I have had it. This current generation has just made me angry at their blatant ignorance and expectations. So let me, the youngest of the ‘Baby Boomer’ generation smack some knowledge on ya all.

There is a difference between a Tip and a gratuity. Tip is actually short for TIPS or To Insure Prompt Service. It is a gratuity given before a service is rendered as in Tipping the bellboy of a hotel or concierge. That is an amount of money given to make sure that if you wanted fresh towels or additional ice or more pillows, that you would get them in a prompt manner. A gratuity is a gift, usually money AFTER service has been rendered. It is supposed to reflect a level of service that HAS ALREADY BEEN GIVEN. As in a nice sit down restaurant where the waiters work for a small minimum wage and have to earn the gratuity.

Merriam Webster defines a gratuity as “something given voluntarily or beyond obligation usually for some service;”. Did you catch that? …given voluntarily.

I went to the ‘smoothy’ spot, I wont call it a store, and I purchased two smoothies. On the receipt was a spot for me to give a tip. Same thing happened when I went to the local coffee spot for a gormet coffee drink. The receipt had a large area for a tip. I went to buy some donuts from a local donut shop, same thing. At each of these places, I was given a bad look when I refused to give a tip. Why the hell should I tip you for doing your job? You do not work at a chic restaurant where the waiter is wearing a tuxedo and speaks with a French accent, no…you work at a fast food place. No different than McDonalds or Taco Bell. I don’t tip people for doing there job. I do not get a tip for doing my job and believe me, I am well trained in my job. I have to put up with shit that would send you generation X’ers crying to your momma. No, I do not get a tip for doing my job, I get a paycheck. If I go above and beyond my job description, I get a paycheck. I don’t even get an ‘atta-boy’. Most adults with real jobs do not get tips. Sometimes you feel like ‘Doing something extra and above expectations is like peeing your pants while wearing a dark suit. It gives you a warm feeling all over but nobody notices”.  A fast food job, like all entry level jobs is a place for High School teen agers and college students to get a start in the career world. It was never and will never be a living wage. Your job is to make a cup of coffee. It is not rocket science. You can be replaced by a machine. Believe it or not, back in the 1960’s and 1970’s, there were coffee vending machines, and you did not have to tip them. When was the last time you gave a ‘gratuity’ to the pimple faced teen ager behind the counter of McDonalds? Well, guess what boys and girls, Those jobs are being replaced with automated kiosks THAT YOU DON’T HAVE TO TIP. That’s right, all that bitching and moaning about raising the minimum wage has created the need to kick you out and replace you with a robot. Those kiosks will work 24/7 and never need to take a break. You wont have to hear them cry about a living wage while working the counter of the local burger joint.  There are even frozen yogurt robots that will dispense frozen yogurt on demand 24/7. You will never get a sour look from some over educated moron because you did not ‘tip’ them for doing their job.

Some restaurant workers are paid a lower minimum wage because they work in a venue that, if they hustle and provide diners with a hassle free dining experience can make $200 a night in ‘tips’. I am sorry, but $200 a night times 5 nights a week is $1000 a week, or roughly $52000 a year, plus the modified minimum wage. That is over $25 dollars per hour which is more than I make with over 30 years experience and heavy training each year. So, yes, if I take my wife to an actual real restaurant, I am watching and if the wait staff provides me with a nice dining experience I will give them a 15 to 20% gratuity, But if you work at Joes donut haus or Jims Baggle emporium or the local hippie smoothy spot where they will give you a shot of organic wheat grass, I am not giving you a tip to do your job. And if you snear at me again, you little turd, I will call the manager and complain. Remember, you can be replaced by another teen aged face over educated moron or better yet, a kiosk that can’t give me attitude.