Rockwall, TX
This is a VERY personal subject for me since I was a server and bartender for many, many years. Here's my two cents:
I typically tip servers and bartenders 20% or greater for their service. I will give larger tips for exceptional service. If I feel I was given subpar service that is the server's fault (many times this actually is NOT the servers fault, however), I will tip 15%.
This country has gotten away with restaurants underpaying staff for decades. Here in Texas, servers make 2.13/hr. You heard that right. Even at super high-end places they pay that and rarely, if ever, give raises. As such... some say the system is flawed. I'm not a lawmaker, so I don't have a say. What I can tell you is you should be tipping your servers.
Hotel employees, taxi services, and hair dressers should also be tipped. Some of them make MUCH higher wages than servers and bartenders, but taxis have to pay cab fees and hairdressers pay for booth space....so giving a little extra is always a nicety that makes up for some of the B.S. most of us don't see that they deal with regularly.
What I CAN'T STAND is the tipping at fast food places. They already enjoy the benefits of regular pay plus typically free food or large discounts. The phenomenon of the question about the added tip is just ridiculous unless they are somehow going WAYYYYYY above and beyond...and I can't fathom how that might be since I don't recall having ever seen it myself (and I go out to eat VERY FREQUENTLY)
