A DoorDash driver's recent TikTok re-sparked a familiar debate on delivery gig tips.
TikToker and DoorDasher Ginger Jay (@missgingerjay) says a customer ordered $500 worth of Lush products. Lush is a cosmetics store that specializes in handmade products and bath bombs. Despite the large and expensive order, Jay says she received a $1 tip. Her video now has over 111,000 views.
"The wealthy will never respect the working class," the TikToker says at the start of it.
"I just did a $500 shop-in order from Lush. I went and spent [expletive] almost an hour of my time shopping. And the total ended up being $511. Hold on one sec; I'll insert a picture," she says, before showing the Lush receipt.
With taxes, the $474 subtotal amounted to $511.92 for numerous items, which ranged from $11 to $44.
"And then the [expletive] person, after a 16-mile delivery, 30-minute drive, tips a dollar. A [expletive] dollar," she exclaims.
Jay highlights that the timing of the $1 tip just added insult to injury. "A week before Christmas? You can afford to spend $500 on Lush, not including any of the fees or anything," she continues.
At this point in the video, Jay begins to cry.
She then shows the base pay she received for completing the order. She received $13.75. This, combined with her $1 tip resulted in a $14.75 payout for the venture to Lush.
"If you cant afford to tip, go to the store yourself. The disrespect. I'm tired. How can I afford life this way?" she questioned in the caption of her video.
Commenters engaged in a familiar back-and-forth over tipping. Several viewers remarked that tipping isn't mandatory and that Jay should find a new line of work. Others argued that tipping is a common courtesy. And then some claimed the financial onus lies on DoorDash itself.
"I’m not tipping a driver a percentage of my order. I tip based on mileage to store and if groceries, a little more. A $500 order doesn’t mean a $50-$100 tip for the driver," one argued.
But Jay responded, claiming that she wasn't looking for a percentage-based tip. "I would have been happy with a $20 tip lol it was 20 items and 16 miles. That’s barely 5%," she said.
"They need to build in at least a 25% tip at a minimum," another argued, siding with Jay.
"I agree with you. You should get fair pay but a tip isn't your pay. A tip is a gratuity because someone's grateful but it's not pay. Take it up with DoorDash," another said.
Jay stitched her own video to respond to critics. In it, she calls out their "horrendous" remarks.
She explains the reason she DoorDashes is because she's a "single mom with a 5-year-old special needs child." She also says that because she's "chronically ill and disabled," she needs a flexible schedule, which is something DoorDash provides. Furthermore, she says she "works two other jobs as well" and that she's also "in school." Her education is part of her pursuit to work toward a "better career."
"But for the time being, I need to DoorDash to pay my rent, which is $1,600 after utilities. And then my car payment, my insurance, my cellphone, my son's care," she lists.
Despite her grievances with low-tipping customers, she says that DoorDash has "literally" kept her from being "homeless at certain times." Moreover, she says her child's father hasn't "paid a penny in child support" up until a year ago.
She says her own personal struggles aren't what encouraged her to post her initial video. She says she simply wanted to drive home the fact that everyone "deserves fair pay."
She says she believes DoorDashers operate similarly to servers and should be compensated as such.
She also claims that the Dasher fee assigned to an order barely covers gas and car maintenance. These financial burdens, Jay points out, are shouldered by Dashers.
"No matter what, we deserve fair pay," she says in her video.
Business Insider spoke with 10 Dashers, and they seemed to agree the tip for orders should be percentage-based. One of them did say that the size of the order matters most. Grubhub, another food delivery service, has also encouraged percentage-based tipping. And over on Reddit, Dashers argued that mileage is what matters.
"For me the generosity depends on a lot of things: distance, road condition (paved or dirt), any gate codes, whether it's a multi-family complex or a house, how much stuff they ordered, special instructions, or anything else that would affect the difficulty of the delivery," another said, arguing that customers should take several factors into account when determining what is an appropriate tip.
@missgingerjay If you cant afford to tip, go to the store yourself. The disrespect. Im tired. How can i afford life this way? #struggling #doordashdriver ♬ original sound - Ginger Jay ????
The Daily Dot has reached out to DoorDash via email and to Jay via TikTok comment for further information.
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The post ‘This is why I just use Walmart pickup’: DoorDash driver delivers $500 worth of Lush products. Then she sees her tip appeared first on The Daily Dot.
