Where does the word tip come from and how much is left in the area?

"Money is the source of all evils, get rid of it in this pot."

This message can be read in a bottle in a bar in Buenos Aires. And half to the joke, half serious, what he's looking for is that customers leave tips.

In other words, they are generous when it comes to rewarding the service beyond the price as a reward for the workers.

Advice is given particularly in the sectors of food, hospitality and some transport, among other benefits.

And although this is not mandatory in most Latin American countries, tipping extends to almost the entire region.

But behind the custom there is a curiosity: the origin of the word tip.

Drinking

"The word tip comes from the Greek so it's not a Spanish word in itself and the origin comes from the action drink it's [19659012] pin or ] in Greek and pro which means before "", says the Spanish philologist María Nogueira to the BBC Mundo.

" It's somehow related to the money that remains thank you for tasting for the drink you've consumed, it's kind of a gift, "he adds.

According to the American professor Michael Lynch, consumer behavior badyst who has conducted many studies on the tip, ] people give extra money after the payment of the account also to get l & 39; social approval, avoid remorse and clear, to increase the salary of the worker details on his website.

And many employees in the hospitality and restaurant sectors earn substandard wages, such as in the United States.

Tipping should then be high to compensate for low wages. As a result, the minimum wage for disabled workers is lower.

In the United States the tip can range from 15 to 2 1 % of the account payable.

How much tipping is left in Latin America?

This is a recurring question from travelers who arrive in the area or when one has the chance to visit a country in Latin America.

And most of the time the answer is: "at discretion".

Although in several countries there are regulations that mark a minimum for the tip.

This is the case of Costa Rica ] where the law establishes the right to the peak of workers of restaurants, bars and other establishments where the table service is provided to receive, in addition to the salary, a supplement of 10% provided by the consumer who is included in the account.

Similarly, Dominican Republic regulated the payment of gratuities.

"In hotels, restaurants, cafes, bars and, in general, in commercial establishments where meals or beverages are sold for consumption in those very same places, it is mandatory for the employer to use them." add a 10% as a board in the notes or accounts of customers, or in any other way that satisfies that perception, in order to be distributed entirely among the workers who have rendered service ", says section 228 of the Labor Code 19659018] A taxi driver receives money from a pbadenger" src = "https: //c.files.bbci. co.uk/5dcc/production/_102421042_gettyimages-472179449.jpg "width =" 976 "height =" 549 "/>

AND Brazil is the last to join this list.

In March 2017, the country pbaded a law that regulates the collection of advice ( gorjetas in Portuguese) to customers by restaurants and bars establishing that 20% of this tip will be for businesses and 80% for the servers.

However, the rule does not specify what percentage is adhering to the consumer's account, although the usual is 10%.

Without regulation

But in the rest of Latin America, the tip is not regulated, so the percentage that remains as a tip varies, although a collaboration of Mexico custom 10% of the value of the account and as a courtesy, the law says that is not compulsory [19659005] In Honduras [19659031] nothing is planned.