If you're concerned about their ethics in paying their employees why would you continue to use the service? Aside from the ethics why would you use a service where quality is guaranteed to be minimal?
> but based on how much time the server spent attending to my needs.
Putting it in a vehicle and driving it to you at home does not count?
> you didn't do a lot of work
Have you ever delivered food for a living?
You make it seem like it's quantum physics. Anyone can carry a plate to a table, it's one of the jobs with the fewest requirements for the position.
When you are taking a dish to a table, it is a good time to reflect on the decisions you have made in your life that have put you in that position. Perhaps finishing high school wasn't such a bad idea after all.
Do you know what ServSafe certification is?
> it is a good time to reflect on the decisions you have made in your life that have put you in that position.
In my entire life I've never looked down on labor. If I had no other choices, I'd be happy to wait tables, and I wouldn't think anyone has the right to treat me poorly because they think they're better than me.
> Perhaps finishing high school wasn't such a bad idea after all.
Perhaps not being a detached anti social snob is too hard for the average HN reader.
Is it slave labor or something? Why shouldn't I use the service?
> where quality is guaranteed to be minimal?
You think if I don't pay a tip I'll have minimal quality? I strongly disagree. Companies should just pay regular wages instead of random wages based on the generosity of strangers. If people stopped tipping, companies would have a hard time recruiting, they would raise wages to get enough employees and we would stop this farce.
> Putting it in a vehicle and driving it to you at home does not count?
No, that's the basics of the job. Attending to my needs would be something above that. To bring it back to the server: Taking my order and bringing the food is the basics. If you want a tip there needs to be something above and beyond that.
Are you planning on giving a tip to DMV agent who renews your drivers license? What about the checkout clerk? Do you tip your mailman?
This who business of tipping because food is involved is utterly pathetic. There's nothing actually different about the a food delivery driver vs a mailman.
> Have you ever delivered food for a living?
I have not, but as I said: bringing the food to the table if the basic job. Doing a lot of work means mental work, not physical. i.e. you paid special attention and anticipated needs, i.e. you are more than just acting as a glorified robot.
Put another way: If someone could automate your job with a computer to take orders, and a conveyor belt to deliver them, that's not tip-worthy.
If your job is performed by tons of other people who do not get a tip, you're also not getting a tip. (i.e. food delivery vs mailman)
A tip is for something extra. I had a mechanic who managed a very difficult tire patch repair for me - saved me on buying a new tire. I gave him a tip because he did something beyond the norm - normally they would not repair that tire.