'Tipping', 'gratuity' or 'service' is handled very differently in the UK and America. It's important to get this right when you visit each place as it can affect whether the staff in bars, cafe, restaurant, hotels, hairdressers, and the drivers of taxis or buses think that you are lovely, rude, strange, or whether they chase you down the street!
In the UK...
In the UK the reason for tipping is to show that you really liked the service. In the UK we have a high minimum wage, and no-one can be paid below this amount for any work, so when you tip, it is mainly showing politeness to the service person, and to acknowledge that they did an excellent job.
You can tip more or less depending on how good you thought the service was, and the average tip is around 10-20%. So if you loved your new 50 pound haircut, you should add another 5-10 pounds onto your bill, and this will go directly to the hairdresser! If you didn't like the service, don't tip! This is the case even if 'service' has been added to your bill. If you didn't like the service, you can always refuse to pay. Or if you are a student, traveller on a budget, or simply can't afford to, it's also ok not to spend the extra money.
In the US...
In the US, you will often hear 'tips' called 'service'. It is essential to tip in the US, because the waitresses, bar staff, maitre'd's in these industrys are paid a low wage which they cannot afford to live on, and therefore your tip is much needed by them.
It is actually part of the payment that you make and very often is not optional! Especially in restaurants, if you do not pay the service, you have not paid your entire bill, so watch out!
在英國(guó)給小費(fèi)意味著你對(duì)店員的服務(wù)很滿(mǎn)意。英國(guó)政府規(guī)定了最低工資標(biāo)準(zhǔn)，所有雇主都要遵循這個(gè)規(guī)定，所以員工的工資不會(huì)低于最低工資。
Spot the Difference 英美差異
1. 給小費(fèi)的不同理由：
UK：以示禮貌；表示服務(wù)質(zhì)量真的不錯(cuò)。
That waitress was so friendly and quick! Give her a big tip!
那個(gè)服務(wù)員服務(wù)態(tài)度好并且效率高，我要給她一大筆小費(fèi)！
US：在美國(guó)，服務(wù)員、酒吧侍者等工作者工資很低，生活十分艱辛，所以小費(fèi)對(duì)于他們來(lái)說(shuō)十分重要。
The 15% service charge has been added to your bill.
15%的服務(wù)費(fèi)已計(jì)入您的賬單。
2. 給多少小費(fèi)較合適？
UK：根據(jù)服務(wù)質(zhì)量而定，一般在原價(jià)的基礎(chǔ)上增加10-20%。所以如果理發(fā)的價(jià)格為50英鎊，另外給5-10英鎊就很合適。值得注意的是，這些小費(fèi)直接屬于美發(fā)師！如果你對(duì)服務(wù)質(zhì)量不滿(mǎn)意，不給小費(fèi)即可，即使小費(fèi)已經(jīng)算入了你的賬單中！如果你囊中羞澀付不起小費(fèi)，不付就行了。
US：通常小費(fèi)是賬單的一部分，而且非付不可！尤其是在餐廳，如果不給小費(fèi)，就被認(rèn)為是沒(méi)有付完賬單，所以要小心了。
相關(guān)閱讀
美國(guó)的餐廳文化
給小費(fèi)的理由
你知道怎么給小費(fèi)嗎？
“費(fèi)用”各不同
（來(lái)源：滬江英語(yǔ) 編輯：崔旭燕）
