The cost of just about everything is going up, but what about tips?

The restaurant industry is struggling to hire enough staff as we emerge from the pandemic, so Castanet took to the streets to ask people how much of a bonus they give servers.

On average, those we spoke to gave between 15 and 20 per cent.

“I think the question is being asked more now because we’re talking about this right across the country,” said Kelowna business etiquette expert Jennifer Grant.

“Who knows what’s to happen in the years to come. There’s countries like Switzerland where it’s definitely no tipping and there’s more like policies actually in place for that. But I think in Canada and North America, it’s customary for us to tip. We call it tipping etiquette. We've been doing it for a long time and we’re going to keep doing it in the future.”

She points out that service industry workers still rely heavily on tips to pay for many expenses.

“Definitely. Tips definitely helped with a lot, for sure, ” agrees Macayla, who used to work as a server. “Just your average pay doesn’t quite do it sometimes.”

What about when the point-of-sale machine gives a suggested tip amount? Where should it start?

Grant says many debit/credit machines begin at ten per cent and go up to 15 and then 20 percent, but she likes to customize her tip.

“I might decide it should be 18 per cent, or maybe it should be 25 per cent.”

Macayla and her friend Paige, noted that some machines now start at 12 or even 15 per cent.

Another emerging trend is for restaurants to automatically tack on 18 per cent.

“I haven’t run across one like that, that says automatically 18 per cent,” remarked Les, a regular at the Blue Gator on Lawrence Ave. “I’d probably have something to say about that. I’d probably want to know about it before I started the service."

Natalie, who was shopping for groceries at Capri Centre, admitted that she doesn’t eat out much anymore. However, the last time she dined at a restaurant she left a larger tip than normal. One of the factors in that decision was a realization that the server was likely also feeling the impact of skyrocketing inflation.

Grant points out that there are circumstances where you might not leave a tip at all, but that’s usually only if the server is particularly rude or doesn’t check on you. She advises not to take it out on the front-of-house staff if you don’t like the food because that’s down to the kitchen.