When it comes to leaving a tip, most customer stick to 'social norms' and give their server anywhere between 10 to 25 per cent. But knowing who to tip and who not to tip has become a debate in many American states, as the country's tipping culture continues to evolve.
One 24-year-old man knows this all too well after working as a DoorDash delivery driver. He explained how he was visiting his boyfriend's family when they decided to order a $150 (£121) takeaway from DoorDash. Out of interest, he asked his future sister-in-law how much she was planning on giving the driver as a tip.
But to his dismay, she told him "nothing".
He said on Reddit: "This is easily $150 of food going about 10 miles. I ask politely if she hasn't input one yet.
"She said, 'Oh, I never tip. It doesn't matter, because DoorDash isn't a real job.'
"I called her out. I tell her that's bull cr*p and the driver deserves a tip, especially on a large order like this.
"She tells me to screw off in less kind words and that she's removing my order from the cart.
"His mother says I'm an a***hole for telling his sister how to spend money."
He went on to explain how many delivery drivers rely on their tips to boost their wages, saying he usually earns $2.25 to $4.25 (£1.82 to £3.45) per delivery and knows how difficult it is for them.
"Now his family doesn't like me - they think me doing DoorDash isn't a legitimate job," he added.
"They’ve told me several times to 'get a real job' or that DoorDash is a scam and I’m taking advantage of my boyfriend.
"I hear this mainly out of his sister and mother, and he gets earfuls from them as well almost daily.
"I make good money on DoorDash, enough to pay my own bills and supplement his income for shared bills/expenses."
Not wanting to spend another minute in their company, the man grabbed his belongings and left.
He said: "My boyfriend comes out to leave with me and reassures me he isn’t mad and he agrees with me, but leaving like that made his family go off about me to him as he left and it stressed him out.
"It's been about a week and they’re even worse about me to him now.
"His sister says I'm an a***hole for dictating her tipping and his mother is calling for him to kick me out."
Wanting to know whether he overreacted about the situation, he has taken to Reddit to ask users if he should apologise.
One user said: "Your boyfriends family are pretty trash humans frankly. But his family isn’t going away and this isn’t the only trash behaviour they’ll have.
"You would be wise to chat with your boyfriend about how these sort of situations will be addressed in the future."
Another user added: "His sister is a pizza delivery driver and is judging you for doing DoorDash?
"I honestly think they may not like you for a deeper reason and are nitpicking random things instead of saying it straight out. Or they are just completely insane."
A third user said: ". Your boyfriend's family sound like real pieces of work.
"I don't think you are a***hole but I do think your calling them out for not tipping did trigger off a s***storm and isn't going to change their behaviour."
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