By Daily Mail (U.S.) | Created at 2024-09-27 18:00:42 | Updated at 2024-09-30 11:36:01
2 days ago
A New York City coffee shop has banned customers from giving gratuity amid growing frustrations about 'tipflation'.
The Three Legged Cat is a well-loved coffee shop in the heart of Brooklyn that has had enough of turning an iPad towards customers for a tip and has bid farewell to gratuity.
The cafe, which is located in East Williamsburg, opened over the summer and made it clear that it wouldn't be accepting any tips.
On the bottom of its menu, the cafe notes that prices include tax and tip - adding that it is 'proud to guarantee every member of our team a living wage.'
It reignited the fiery conversation surrounding tipping culture as people across the globe have been taking to social media to lament about 'tipflation,' including one man claiming the U.S. should be more like Italy, where customers aren't 'forced' to leave gratuity.
A New York City coffee shop has banned customers from giving gratuity amid growing frustrations about tipflation (seen)
And while some customers can't get enough of the removal of tip culture, others have blasted the cafe for raising prices.
Anu Mohan, 34, works at a cancer hospital and often visits the Three Legged Cat.
Speaking to the New York Post, he said: 'I don’t have to decide how much to tip, I don’t have to do math.'
However, while he praises the removal of tipping culture, his wife, Cassandra Mohan, 37, doesn't agree with him - admitting that the pair often have debates about gratuity.
She told the outlet: 'We have debates as a couple. For example, should you tip on the baked goods? I think you should [just] tip on the coffee because that is what they make, and Anu tips on the total as a percent [of the whole bill] no matter what.'
And while being free to ditch giving gratuity is saving customers the hassle or awkwardness that comes with being faced with a tipping screen on a monitor, it's not saving them money.
At the Three Legged Cat, a drip coffee rings in at $4.50 while a latte costs $7.50, which is about $1 more than other shops in the area, according to the New York Post.
Meanwhile at Gowanus, Brooklyn coffee shop Principles GI, owner Katie Bishop revealed that after bidding farewell to tipping, many customers found it 'refreshing.'
The Three Legged Cat is a well-loved coffee shop in the heart of Brooklyn that has had enough of turning an iPad towards customers for a tip and has bid farewell to gratuity
The minimum wage in New York City for food service workers is $16 an hour. Employers may provide a $10.65 cash wage as well as a $5.35 tip allowance.
'Tipflation' seems to have recently reached its breaking point as new data showed that Americans are cutting back on gratuity out of frustration over being bombarded with tipping prompts.
Data from payroll provider Gusto shows tipping for service workers in non-restaurant leisure and hospitality jobs is down seven percent from last year, The Wall Street Journal reported.
As of November, those workers made on average $1.28 an hour in tips, a decrease from the $1.38 an hour they made the year before.
Nearly three quarters of Americans say tipping is now expected in more places compared to five years ago, according to a poll by Pew Research Center.
The cafe, which is located in East Williamsburg, opened over the summer and made it clear that it wouldn't be accepting any tips (stock image)
Touch screens in taxis and coffee shops now suggest gratuities of 20 percent, 25 percent and even more.
Meanwhile, at a bridal shop in Connecticut called A Little Something White, brides-to-be are encouraged to leave tips, and must hit custom amount and enter zero on the screen to decline, according to The Wall Street Journal.
In one extreme example, a trader was left outraged when an Alaska restaurant presented him with the option to tip 100 percent.
People have turned to social media to make satire out of their frustration with tip screens seemingly popping up everywhere.
