I hope it's a better reason than "they'd like to evade taxes". Even the usual justifications about "you can reward more for better service" are hard to apply here: what's the variation? Is it a bonus for not eating the food?
In software, I'd prefer the end customer throw bank notes at me, but I don't equate that with an actual superior model for how software development incentives should work.
That is 3 customers tip 10%, 15% and 20%, for an average 15%. But when you fix the service charge at 15%, the 10% tipper now orders less frequently. That might be made up for by the 20% tipper ordering more, but it depends on the shape of the demand curve.
Should I just not tip delivery people at all, since I like to keep money?
I'm struggling to see the model that drives your claim. As stated, it would justify "pay what you feel like" for every other good, to some extent.
That's true, except in the United States, in the case of delivery people and servers there is an extremely robust societal norm to tip. Such a norm doesn't exist for most other transactions.
Your question was "What difference would it make if done as a regular delivery fee rather than [a tip]?", which was precisely the question I tried to answer. That is, you can't aggregate a block of voluntary exchanges and average the price.
You were giving justifications at a system level, which why I said it would imply that other systems should shift to "pay what you feel like", irrespective of which ones currently use it.
And it's not an exchange, if one side has nothing to withhold, but a gift.
(In USA, the delivery person probably can't get away with reporting nothing to the IRS, they will have to declare some tip income or risk getting chased around)
If you get paid in tips only sure but around here it's minimum wage + tips. No-tip order still pays to your employer - of course it sucks for you but it still keeps the business going.
>(In USA, the delivery person probably can't get away with reporting nothing to the IRS, they will have to declare some tip income or risk getting chased around)
I meant reporting to the owner and waiting to get the money back trough paycheck.
The table-waiting model of using tips instead of pay sucks, but tipping for delivery can be a lot of money.
I know. My point was that, to the extent the driver has a legitimate preference, it's for receiving a fixed delivery fee, not for being "yet another person I'm expected to pay under the table".
Thus, I'd love for them to say what money amount satisfies my obligation to them, rather then guessing each time how much I'm supposed to secretly give the driver.
I'm looking for a model that would make me believe oppositely. Do you have one?
And yet, it is in the driver's interest to keep this knowledge from you. What they are getting is the minimum you feel comfortable about, which may very well be above what is the minimum they would consider satisfactory.
It's not obvious at all that they would prefer a fixed fee.
The game theory dynamics aren't in dispute. The question is, why do you defend a system that boils down to "they take advantage of people's ignorance", of what they're obligated to pay, and that they're paying more in return for nothing.
If you could wave a legal wand and cause a fixed $2 per delivery to go into their paycheck, that's fine. But that's not going to happen.
Wait-staff in a world without tips can get paid more. I don't think a delivery driver gets paid more.
They'd probably rather have a *tip*
Now paying a small extra on the basis of quality of service, does make sense. But again, that's different from supplementing a worker's deficient salary. The former is merit based, the latter is, on average, a necessary, expected and you could almost say culturally mandatory pity/solidarity payment by the customer that ought to simply be priced in the product or service and arranged between employer and employee.
Paying extra based on merit does make sense in some industries, like say a tour guide who didn't just tell you the facts of whatever artefact you walked by, but made sure you had an amazing time, catching your interests and focusing on things that resonate with you, waving stories into a unique experience, that's tip-worthy. A restaurant worker who puts in extra effort might be, too. But a delivery man who mostly has 1 actually important parameter of quality 'being on time or not', mostly, that's not a tip-worthy parameter in my opinion, that's just his normal job, and if he's getting a decent salary, I wouldn't tip for that.
I'll happily tip anyone doing his job if it's necessary to supplement a deficient salary, but I wouldn't tip anyone just for doing their job if their salary is sufficient. Whether that's the case for this particular uberised delivery industry will play out soon enough. I'm over in the Netherlands, generally tipping is not done and not necessary either as salary levels are quite decent. (the only exception is youth-wages, which are beyond ridiculous and a movement is on the rise to do away with the concept).