A
friend I know drives for Lyft, which is a drive-sharing service. Let's call him
Sam.
Sam has driven for
well over a year and enjoys talking with his passengers. He finds most of them
engaging and interesting, more so than staying home only to watch TV. After
all, he would get angry with the news, annoyed with talk shows, and would
become "brain-dead" watching Drew Carey or Wayne Brady give away
fa-a-a-a-bulous prizes each day.
Sam is retired and
still feels like he can be a useful member of society. He also cannot live only
on his Social Security, so driving for Lyft takes care of supplementing his
income, as well as, all the above. In addition, he doesn't have to worry about
his answer to the question, "what did you do all day?"
Technically, Sam is
considered self-employed, so he makes his own hours. He answers only to
himself, as long as his activity does not damage the Lyft Brand. Seems
reasonable, right?
But he does not get to
keep 100% of the fare. Lyft (and Uber) take a handling fee for itself and for
third parties Lyft is obligated to. So in actuality, Sam walks away with about
65% of the gross fare AND is responsible for his gas, some tolls, and other car
expenses since it is his car. And his taxes.
The point is this: Sam
provides a service to his passenger, much like a waitress provides a service to
her customers, or a bartender to his, or a paper carrier to his. You would tip
for the excellent service you receive from workers in these occupations.
So, why do so many
passengers not tip for excellent service they receive from Sam and others like
him? Certainly, you would not tip as generously, or at all, to other workers in
service industries if you received poor or unsatisfactory service. But if you
received decent service, of course you would.
So the next time you
use a ride service, take an extra moment as you close out the ride and take a "tip" from me. Add a reasonable tip to the total that is shown, since that tip
goes ONLY to Sam and not to Lyft or Uber.
You can be sure Sam
will appreciate it. I know I would.
