USA: Gesetze, Klagen, Steuervorteil – so streitet Amerika über Trinkgeld

In New York City, the concept of tipping has become a contentious issue as laws and lawsuits swirl around the practice. At the Monkey Cup, a café near Central Park, patrons are asked to purchase books instead of tipping for their coffee. The baristas handcraft the coffee with cocoa powder, creating a monkey-like appearance. Despite the lack of tipping, the coffee remains an artisanal experience.

However, the tipping culture ends at the cash register where a tablet presents three suggested amounts: one dollar, three dollars, and five dollars. Customers can opt not to tip by selecting "no tip." This shift in tipping norms is driven by a political debate and customers' growing frustration with screens demanding constant requests for tips.

A study by Michael Lynn, a consumer researcher at Cornell University, found that the social pressure of tipping requests has overwhelmed consumers, and they feel overwhelmed by them. Lynn argues that increased tipping has not changed tipping norms. Instead, customers are questioning who pays the wages: the employer or the customer.

The debate extends to restaurants, politics, and even Germany, where card terminals now ask for tips. At the Chelsea Market, once a hub for baristas, a robotic arm named Jarvis now handles espresso-making and milk foam creation. Customers order their cappuccinos through a screen, paying around five dollars, and then tipping through the tablet interface.

The introduction of Jarvis has sparked controversy, with some researchers finding the tablet's pressure to tip more effective than a glass of alcohol. Although Jarvis has stopped asking for tips, other robotic arms have followed suit. Artly, the company behind Jarvis, has responded by increasing employees' pay by 1.50 dollars per hour to offset lower tip revenues.

However, the robotic arms still require physical glass trays for tips, bringing back the traditional tipping system. In restaurants, the minimum wage in New York City is 17 dollars, but servers only receive 11.35 dollars from customers. The remaining difference is often covered by tipping, with up to a third of the minimum wage coming from tips.

Some cities are considering eliminating the practice of subtracting tips from wages, but servers fight back, arguing that tipping is an integral part of their income.