"Click Custom Tip. Enter 0.00" — Restaurant Covers No Tip Option With Stickers

If you've spent enough time on social media, you've probably seen a slew of posts from people complaining how tipping culture has permeated nearly every type of business imaginable. And this latest post from a Reddit user is probably going to just fan the flames of the gratuity debate even further.

A poster on the social media platform who comments under the handle @Ordinary-Scholar-202 shared a photograph of a point-of-sale system's card reader that looks standard enough. It sports a screen and an alphanumeric keypad, along with slots for patrons to either insert or slide their credit/debit cards.

However, there's one small detail on the device that stirred up conversation in the comments section of OP's post. And it's a pair of stickers that covers the no tipping option on the POS device. One small adhesive strip reads "No Tip" which has been plastered on the screen of the device itself.

Directly below it is another sticker that reads: "thank you," all in caps. Furthermore, the title of the post, which was shared to the website's r/SipsTea sub highlighted the restaurant staff's decision to force patrons to leave tips for its employees. "This restaurant covered up the 'No Tip' option with a sticker to force tipping," OP penned.

The debate over gratuities often elicits a slew of different arguments from folks online. There are some people who believe that tipping should be reserved for vocations that don't come with set federal minimum wages. For instance, the US Department of Labor states that servers earn a base income of $2.13 per hour, which is drastically less than the nationwide minimum of $7.25 per hour.

The reason why this rate is so low is that servers' paychecks factor in the gratuities they receive from paying customers. If the amount of money they receive in tips won't cover the amount they would otherwise receive working a minimum wage job, the restaurant they work for must pay the difference of what that discrepancy would be.

For instance, if a waiter worked 40 hours a week, but with tips, only earned $280 total, including the $2.13 an hour they earn as a server, the restaurant their employed with will have to pay them that $10 difference to ensure they're making the federally mandated minimum wage.

Some folks who've added their two cents to the tipping debate have decried businesses that employ workers who earn set hourly wages, expect shoppers to fork over extra cash for their purchases.

In some instances, customers notice that the standardized tip options incorporated into the POS systems in particular businesses are inflated. Like this one social media user who was stunned to see a coffee shop flip around a tablet screen to present patrons with three different percentage-based gratuity selections.

Many folks sided with the poster's ire for being placed in situations where they almost feel as if they're forced to leave a tip. One responded to the video, stating that they couldn't understand why someone should be given 15-20 percent gratuity for placing a bagel in a bag or pouring a cup of coffee.

On the flip side, there were others who stated that working service industry jobs would probably alter one's view of being asked for tips. This Reddit poster argued that baristas should be tipped for the work that they do day in, day out, despite being paid a set wage, as they're ultimately standing on their feet for long stretches of time and scrambling to fulfill a multitude of simultaneous orders day in, day out.

As for mandatory tipping, there have been online rallies against this practice from several social media users, too. In a separate Reddit post, one user on the application maligned the practice, stating that they were "scolded by a waitress for not tipping." Explaining their position, OP wrote that they "didn't see a reason to," and that "there was nothing remarkable about the service," they thought, which necessitated a tip.

They went on to mention that they, too, work in a service job that has gratuity as an option, but they never hold it against patrons for not tipping them. Additionally, they stated that their interaction with the employee prompted them to simply forego dining-in from now on, and that they will elect, instead, to just order their food to go.

One commenter who replied to their post stated that it wasn't cool for the employee to call the customer out like that. "Any server that scolds a patron for not tipping has talked themselves out of a gratuity, and made necessary a complaint to management," they penned.

Another stated that their decision to tip is based on an area's minimum wage laws. "Minimum wage for all in Washington is $16.66. All in get Seattle $20.76 minimum. States with low minimum wages are bulls--t and should be ashamed. I will tip those folks in those states. Here where I live though? I’m changing and tipping far less because what it’s costing to go out is insane," they wrote.

As for the r/SipsTea post mentioned at the top of this article, there were some folks who shared ways patrons could get around the adhesive exhortation to inspire those to leave a gratuity. "Click custom tip. Enter 0.00," they penned.

Another said that diners should simply tip a single cent to protest the move. "Tip a penny. Inconvenience any economies that don't have the penny anymore," they wrote.

Someone else said that if the customer really wanted to get a business in trouble, then they could simply report the company to whichever credit card vendor they use to process their card transactions. "Idk if this is the correct avenue for this, but you can report to VISA using this form. I’d imagine this is a TOS violation for the merchant," they replied.