Tipping in the service industry

[emjay]

I remember when I was in school and I moved from the pre-salon side to the senior salon side, where I was on the floor working on real clients. Because we were students, we were not allowed to get paid, but we were allowed to get tips. I did a perm on some lady's waist length hair. Being we were a school, salon prices were very cheap. It would have cost her $100 elsewhere for that perm but it only cost her $25 at my school. She was so happy with the job that I did, that she gave me $40! That was a good night for me.

It definitely makes sense in that situation. Round our way you could do the same thing if you wanted a cheap haircut... just go to one of the local colleges and be a guinea pig and just hope against hope you don't come out looking worse than when you went in

[Joods]

I remember when I was in school and I moved from the pre-salon side to the senior salon side, where I was on the floor working on real clients. Because we were students, we were not allowed to get paid, but we were allowed to get tips. I did a perm on some lady's waist length hair. Being we were a school, salon prices were very cheap. It would have cost her $100 elsewhere for that perm but it only cost her $25 at my school. She was so happy with the job that I did, that she gave me $40!  That was a good night for me.

It definitely makes sense in that situation. Round our way you could do the same thing if you wanted a cheap haircut... just go to one of the local colleges and be a guinea pig and just hope against hope you don't come out looking worse than when you went in

In the school's defense, it is required by law to post a sign stating that all work is performed by students, AND supervised by a licensed educator. For my school - We would do the initial consult with the client, then the teacher would come over, we would discuss our plans and then get approval or suggestions and then approval from the teacher. The teacher must remain on the floor at all times while clients are in chairs - regardless. And before we are done, the teacher must come over to inspect our work and then give approval. It was all monitored very closely and honestly - the 11 months I spent on the floor - I never had a single complaint.

[emjay]

It definitely makes sense in that situation. Round our way you could do the same thing if you wanted a cheap haircut... just go to one of the local colleges and be a guinea pig and just hope against hope you don't come out looking worse than when you went in

In the school's defense, it is required by law to post a sign stating that all work is performed by students, AND supervised by a licensed educator. For my school - We would do the initial consult with the client, then the teacher would come over, we would discuss our plans and then get approval or suggestions and then approval from the teacher. The teacher must remain on the floor at all times while clients are in chairs - regardless. And before we are done, the teacher must come over to inspect our work and then give approval. It was all monitored very closely and honestly - the 11 months I spent on the floor - I never had a single complaint.

I don't know the requirements here... and I've never actually been in myself but my mum used to do it quite a lot and be perfectly happy with the results (for colouring her hair etc... I'll have to ask her if there were any horror stories ). As for me it's been a long time since I've been to a barber. If I had a more elaborate haircut I might do, but since I basically just have a number 2 all over, I can do it myself or my dad can, and he does his own as well. So that saves us about £10 a time, plus waiting around forever in the queue. The only thing I do miss is the actual company of the barber... he was a nice guy... well nice in a piss-taking kind of way ... good to talk to.

[Joods]

Buzz cuts are for children. You should try a faded taper. Do eeeeeeeeeeeeett!

IJS.

[emjay]

Buzz cuts are for children. You should try a faded taper. Do eeeeeeeeeeeeett!

IJS.

Sorry, I didn't see this till now. It's not totally a buzz cut... well it would be if I was doing my own... but when my dad does it, he does taper it around the ears... but I can't do all that in a mirror so if I'm doing my own, it just has be one grade all over. It's just that when I went to the barbers I found the price constantly and steadily going up... and £10 for something you can do on your own seems quite a lot I think... though obviously not compared to the sorts of prices women are prepared to pay for haircuts... but for a male haircut with no frills, £10 seemed too much... and it's probably about £12 by now... so I don't regret stopping going.

[Joods]

A faded taper uses three guard numbers from the occipital (where the head rounds in the back) down to the nape of the neck (hairline). The lower you go down the head, the closer the cut, hence the term "taper". The hair gradually tapers off. A buzz cut is one that uses the same guard all over the head. Shaping is referred to using trimmers around the hair line, in particular, the ears and sideburn area, to complete the cut and give the head a more uniform look.

A flat top (also referred to as a "high and tight", think Marines) is even more difficult. There's a special comb that can be used but if you're really skilled and you have a steady hand, you can use a standard hair cutting comb. Of all the types of men's hairstyles out there, I find the flat top the most rewarding to do. Men with this sort of cut tend to tip better and are more meticulous with their grooming habits because maintaining a flat top is hard to do. Most men with this style have to get their hair cut every three to four weeks as a general rule.

[Cecelia]

I always tip at restaurants and at the salon (when I go).

A friend of mine used to be a waitress, and she's told me horror stories of receving everything from bible passages to fake money in lieu of tips. If someone relies on tips for their wages, you should tip at least the average. While it'd be better if we lived in a world where we didn't need tipping because employees were paid fair wages, the only person who suffers by not tipping is the person doing the job. I'd much rather give a big tip to the employee and skimp out on paying the business.

[Nakara]

I always tip, and I always tip well...errr, unless tge service is really THAT shoddy. Having worked in the service industry I know just how nasty customers can be so I always try to make my gratitude known.

I wish it didn't have to be this way, though. Employers should pay their employees actual wages. I shouldn't have to be expected to tip, but it's currently the unfortunate reality that most service workers in the restaurant industry get paid far less than minimum wage (unless they don't make enough tips). So I always tip well, repeatedly say thank you, try not to be difficult, and try to treat them like the person they are and not the robot the company often wants.

[emjay]

A faded taper uses three guard numbers from the occipital (where the head rounds in the back) down to the nape of the neck (hairline). The lower you go down the head, the closer the cut, hence the term "taper". The hair gradually tapers off. A buzz cut is one that uses the same guard all over the head. Shaping is referred to using trimmers around the hair line, in particular, the ears and sideburn area, to complete the cut and give the head a more uniform look.

Yeah... my dad's pretty good at all of those parts I think... ie tapers at the back as well as the ears with different grades... and shaping... I trust him to give me a good cut, and he enjoys doing it, I only wish I was as good in return... when I did it for him, one of his work colleagues joked 'have your ears been lowered?'

A flat top (also referred to as a "high and tight", think Marines) is even more difficult. There's a special comb that can be used but if you're really skilled and you have a steady hand, you can use a standard hair cutting comb. Of all the types of men's hairstyles out there, I find the flat top the most rewarding to do. Men with this sort of cut tend to tip better and are more meticulous with their grooming habits because maintaining a flat top is hard to do. Most men with this style have to get their hair cut every three to four weeks as a general rule.

Yeah, I've seen those cuts... never had one though. They've never appealed to me as in my opinion they don't look very nice. But I've arguably had worse... when I was much younger I had a skinhead and various, embarrassing in hindsight, variations of one... don't ask Now all I care about is practicality... same with my dress sense... I'm just practical rather than stylish.

[Joods]

To be honest, even though it's what I'm trained to do - I'm not a fan of cutting hair. I'd rather play with color all day and that's my specialty; Hair color.