I Suppose This is "Uncivil"

[Brian37]

Using restaurant tipping as the initial example is unfortunate.  

"...only to turn around and refuse the basic act of decency that is paying someone what you owe them ... "

You don't owe anybody a tip.  What you owe them is the purchase price of the items you consumed, as listed on the menu.  If the meal has been accompanied by exemplary service, you may decide to reward  that service with an additional gratuity.  Or you may not.  In a way, the assumption of mandatory tipping perpetuates a system whereby the food service industry is allowed to continually underpay its employees.  More people than Christians feel this way.

OTOH, if one has  been provided with exemplary service, and one can afford to reward it, it would be crass not to tip, since that is the current societal norm for recognizing such service.  That Christians might be more crass than other customers comes as no big surprise.  Burning witches, blowing up healthcare clinics, and molesting kids is pretty crass, too.

I hear ya. In Portugal tipping isn't even a thing and actually waiters and people that work in restaurants make good money, way above the monimum wage..

It is a cultural thing I guess. The thing is employers here value their staff, because if they don't they will lose them to the competition. OFC there are bad workers too, but those quickly get the boot.

I don't know the history of when tipping or where it began. I can say it really is nothing but a scam that gives both big business's and small businesses an excuse to pay labor under a livable wage.

It is true that depending on where you work, you can make a living on tips. But that is not the bulk of most tip jobs. Most people who work on tips, are under paid, and at best break even. Having worked delivery myself, and in restaurants, I always tip well. I would say both the customer and business would fair better by getting rid of it. The right always bemoans independence, and that is not a bad thing, but if that is their goal, you don't undermine worker independence by under paying them.

And as far as "bad workers", think about it. If you come into work, and especially if you are exhausted after working two jobs and especially if you have kids, and your pay isn't meeting the cost of living, how motivated are you to care what you do while on the job? If business owners want productivity, the best way they can get that is to pay livable wages. If a worker is not stressed out, and have the economic stability and time to their own life, they are going to be more happy and less stressed and more willing to be productive while on the job.

I know in Japan, they don't tip, at least in most places. And again, it is because the business owners pay better wages and don't dump that cost on the patron.