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Tipping in the US

走跳美國,小費要有

 

精英翻譯社轉自https://www.ivy.com.tw/newsLetter/analysis_cont/2021050615191353874

 

One of the first things travelers to the US note on their return is the odd practice of tipping. It’s generally not mandatory, though some places will include a set service charge. It’s also generally expected, since restaurants are allowed to pay waitstaff less than the minimum wage with the assumption that they will be making tips. It also means that a meal ends with a math problem, which is not what most people enjoy when dining out.

去美國的旅客在返鄉時會最先提到的其中一件事就是給小費這個奇特的慣例。這通常不是強制性的,不過有些地方會加收一筆固定的服務費。人們也被普遍期望給予小費,因為在桌邊服務人員會獲得小費的假定之下,餐廳支付他們的薪水可以少於最低工資。這也意味著吃一頓飯會以一道數學題作結,這是多數人外食時不喜歡的。

 

How did this whole situation begin? Interestingly enough, it started in England. Back in the 16th century, there was a custom of giving a “vail” to servants. Visitors at wealthy estates would give tips to various members of the household, like footmen and valets, upon their departure for the extra work that they caused them. This eventually moved from the homes of the aristocracy to hotels and restaurants.

這整個情況是如何開始的呢?十分有趣的是,給小費這件事是從英國開始的。早先在十六世紀時,有一個給僕從賞錢(當時稱 vail”)的習俗。到有錢人家莊園拜訪的人會在離開時給予這一家的各種人員(像是接應的男僕和貼身僕從)小費,作為自己帶給他們額外工作的補償。這個習俗最後從貴族家庭轉移至旅館及餐廳。

 

Americans picked up on this trend in the mid-1800s, when more people started traveling abroad. Upon their return, they would tip at restaurants to show they were more cultured than those less well-traveled. Despite some backlash, tipping became the norm in the US. Around the same time, however, the practice faded away in the UK.

美國人在十九世紀中更多人開始出國時注意到這股風潮。回國時,他們會在餐廳給小費,以顯示他們比那些較不常旅行的人更有文化。儘管有一些抵制聲浪,給小費這件事仍成為美國的常態。然而約莫在此同時,這項慣例在英國卻逐漸消失。

 

The custom of tipping became even more entrenched in the 1960s, when a law was passed making it legal for restaurants to pay tipped employees a lower minimum wage. This essentially made diners responsible for the wages of waiters, and made tipping more or less mandatory.

給小費的習俗在 1960 年代甚至又變得更加根深柢固,當時通過了一條法案,使餐廳可以支付收小費的員工較低的最低薪資這件事合法化。這基本上讓用餐者負擔了服務員的薪資,也使得給小費幾乎成了義務。

 

The debate over fair wages and tipping remains an issue in the US today. The current federal law in the US is that if a waiter makes US$30 in tips a month, then they can be paid as low as US$2.13 an hour. However, some states have passed their own laws that guarantee waiters the state’s standard minimum wage.

合理薪資和給小費的爭論至今在美國仍是一項議題。現行的美國聯邦法規定,假如一名服務員一個月賺得三十美元小費,那麼他們的支薪就能低至每小時 2.13 美元。然而,有些州已通過自己的法律,保障服務員能獲得該州的標準最低薪資。

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