Woman's fury as she's asked to tip at self-checkout kiosk in airport
More people have blasted the tipping system in the US after a woman said she was asked to tip after using a self-checkout kiosk.
The incident occurred at what appears to be a CIBO Express Gourmet Market at the Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey.
It promoted one Reddit user to post about her experience in the online forum 'r/mildlyinfuriating'.
Last month, Reuters tech correspondent Anna Tong shared a photo of the tip screen as she purchased a salad, asking in a tweet: 'I'm at Newark Airport being asked to tip on a self checkout transaction - how much should I tip?'
Tong did not reveal her tipping decision, but did say in a follow-up tweet that the salad was 'terrible'.
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The photo shows a tip request for the purchase of a $6.39 bottle of coconut water and $14.99 chicken Caesar wrap.
After tax, and a 3 percent 'fee' to cover employee heath-care plans, the total for the order comes to $23.05.
One user said the tipping culture in America was 'getting out of hand' (Getty Images)The prompt screen asks 'would you like to leave a tip?' and gives three options: a 15 percent tip of $3.31, an 18 percent tip of $3.85, and a 20 percent tip of $4.28.
Reddit users were left baffled, with one commenting: 'Tip who exactly?'
'This is especially annoying given how overpriced everything is at the airport. Then they have the nerve to ask for a tip,' another commented.
'This is getting out of hand, I think we need legislation to require a no tip option and ban automatically adding them to a bill,' wrote another user.
One person, believing there was a more cynical meaning to the tip, said: "Would you like to directly increase our profits?"This is especially annoying given how overpriced everything is at the airport. Then they have the nerve to ask for a tip."
Another jibed: "Sure, it looks bad at first. But what you don't realise is, that self-serve kiosk is a single father with four kids, living paycheck to paycheck. He needs those tips more than we'll ever know."
An OTG spokesman told the Wall Street Journal that tips given at self-checkout machines are pooled and given to staff who were working that shift.
"It is always our goal to create valuable experiences for our guests while taking care of our crew members, and the option to leave a tip if you have received assistance allows us to do both," the spokesman said.
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New Yorkers have slammed 'tipflation' in the city as the prince of inflation increases the price of expected tips.
Generally speaking, tips were confined to bars and restaurants, but shops and other services have recently been introducing gratuity payments at the point of sale on card machines, leading some people to feel pressured into giving a tip.
Tips given at self-checkout machines are pooled, OTG said (Google Maps)Credit card processor Square estimates nearly 67 per cent of remote transactions now include gratuity prompts.
Advocates of this way of tipping say it makes it less awkward for some business people like electricians or plumbers to ask for tips and that higher restaurant prices instead of tips are viewed negatively.
Also slammed was an article published by New York magazine The Cut earlier this year, which claimed "there are new social expectations around what deserves a tip".
The Cut said it was good etiquette to tip around 25 per cent at restaurants and 20 per cent at coffee shops, leading to an outcry among some.
People should be tipping this amount "whether you liked the service or not", The Cut argued, but as people deal with rising inflation, some argued this is simply not feasible for them to do every time they are out for a meal.
A recent survey by Bankrate suggests over 60 per cent of Americans view tipping in a negative way.
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