The Tipping Divide: Study Finds Differences in Tips by Black, White Restaurant Patrons

July 11, 2003 -- A new study finds many waiters and waitresses feel that black Americans generally tip less than restaurant diners who are white. The study, by a researcher at Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration, found that blacks tip on average 20 percent less than whites. In addition, restaurant workers of all races dislike waiting on black people because they assume the tips will be less no matter how good the service. NPR's Juan Williams reports.

The study found that 63 percent of blacks and 30 percent of whites didn't understand that the standard restaurant tip in the United States is 15 to 20 percent. The difference between how blacks and whites view tipping has serious ramifications for restaurants, including lawsuits and lost profits, Williams reports.

"The average tip from a black customer is about 13 percent of the bill. The average tip from a white customer is about 16.5 percent of the bill," says Dr. Michael Lynn, the study's author.

In some cases the difference in tipping may be the result of poor service, but blacks interviewed in one of Lynn's studies rated the service slightly higher yet still tipped less than whites, he says.

Jerry Fernandez, president of the Multicultural Food Alliance, which represents food servers and restaurateurs, says the expectations of a lower tip from blacks can often lead to poor service.

"If a [waiter] says, 'I don't want to wait on that table because they're black or they're Hispanic, then they tend to give less service and it's a self-fulfilling prophecy," Fernandez explains.

He says cultural elements -- blacks have avoided sit-down restaurants in favor of take out or self-service eateries -- institutionalized racism that exists in the restaurant industry and education about tipping are all behind the discrepancy. "How do people learn about tipping? If you don't go, you don't know."

Lynn suggests that the American restaurant industry begin a campaign to inform people about the basics of leaving a tip. He urges the use of advertisements, educational pamphlets, and even putting tipping information on menus. And Lynn suggests that restaurants could introduce a game in which dining parties would have to tip at least 15 percent in order to be eligible to win a contest.

this thread reminds me of the time my spouse and i tried a different breakfast house one weekend morning. We sat at the little table, the waitress came over and took our order, then left to wait on other tables. While we were waiting for our food to arrive, my spouse and I decided to buy the newspaper and read it over breakfast. He unloaded the change out of his pocket, and i took out my coin purse. Between us, we found the requisite 6 quarters and put it on the table between us while i put away my coin purse. I stood up to get the change and buy the paper, when i suddenly realized the table was empty. EMPTY!! We looked at each other blankly, and I said, "our waitress just walked by our table and that was the only person who was near us; do you think she took our newspaper money?" It was all so fast. I was REALLY irritated. She was waiting on another table, and i went up to her and pointedly asked if she'd taken the newspaper money i had sitting on the table for those 30 sec while I put my stuff away. She sputtered that she'd thought we'd given her a tip and it was for her (giving a tip after you give your order but BEFORE you're served??? yeah, right). She dug out my 6 quarters from her pocket and handed them back to me. The service deteriorated from there, and no, she did NOT get a tip. talk about presumptuous. And besides, I never bought her a line about thinking we were giving her tip ahead of service. I think she thought she was so fast at scooping up my change that we'd never realize where it went to. And we're generous tippers, too, for good service; so she'd have gotten a heck of a lot more money than 6 quarters if she'd only waited (literally and figuratively).

I haven't really noticed a difference in tips from different races... i get white cheap a$$es and black ones too Hispanics also can be cheap. But sometimes I get generous people... sometimes they are white, sometimes black or asian or Hispanic... I dont care... i dont discriminate, I treat everyone the same, even if I know you aren't going to tip me. Why? Because I'm above all that... if you are out there to screw me over then fine, who am I to stop you? Besides if that 2 or 3 dollars means that much to you, I would rather you keep it, I mean here you are criticizing me for wanting your 2 dollars, saying that it's sad that I want it, and yet you won't even give it up... now who's the hippocrate?

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