The tension behind tipping; plus, the anger over box braids

It's Been a Minute

NPR

News Commentary, Society & Culture, News, Spirituality, Religion & Spirituality

4.6 • 8.8K Ratings

🗓️ 4 August 2023

⏱️ 38 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Over the past few years, tipping expectations have changed: we're asked to tip in restaurants and coffee shops, yes, but also at bodegas, farm stands, even unmanned grab-and-go kiosks. And while the pandemic increased tips, inflation and a return to normal may put downward pressure on them again. Now, it seems none of us can agree on what the minimum should be. Host Brittany Luse chats with Ramtin Arablouei, co-host of the NPR history podcast Throughline, about the long and fraught history of tipping in the US, and what shifts in tipping may say about where we are today.

And later — we explore hair braiding gone wrong. Online, women looking to get box braids have gone viral with their complaints about confusing pricing structures, minimal care, and poor customer service. Brittany Luse chats with public historian and YouTuber Jouelzy to get an overview of the tension. Then, Jessica Poitras, legislative counsel for the Institute of Justice, joins the show to talk about the legal roadblocks many hair braiders face in setting up their businesses. And later, Brittany is joined by stylist Tyré Rimple to discuss the hidden costs behind braiding.

You can follow us on Twitter @NPRItsBeenAMin and email us at [email protected].

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey y'all, you're listening to it's been a minute from NPR.
0:06.7	I'm Brittany Loose.
0:08.1	And today, we're going to talk about something pretty much all of us do, but none of us can
0:13.2	agree on the rules.
0:14.7	I'm talking about tipping.
0:17.1	It's a topic that's been coming up for me a lot on social media because it seems a
0:22.2	little more ever present in life, too.
0:24.8	Everywhere you go now, you have to tip.
0:27.2	That's Romteen Arableui, one of the hosts of NPR's history show Thru Line, where he did
0:32.3	a deep dive on tipping.
0:34.1	It used to be that you would tip when you sat down for a meal, usually.
0:37.9	But now, if you go to any kind of place like Chipotle or any other place, there's a tipping
0:41.8	option.
0:42.8	There's like a kind of a surcharge on everything they're paying for now.
0:45.9	So I think it's frustrating a lot of people.
0:48.0	In the last couple of years, it seems like tipping etiquette has shifted.
0:51.9	We're being asked to tip in more situations on a bottle of water for grab and go sandwiches.
0:57.0	I've even been asked to tip in a corner store while grabbing snacks.
1:00.8	While this may have something to do with more touch screens taking our orders, there's
1:05.6	also been a hot debate over how much to tip.
1:09.5	Just last week, I saw fights on social media about how some people now consider 20% to
1:15.7	small a tip.
	...

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