[solved]American questions for British people

^ 9/10 in NME. But not really, no more popular than say The Maccabees were for their first album.

In British questions for American people...

I know this guy was on Freakanomics Radio the other week but the fuck at $2.13/hour! You'd struggle to buy a newspaper on a Sunday with that (£1.36)

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-22846846

That's why people tip ~18 percent.  Some waiters bring home my weekly salary in cash on a good night.

phew. I'd calculated that I earn their weekly salary (assuming 45 hrs) in less than 2 hrs.

makes more sense now.

I never realised America was so badly in need of a minimum wage, the numbers in the podcast and that article suggest that the average US citizen pays out somehwere between $167 and $200 a year in tips.

Then again I paid more than that in income tax that went on to become tax credits last year.

was gonna say, i tip @ 10% but pay 40% tax. swings and roundabouts.

in fact, I'm probably getting hit in the teeth by a few swings.

good wording, good boarding

The Federal Minimum Wage is $7.25 per hour.  It will go up to $9 by 2015 in New York and has reached that level already in a few other states.  Whether that is a living wage is debatable.


The minimum wage for tipped employees requires that the employees earn at least the Federal Minimum wage, but gives employers a credit for tips above the $2.13/hour that the waiter receives (in the states that use it:
http://www.dol.gov/whd/state/tipped.htm

At least that's how it is supposed to work and restaurant workers are supposed to report all cash tips on their personal income taxes, but they would prefer that you tip them in cash and not write the tip in on your credit card slip.

Since large groups of Americans are usually bad at math, many restaurants these days will automatically include gratuity in the bill for parties of six or more.  It is a silly system but not any sillier than the charge for bread or the restaurant cover charges that are common in other countries.

Pete Best, do you really buy a newspaper every hour?

Another American tipping custom of note is the "tip jar" which is often next to the register at many service establishments for you to tip the register worker/food & drink preparer. If you're the type that buys a $1.50 coffee in the morning then drops your 50 cents change in the tip jar that adds up over the course of a year. I would estimate that I tip almost $100 yearly in just change dropped into jars.

I'm the classy type of dude who tips 33% on his $15 hair cuts 

my last $15 haircut i told her to "keep it all", and she thought i said "keep one", so she asked me again, "how much change?" and i again said "keep it all" and she was really happy and i don't know if she thinks asking me twice got her a better tip or not.  anyway, it was really awkward and i'll probably never go there again because of that.

that's my favorite tipping phrase to use

"keep it all"

invokes an immediate crushing it feeling

Generally tip between 20-25% depending on level of service.  Service has to be execrable for me to dip below 15%

And I've even started tipping a little bit for take-out, but much less.  Usually 2-4% at the register on in the jar.

went to Menchies for some fro yo and was surprised to see a tip jar. 

I do all the work putting together my dessert and they've got the nerve to ask for a tip.
fuck 'em

People who loudly admire their own overtipping bother me more than people who quietly undertip.

I quietly admire my own overtipping

I wish I could tip my hairdresser. She always does a great job and is just my type.

Bruegel wrote:i tip 10%

I always thought 10 - 15% was standard but a friend went off on me for not tipping 20 and seemed to be convinced it was the done thing. Fuck him.

No self-admiration intended in that post, Y. Loud or otherwise.  I don't really admire myself that much, tbh...I do tip well, though.  It's just reporting, not posturing...

I've never noticed any difference in the quality of service.

Last week I was at a Vietnamese restaurant and the tip was part of the bill. I hate that.

How can you show this kind of smut to children?

Is there a cartoon about a family of chodes, now? What the fuck, mate?

Well, I'll be damned. Never noticed that Peppa's face looked like a dick till just now.