Americans are sick of tipping. Social media skits mock the increasingly overbearing tipping requests for completing a normal life task. One survey found that 8 out of 10 Americans thought tipping culture was out of control. But for US workers who rely on the tip-based system, those extra dollars are no joke.
What is needed is a workable alternative: a way to ensure that workers get adequate pay that works for restaurants, too.
The World Cup may force them to experiment with just such a system. As the Globe reported recently, some restaurants around Foxborough, where the soccer matches will be played, are considering a mandatory tip from their customers, partly out of concern that many of the 3 million international visitors expected this summer may not be familiar with US tipping customs.
What if, instead of a temporary change just for the games, restaurants took this as an opportunity to test out new ways of compensating their workers even after foreign diners go home?
American customs are global outliers. For example: In many European countries, a service charge is already added to the bill, while in Ghana, a 5 percent tip is appreciated. At Iraqi restaurants, tipping 10 to 15 percent is customary but not mandatory. Like many US customs, tipping started as a European tradition and made its way across the pond. Now, we are one of the few countries that have made it an expected part of our food service industry.
The United States might not see the end of tipping any time soon, but trying different models to compensate workers is a benefit of a fast-paced and flexible industry that might also keep restaurants one step ahead of consumer tip fatigue.
Frank Altieri, co-owner of Station One by Shovel Town Brewery in Foxborough, said that his restaurant will not include mandatory gratuity on checks during the World Cup unless it sees an issue arise during the first match.
“We’ve seen customer pushback when you try adding anything to the tab,” Altieri said. “So we’re sticking with the status quo for now.”
However, the restaurant is trying to hook World Cup attendees with a package deal on parking, transportation, and a food and drink voucher. Those customers will see a 20 percent gratuity included on their checks for food and drink items.
Restaurants can decide what is the best fit for their guests and their employees. A mandated tip would probably outrage a counter-service customer but might be helpful to include for a sit-down dining experience.
Plus, a restaurant can experiment with such a mandate for game days only. “As an industry we have the flexibility — if it’s not working, or it is working within the first few days, we have the ability to adjust,” said Stephen Clark, president and CEO of the Massachusetts Restaurant Association. “Each restaurant needs to do what works for them. I don’t think there’s going to be a one-size-fits-all answer to all of this.”
Restaurants can certainly educate global tourists about America’s tipping policies and even mandate a tip of 20 percent or more. But as Clark said, “gratuity loses its impact once you add ‘mandated.’”
Are there more creative solutions to compensating restaurant workers that other countries have already adopted? (Our hospitality industry took far too long to adopt the European “pay at the table” method with credit card machines. Don’t Americans value efficiency?)
The tip-free restaurant model, which rolls payroll expenses into the cost of food and drink, is one option. Some restaurants have adopted the admirable “kitchen appreciation fee” of 5 to 10 percent of the dinner bill, which goes to the kitchen staff (or, my preference, the optional “buy the kitchen a bucket of beers” tip). Other versions of this fee include “dine-in fee,” “service charge,” or “auto-gratuity,” according to Bon Appétit.
The World Cup could be an opportune time to experiment with mandating tips during surge hours. In the short term, that would help ensure that tipped employees garner a fair wage. And it might even turn out that once American diners try eating out without having to deal with calculating a tip, they won’t want to go back to adding the tip to the bill.
Kara Bettis Carvalho can be reached at kara.carvalho@globe.com. Follow her on X @karabettis.