Who and when to tip on your American vacation

By JULIE STARR

It is tempting, on arrival in America, to regard the custom of tipping as an intrusive and unnecessary pain in the pocket. After all, your New Zealand dollar is stretched thinly enough without every man and his dog holding out his hand for a little more.

And it can be downright bewildering trying to fathom who to tip, how much, and how to go about handing it over.

But having spent more than a year in California (and suffered a few surly waiters who assumed, me being a foreigner, that I wouldn't tip them), I feel compelled to say a few words in defence of this deeply entrenched custom.

New Zealanders and Australians have a bit of a reputation for not tipping. As a result airport shuttle-bus drivers might keep you waiting interminably until they can fill their van with more reliable fares, cab drivers may prove less than helpful, and busy waiting staff may all but ignore you in favour of patrons more likely to pay them for their trouble.

To us this seems rude and unfair. We think "Why do they need a tip anyway? They're just doing their job and they're already getting paid, right?" And that's where we go wrong.

Tips are built into the wage system in America. Those jobs in which tips are customary are notoriously low-paid and the tips are essential to bring the wage up to a livable standard. The tips are generally shared with non-frontline staff and the Internal Revenue Service also expects a cut.

Waiters, for example, are typically paid between $2 and $4 an hour. Say you're earning $3.50 an hour and you do five seven-hour shifts a week, you're going to bring home $122.50 a week, less tax, without tips. That will get you to and from work, cover your laundry bill and maybe buy your kids a new ballpoint now and then. It's the tips that cover the mortgage, insurance, car payments and food bills.

When to tip:

* Tipping is reserved for service, not over-the-counter purchases. Do tip cab drivers, shuttle-bus drivers, bellhops and valets. A buck or two will do for bellhops and valets but drivers will want a couple more depending on the fare. It is customary to tip hairdressers and massage therapists 10 per cent.

* The going rate for food and drink service is 15 per cent of the bill, although many people tip 20 per cent for a restaurant meal. If you're buying a cup of coffee you can just leave your change but larger rounds of drinks require a full tip. You don't need to tip at fast-food chains.

* At a bar, leave the tip on the bar near your drink. If a cocktail waiter serves you, hand them the tip or put it on their tray. At a restaurant, leave the tip on the table.

* By all means leave a lesser tip if the service is poor, and if it's positively dismal leaving no tip sends a clear message of dissatisfaction.