Mike Devlin Uncovers The Dark History of Tipping: A Broken System Built on Class, Race and Control

Yup, this ol’ thing. And, you see, tipping is old—really old. It’s European and goes back at least a thousand years. Masters would give their serfs a coin or two for exceptional service above and beyond (or basically because the master was in a good mood, as guests were telling him how awesome he was). It was another way of keeping that class system fully intact: ‘You serve me because you have to, but today it felt like you wanted to serve me.’

Fast-forward to the 1500s, and it became customary for guests of the host to tip the servants at the end of their stay. Customary, yes; obligatory, definitely not. But it was seen as an additional thank you and a mark of respect to the host (not to the staff).

From the following century onwards, tipping entered all walks of life. Again, this separated the haves and the have-nots: ‘I am so much “have” that I can afford to give you an infinitesimal bit of my “have” to show my peers (certainly not yours) that I am a kind and caring gentleman. Now please excuse me whilst I go home and beat my six-year-old servant for ruining yet another pair of my shoes.’

The USA was, oddly, not a place where tipping was a thing. This was hardly unexpected because the use of slaves was rampant—so why on earth would you tip someone you weren’t paying anyway? Exactly. But wealthy Americans, once they started to visit Europe, introduced this to their homeland mostly to be seen in a favourable light, as opposed to any sort of compassion for the underclass.

And then we have the Pullman sleepers. Slavery was now abolished, and you had to pay these ex-slaves. Ah, but if you could rely on wealthy passengers giving tips to your staff, you could get away with paying them cents on the dollar. Quite often these new staff members (usually Black) were not paid at all but were told they could earn through excellent service to rich white folk. This was slavery through the back door.

Yes, you can see where this is going, can’t you?

Whilst many states were complaining that ‘It was better in my day when I could just have a few slaves doing all the work for free,’ others were now complaining about tipping introducing a white class system that went against the principles of the United States.

Black slaves = good
Tipping = bad

There were attempts to ban the practice, but as time went on, it became more and more customary to tip—especially in the hospitality industry—and, before you know it, it became expected. This was in part because whites started to enter the industry and, well, we have to pay white folk, don’t we?

But then everything changed with the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. What this allowed was for employers to pay less than the federal wage if tips were included. They still had to pay the minimum state rate, but tips could be added to reach the federal rate, thereby complying with the law.

The tip credit wasn’t actually added as an amendment until 1966, after much lobbying, and has remained in place ever since. Yes, employers had to match the federal rate if workers fell below it, but they incentivised staff to go above and beyond with the promise of unlimited tips, thereby creating an industry that could keep costs to an absolute bare minimum. Laws are in place that do not allow employers to take tips, and I am absolutely sure that no boss has ever done that, ever, ever. Ever.

Essentially, what was once an unlimited supply of free labour became pay as low as you could legally get away with, while passing the burden (or indeed buck) on to someone else.

But why has the hospitality industry historically paid so poorly and routinely does to this day? The rich do not do manual labour, so no one had the slightest idea how to cook, and seeing as eating is something everyone has to do, this was somewhat of a problem.

Basic cooking is easy. Practically anyone can do it, and if you are poor you are forced to learn the basics simply to survive; this is why the etymology of many dishes harks back to slavery. The preparation and presenting of food is ‘to serve’, which is what slaves did. Yup, you can see me literally spelling it out for you here, and I didn’t need to resort to colourful crayons either.

This, and the circumnavigation of laws, has created an industry that, for the most part, has notoriously treated its staff poorly. Obviously, there is a little more to it than this; to entice people through the door, menus must be presented in an attractive manner and, so too, must the cost of the dishes. If one can keep the unit cost for the customer down by paying low wages, then it is more likely that more customers will follow.

There are now minimum wages all over the world, irrespective of the job performed, and a fair few countries’ rates, particularly in Europe, are quite high in relation to elsewhere. This has done away with the necessity of tipping, which was introduced to reinforce class systems and continued as a way of keeping slavery alive.

But in countries that have very low legal pay rates—and certainly those rich enough to pay much, much more—the blame has been pushed and forced onto the customer.

It is your fault your servant… sorry, server, earns no money; it is you who are adding to this problem; it is you who are expected—nay, required—to make sure this person can afford a roof over their head.

There are signs of change in some places in the US, most notably California and Washington, DC, where minimum pay is high, and the odd establishment has gone against tradition. And this is opposed to—dare I suggest—states that were strongly against the abolition of slavery, where minimum pay is taken quite literally and figuratively.

At the end of the day, tipping should be a personal choice, not one forced upon you. It is not, and never has been, your responsibility to make up for the fact that employers have the capacity but steadfastly refuse to pay up and expect you to do it instead.

I leave you with this—and remember that this is a multinational, multibillion-dollar corporation, not a traditional diner that uses the tip credit.

The average pay for a McDonald’s worker in the USA: $13.50
The average cost of a Big Mac in the USA: $5.75

The average pay for a McDonald’s worker in Denmark: $22
The average cost of a Big Mac in Denmark: $6.50