Item — HN Reader

Wage slavery is especially rampant in the food and beverage industry where low margins and high competition are the norm.

Including "tips" (you could still tip for extraordinary service) as well as sales tax in the price might be the first step towards more transparency and fair pay for everyone involved (owners to waiters) in what essentially amounts to a luxury service anyway.

3 comments

I am in Thailand now, where the amount you see on the menu is exactly what you pay.

I just spent 10 days in New Delhi, India, where they add between 25% and 33% to your bill, before tips, in the name of VAT, Service Tax and Service Charge.

It's a world of difference. So much trust is lost.

In many restaurants in Thailand they add 10% + 7% (service charge and VAT) to the prices listed on the menu. However, the menu must disclose this, typically in fine print at the bottom.

Paying living wage* for all serving jobs would be a good starting point. It's easier to move to a no-tip equilibrium when it doesn't mean someone has to take a second job.

* meaning e.g. that a single parent can live reasonably well, raise a kid, go on holiday etc.

How is it a luxury service?

You can cook your own food, cut your own hair, park your own cars, and so on. Instead, you are paying another human to do these things for you, sometimes waiting on you in the process. Most of the things we tip for we can go without.

How are these not luxury services?

Most of the things you described are cheaper to pay to a specialist to so than the cost of education and time to perform yourself.

Cooking your own food and cutting your own hair with the same quality is the real luxury. Never driven a car so don't know anything about that.

Cooking is one of those things that you get better with practice, and it doesn't need to be expensive to get fairly high quality. You just might not meet McDonald's pricing. That time thing you are speaking of? Well, that's a luxury if you aren't doing it yourself (or a member of your family), and can be overcome by habit. Poor folks do it all the time.

Haircut? Simple style, doesn't actually take much time or energy and the tools cost about the same as a cheap haircut.

The car is slightly better put another way, then: Taking a taxi instead of readily available mass transit. The first is simpler and easier and often quicker, the second cheaper but takes more work and walking on your behalf.