On 1/12/09 11:22 AM, in article
,
"freenews.iinet.net.au" wrote:

Tipping is a very un Australian thing to do.

I haven't seen one for many years, but there used to be signs in pubs saying
"Tipping is un-Australian". My guess is that the signs were orchestrated by
one of the unions seeking to increases wages by discouraging tipping so
employers couldn't use it as an excuse to reduce wages.

Personally, as an Australian, I don't see the point of tipping -- I think we
should pay for the overall product/service which in turns pays the staff who
deliver it. Even when travelling overseas in cultures where tipping is the
norm, it seems very inconsistent to me. Why do you tip a cab driver but not
a bus driver? Why do you tip a waitress but not a flight attendant? Etc.

Kerry




Actually, the answer is quite simple. Cab drivers get terrible wages and bus
drivers are well paid. Servers get paid minimum wage in most instances and
flight attendants are very well paid. I agree with you that all should be
paid so that they don't need tips to survive, but I can't see it changing
any time soon.

Mind you, Alan S who is quite often on this group told me North Americans
were ruining it for Australians, and I did find it to be so in some places.
In the hotel in Sydney for instance when I received my meal chit, there was
a line for a tip!

--
Martha Canada