For Griffin Williams, the absurdity of our culture’s tipping mania hit him when he was buying a charging cable at an electronics store.
“They had a tip option at checkout,” he said. “Am I going to pay 20% extra for a $40 cable? They probably have somebody in their warehouse who stocked the part and needs the extra money. But would my tip even reach that person?
“It feels like tipping has just become too much. It’s gotten out of hand.”
Williams’ story is being repeated almost daily in the media, driven by the spread of digital payment technology. The latest was a story this past week in The New York Times that, similar to a column I wrote on tipping last fall, told how a grocery store asked for a 10% to 30% tip at checkout.
