the service in Europe ? Are customers less mean? Less needy ? Just wonder. Since the I hear tipping is frowned upon in Europe. And in the US, customers in restaurants can be extreme a**holes.

But if the worker is getting the hourly wages. I wonder how that affects their attitude towards "customer service"

Just curious. Would love to know. If anyone cares to share.

This is gonna be very anectodical and I can talk mostly for Poland - Europe can differ vastly from country to country. From my perspective, I don't see as many rude or entitled customers as it seems there are in the USA. But on the other hand, from a North American perspective, customer service is rather cold here at best and rude at worst. There are exceptions of course.

Managers make less than servers....because of tips.

Managers make less than servers....because of tips.

It's customer service they deserve it, I personally tip 20%+ of the sale, restaurants have to operate and crazy low margins unless they are upscale it allows the food to be competitively priced, Tipping allows skilled staff to get ahead in life without a ridiculous tax burden as well as have flexible hours that allow them to complete degrees to go into a higher paying workforce generateing more taxes. It's fair and it's works, regulating restaurants in the US would just drive up costs and the places would close people have to be able to afford the food they want to purchase.

You could regulate it like a normal job but that $10 burger now becomes $20 and that's going to prevent lower income people from going out at all, aswell as reducing pay for wait staff that on good days can make over $25-$30 per hour of work to $15 that won't pay rent.

most people would kill to work where you work

Interesting approach.

If I understand correctly, your arguments for the tipping are

1. Income tax relief for the young
2. Progressive meal prices depending on the income.

As for 1. - there are better ways of doing that. Like in my country people under 26 don't pay income tax at all. None of them, why should we cherry pick waiters only? I don't agree with this argument.

2. I guess this is somewhat self-regulated. the poorer you are, the less fancy restaurants you choose and the more you cook your food yourself.

Also with 10-20% tip your burger now costs 12$, not 20$ and you know the price you're paying. No hidden cost.

I don't get why the waiters would get less in that case. Restaurants need waiters more then young people need restaurants as their employers. If the restaurant doesn't pay enough, they'll find other jobs.

Maybe. But managers get paid shit. Most managers are lucky to get more than $25/hr. With even keeping 10% tips (bad tips minus tipouts), servers only need to sell $250 in sales per hour to make that without any base pay.

Servers would make much less money if "the owners paid them". It would become a job someone would only do in absolute desperation rather than by choice. Max pay most places (if tips were eliminated) would be $12/hr.

Tips are just commission set by the customer.

Your country also isn't the United States with 320 Million people, the circumstances are different here, Low Skilled Labor Jobs are Competitive, a Waiter Or Waitress makes the most because of Tips also you have to understand here Higher Wages have hidden costs what employees makes the employer also has to pay more to Insure, Higher Unemployment Tax, Higher Fico Taxes an Employer pays 7.5% of Wages as a social security and Medicare tax as the Other 7.5% is payed by the employee. Restaurants are extremely competitive, so very low margins that's why fast food is so popular here lower operating costs because of large scale distribution centers.

Tips go largely unreported as taxes, which allows people to afford to live 30% of your income when your poor is the difference between poverty and the ability to improve your life and gain higher skill quality.

Food Prices increase as costs increase most people running Restaurants are not wealthy your probably lucky to gross 60 or 70k with one location unless you sell upscale food in a highly urban area, most of the United States is Suburban or Rural, and the Tips mostly come into play in Rural Small towns, your local diner is a primary employer.

We have regulated standard prices in the fast Food Industry and they are the lowest payed employees in the Food Service Sector. Your McDonald's Chipotle Taco Bell Wendy's etc etc.....

The US is different, but I’d think that not by much. The same factors are at play. The thing is that we don’t have indulge in theoretical analysis.

We can simply look at how it works in other places in the world. I can surely agree that restaurant business in Europe is not an easy one. However it does work. The prices of restaurant meals are lower than in US even before that awkward tip thing that you tax your customers with. Are the raw products cheaper in Europe? I guess not.

I think you have taken the perspective of the restaurant owner. And yes, it’s better for him to be able to pay less for the work force.

However it’s worse for employees and it’s worse for customers. I’d rather go with that.

A business has to turn a profit, first no profit no business no employees most people that do own restaurants are not wealthy, you have to consider all perspectives not just one.

Pretty sure europe is more expensive and has a much smaller population and not as much competition.

I can tell you atleast in Florida the employees would much rather have Tips then a standard $15 wage.