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Tipping is not mandatory for movers. However, as with any service industry, it is customary to tip for good or exceptional service. For those of you who think they are getting paid a salary to do a job and that should be good enough, I see your arguement. I just disagree. I have been in the moving industry over 26 years and I was on the trucks for 16 as an owner/operator driving cross-country. I was also a local driver when I first started. Trust me there is a difference in service from one person to the next. Keep in mind, some of these guys are only getting $10 to $15 an hour. If you feel the crew has provided a good job, it is customary to give $10 to $25 each plus/minus lunch and drinks. This is a very good range and I'm only telling you because you asked. I personally have been tipped $150 on one particular job, but there were extenuating circumstances that need not be discussed here.
I also find depending on where you are varies if you should tip or not. That doesn't sound right I know, but it is what it is. When I lived in Boston, everyone there tipped for good service. It is understood. Now that I live in the South, that is exactly opposite. However some people in the South still tip, just not as many.
Again, it is not mandatory, but it is customary to tip a mover for good service.
There have been many posts asking this same question. If you folks want to give away money give it to someone or agency that needs it. When you pay movers they are paid a wage to move your stuff. The only way they should get a tip if they perform above and beyond their job description. Their job requires them to move your items safely and with care, so what else can they do to provide extra service? The best thing a customer cant do for a moving crew is provide plenty of cold bottled water. If it is going to be an old day job you might want to consider ordering lunch for the crew, but keep your money in your pocket.
However, if you have a item that is out of the ordinary making it difficult to handle by size or weight, i.e., grand piano, etc., then is the time to tip. If you are the customer from hell, then tip them big-time.
Don
I had 3 guys moving us and had them all day last time- couple of years ago. Bought lunch, snacks in the afternoon, and drinks all day. Gave the crew leader $50 and the helpers $25 each.
We moved into a house with a steep driveway that the truck couldn't go up. After a very long day of hiking up that hill with all our furniture and belongings, then taking them up or down another flight of stairs, we tipped each guy $100.00. We also provided food and drinks. I think extenuating circumstances like this call for generous thanks.
I worked as a mover for a summer job when I first started college. Some people tipped, and some didn't. Generally it was a few dollars up to $25-50 for generous people. I never really expected cash, but I always thought it was a nice gesture if they had water and ordered a pizza for us for lunch. I'd say on average, I walked away with $10 tip at the end of the day.
Some of the problem households were when they had tons of stairs, or a bunch of hills leading to the truck. This isn't taken into account when quoting a move, so often times it made for a really long day. Also, military families were prevalent in my area, and often had tons of stuff with little preparation. This is not meant to be insulting, but I think they often felt that Uncle Sam was paying for it and that they would cover all expenses; realistically though, we ended up working extra hard at these houses and receiving little to no gratitude. That was just my area though, and not meant to insult anyone, just an observation.
I always appreciated lunch and just a few dollars at the end of the day was more than enough, from my perspective. Oh, and a case of beer at the end of the day was always a decent treat as well, haha!
One problem with tipping is that it doesn't take long for the business owner to catch on. Once they do they will offer lower wages to their laborers based on the idea that part of their pay will come from tips. These moving companies already charge outrageous prices and are making more than enough profit. The company itself should be the ones providing a decent wage, medical insurance, and bonus's for their workers.
We provided lunch, drinks and $50 per mover (there were 3) It might have been more - we were so tired I can't remember. It was a short move but a BIG one.... we have lots of stuff!
One problem with tipping is that it doesn't take long for the business owner to catch on. Once they do they will offer lower wages to their laborers based on the idea that part of their pay will come from tips. These moving companies already charge outrageous prices and are making more than enough profit. The company itself should be the ones providing a decent wage, medical insurance, and bonus's for their workers.
This sir, is just not true. The business owners dont have to "catch on". It is common knowledge to them movers get tipped. The owners don't care if you tip the men one way or the other. (Other than the fact if the men got tipped that means they usually did a good job...they like that!) They will not offer lower wages just because maybe 50% of the time someone gets tipped $20 to $50. Are you kidding?
And to the point of outrageous prices they charge, a typical moving company will have a 3% to 5% profit margin. That is not very high. The industry has one the highest workers comp rates around and the effective rate is going to be somewhere between 135% to 150%. Basically if they pay their baseline rookie mover $12 to $15 an hour it cost him $16 to $22 an hour. The overhead is very high for this industry. On hourly rate jobs, that leaves very room for profit. When you figure in liability insurance, the overhead goes through the roof. There is a lot more to it than one might think.
The whole idea for a good moving company to make money is keep wages down, but that idea is diametrically opposed to providing good skilled labor....as with any business.
I am loathe to high-jack this thread. I dont mean to digress. Bottom line, if the men provide good service by your standards, and it is in you tip good service, it is common sense to do so.
Oh, I forgot - when they were packing for us, we had an open quart of Crown (they don't pack opened things). So that was part of their "tip" too! There'd only been a little taken out of it (we don't drink Crown as a rule).
Well, we ended up tipping $40/guy. They had to take a huge armoire out of second story window, as it wouldn't fit around the corner at the bottom of the stairs. Also, our new home is 3 stories and has a steep driveway, so it just felt like the right thing to do. Thanks for all your input!
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