I read in an etiquette column that you should tip your garbage collector $100 !!!!!! I about fell over. They also said you should always tip your mailman, newspaper delivery person, and any other people you employ (gardner, house cleaner, babysitter, dogwalker etc)
I have never have given anything to the mailman or garbage collector. If I had some of those other employees (like a gardner or house cleaner) who I personally wrote checks to, I would give them something extra. But services that I don't directly pay the person (like the garbage collector or mailman) it never occurred to me to give them anything...
We tip our garbage man (yes, we give $100), our newspaper delivery guy, the mailman (he gets $100 too) and the UPS man (bc of my DH's job, the UPS man is here 3-4 times a week). I also tip the cleaning lady.
How do you guys get the money to the service people? We aren't ever home when they pick up our trash or UPS or FedEx delivers packages. I know the USPS has a policy against giving money. Here is what their website says:
Employee Tipping and Gift-Receiving Policy
All postal employees, including carriers, must comply with the Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch. Under these federal regulations, carriers are permitted to accept a gift worth $20 or less from a customer per occasion, such as Christmas. However, cash and cash equivalents, such as checks or gift cards that can be exchanged for cash, must never be accepted in any amount. Furthermore, no employee may accept more than $50 worth of gifts from any one customer in any one calendar year period.
I'm so glad you asked this, there was a holiday note in my mailbox yesterday from the mailman and I mentioned it to my girlfriend, who lives in my community and she says it's standard to give the mailman a gift...I had never heard of this. I'm thinking of just making cookies and giving them to the mailman, ups and fedex people (leaving them at the door with a note) and shoot now maybe the trash man, although I feel like leaving a pile of cookies next to my trash is awkward
Re: speaking of holiday presents/tips
Employee Tipping and Gift-Receiving Policy
All postal employees, including carriers, must comply with the Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch. Under these federal regulations, carriers are permitted to accept a gift worth $20 or less from a customer per occasion, such as Christmas. However, cash and cash equivalents, such as checks or gift cards that can be exchanged for cash, must never be accepted in any amount. Furthermore, no employee may accept more than $50 worth of gifts from any one customer in any one calendar year period.
He didn't even say thanks.
We definitely don't tip the garbage pick up people (it is a different person all the time). And not the mail delivery person (community mailbox).
Don't have a cleaning lady or pool boy, so no tips there either. Lol.