I was in the service industry for 7 years before flying (bars/restaurants) I pride myself on tipping well, full knowing how the industry is. I never leave less than 20% on my bill unless the service was really bad.
BUT, that being said, I had the same conundrum, being that I made so little as a f/o. and thinking about the following I decided to not tip. Follow me here..
1. We fly a large vehicle. They drive a large vehicle, We're highly trained, they are not, we generally give good service, many times they do not, and WE are responsible for many more people than any van driver, yet we don't get tipped. Why? Because it's OUR JOB. It's their JOB as well.

2. When I go to and from the airport, in uniform, I consider myself on company time. That means I am NOT CHOOSING to be at the hotel. I have to be. They are providing transportation as required in the contract. Therefore, the company should have negotiated in the contract to take care of the drivers, it's NOT our responsibility. When I am in my own clothes, asking for a ride to the bar/restaurant, I always leave a tip for the driver, because it is on MY time, and they are doing ME a service.

3. I can't afford it. The $300 a year in tips (regional flying schedules - obviously not international) is a nice chunk of money to someone making 20-25k/year pre-tax. Maybe if I was a captain, making 100k+ a year, I wouldn't hesitate, just to "pass-it-on". But sadly, thats not the case.

 

i've tried to not say anything, but i have read one too many 'rationalizations' for being too cheap to tip...a buck!

geezus people...it's one dollar. it is industry standard. it is a professional courtesy. did i mention it's only one dollar???

before you jump all over me...i am in the right seat of xyz regional making jack-diddly for pay also. so please spare me the "i can't afford it" bit.

if you want to be treated like a professional, play the part: look professional, act professional, and be professional.

all i'm saying is be the bigger person. if you that isn't a good enough reason and you need another consider it charity...these people are driving a friggin hotel van for a living! besides, you can deduct all your tips and then some come tax time.

rant over.

may your next one be greasy! (landing not van driver)

 

Actually, for a 4 day trip it is 8 bucks...

 

Actually, a four day trip is $6 in van tips.

Day 1 - tip to the RON driver
Day 2 - tip to the airport driver and RON driver
Day 3 - tip to the airport driver and RON driver
Day 4 - tip to the airport driver

 

...okay, okay 6 bucks...

 

thanks, just realized my dumb-math...but my point is this...it is more than a buck...

 

...And let's just say for the sake of argument it's 3 to 4 four day trips per month. That's $18-$24 per month or $216-$288 per year. That's 1.4% to 1.9% of annual income to a pilot making $15K/year AFTER taxes. A small amount no doubt, but I'd rather give nearly 2 percent of my after tax income to a charity or church. I'm not saying that van drivers don't work hard, but I'm of the mentality that a wage is a wage and tips are bonus (earned above and beyond). In the same breath that most would say "you should tip no matter what," do you also say that those who earn the tips should report every last dime to the IRS? I have to, it's called my income, I don't get tips for flying people, I get snide remarks for landings from dipthongs who think they know something about airplanes because they're frequent flyer princes. Isolated cases, I know.

I don't like the professionalism argument because what are waitstaff, ameteurs? It's a job, if they don't feel they are compensated enough for it, get a different one or demand higher wages. My job REQUIRES me to travel to and from a hotel (sure I could stay at the airport, but then I don't rest, smell, and get real cranky and call in fatigued [that won't work!]) why do I have to pay extra for something manditory?

I don't automatically tip 20 percent. They have to earn the money I give them, and since when is 20 percent the norm, what happened to 10 to 15 percent at a restaurant? I stay away from overly nice hotels when I travel, everyone wants to do something for you, all at nice tip (charge)...no thanks, I'm perfectly capable of carrying my own bags to my room, thank you.

I'll tip when I feel it's necessary and RIGHTFULLY deserved and I won't let anyone make me feel guilty for not.

Fire retardant suit: ON

 

Here's my rules: 1) I tip the van driver if he's there on time, or within 5 minutes. 2) He has to LOAD and unload my bags. 3) If we wait more than 5 minutes for another inbound crew, no tip. 4) If I'm riding with 17 people in a 15 passenger van, no tip.

As far as restaurants go, I always tip unless the service is incredibly poor. If the waiter makes an effort at his job I tip 15%. If they really go above and beyond, make that 20%. Crappy service usually garners a 5% tip.

Also, and this is going to make me look like a tightwad, I base the tip on the cost of the meal excluding sales tax.

 

Pay me like a professional and I will gladly tip like one.

And for those on here who are not 1st or 2nd year FO's at a regional, do not expect to have FO's pony up for tips just because you can afford it. I can not belive a UPS pilot had the nerve on the 1st or 2nd page of this thread to call people cheap for not tipping. Pay me UPS money and I will tip, give to charity, feed the homeless, and use $20 bills to wipe.

Take the following example:

a) Driver waiting at curb, hops out and takes bags, has hotel keys in van with sign in sheet, takes bags out of the van.

b) Driver late, drags butt to open back door and watched me put bags in back, no keys, drags butt at hotel to open door so I can get bags.

Driver A gets tip, Driver B gets ZIP! Nothing! Nada! 0.0

 

If they are waiting on me, I tip.

If I wait on them...no tip.