Why don't we tip IT service people?

"Yes, you're right. I am envious of our IT staff. They make twice what I make even though they're idiots and don't work anywhere near as hard as I work."

They don't work near as hard as you do? Do you have any idea what is involved with most IT work? I can assure you that there are MANY individuals whom put in just as many hours, if not more than most 9-5ers do. I would commonly work 50 hours a week myself, without compensation, because there were tasks that needed to be completed.

Are you sure they make twice what you make? The starting wages for IT staff (help desk type) is less than 50k in most cases. I recently saw a job for a "Junior Systems Administrator" that was offering $45k a year. So by your measure, you are only making $20-30K. If that is your wage in corporate America (where else are you going to have an IT staff?), then you are sorely underpaid, or you suck at your job (or you don't put in the extra effort required to command a better wage).

"It's comments like that that give IT people their bad (but clearly deserved) reputation." Clearly deserved? What is your profession? I am sure there is some jerk-wad that is in that field that I could say "He is a jerk. He is a _________. All ________ are jerks". Display some tact and intelligence, ignore the flagrant jerks and realize that EVERY profession has them.

You know, I try really hard to not act superior and to be kind and understanding. After working in IT for 10 years... well let's just say that I have good days and bad days. I have certain clients that I avoid and I'm not very nice to them. They create problems and second-guess or even refuse to follow my instructions.

Maybe that's why the first few posts are so negative in regards to IT.

But the vast majority of the people I help are very good to me. Maybe they don't tip, but they express genuine appreciation for my assistance. And that counts for more than a tip in my book.

Of course I wouldn't say no to a tip :-)

For that matter, why don't we tip our car mechanic?

Yeah, right.

We don't tip them because in general we don't trust them, and we don't trust them because when they tell us we need a new motherboard we can't tell if they're yanking our chain.

Almost every post talks about how much IT staff make, one even says "twice my salary". uh, then what does that make you, the door man? IT typically does not make very much anymore, its becoming a position more closely resembling grocery bagging. Of course the statistics do not show that, since they include how much the manager makes. Since the IT world almost entirely outsourced in the US, most IT workers are older managers making the average salary of IT growing in both wage and age, however, the reality for young IT professionals is: get out.

You dont tip IT folks because they hardly do anything other than play WoW on the job. Most people could do what they do if they simply did not expect their computers to work and actually learned how to use them and work on them.

I say this because of the hundreds of IT people I have worked with maybe and that is a big maybe 10% are great at their jobs 20% are okay 50% are morons and the rest just dont care.

Christ...I make 150k. Keep your money. I'll just spend it on beer and women.

yes. people from other departments ALWAYS think they know more about it than the people who do it all day every day. if they are so smart why do they still bring their own equipment in for diagnosis....

"46. First of all, most of you guys commenting about your so-called "IT" are the service desk and help desk employees that YOU interact with. I mean, do you usually ask the company's developers and DBA's to "help" you fix your computer? My point is, keep an open mind and understand that IT is an extremely large field." - Jonathan

I'm including sysadmins and DBA's when I say "Most IT people are idiots."

"47. The real question to that is, if they IT people are such idiots, then why do you have to go to them for help in the first place?" - Ben

Answer: I don't.

48. "Clearly deserved? What is your profession? I am sure there is some jerk-wad that is in that field that I could say "He is a jerk. He is a _________. All ________ are jerks". Display some tact and intelligence, ignore the flagrant jerks and realize that EVERY profession has them." - Ben

As I clarified in another post between that one and this one, I am a programmer, I fully agree that most people employed as programmers are incompetent, and I fully acknowledge that there are exceptions in statements such as "IT and/or users are idiots", or "programmers are incompetent".

I should also clarify that most of the IT people I've been in contact with were ones that worked for a school/college (but no, I'm not talking about student employees - although they're not any better). So it could just be a "school IT" thing.

"47. The real question to that is, if they IT people are such idiots, then why do you have to go to them for help in the first place?" - Ben

I gave a short answer to this but I'm going to expand on it:

Sometimes, I have to go through them because they are often the gatekeepers. I don't have admin access to every system I deal with (example: If it's a company I'm merely a customer of). So there are times when I have to go through the IT people in order to accomplish something I normally could have done myself.

Now, those gatekeeper cases aside, I don't need to go to them for help, and I don't go to them for help.

Bryan, Huw is clueless.

He claims to "work harder", and there is the problem. The key is to work "smarter", not "harder".

I'll school Huw on some basic economics.

Compensation is based on worth to the employer or client.

Since Huw volunteered that he makes 1/2 that of his IT co-workers, then
he is worth less -- or "worthless".

I'll school Huw on some basic economics.

He claims to "work harder", and there is the problem. The key is to work "smarter" not "harder".

Compensation is based on worth to the employer or client.

Since Huw volunteered that he makes 1/2 that of his IT co-workers, then
he is worth less -- or worthless.

Well, I do some part time IT work for people in my spare hours, and I must say my clients are the best... A good deal of the time, when I do a great job fast, with my nice low rates, I often find myself with a tip... I never feel inferior to the person I am helping, I just know they appreciate my time... But in the same thought, if/when I work at a big company doing the IT support calls to the staff, I would NEVER expect a tip... I am working for my wage at that point, and I don't think anyone outside of the a very few services in our society should expect more from their daily "bread and butter" gig...

I've been tipped doing come-to-you PC repairs before. If you do a good job and the person isn't a dick, you'll more than likely be tipped. The problem is most IT people have no idea what customer service means.

OK. Don't tip the stupid IT workers. Tip the people you know who you call when you got problems; the people who try explaining stuff the the IT folks...
Hey, everyone I helped out over the past years, I take tips! Or at least a thank you would be nice...

Wow, lots of people think that all IT people are dumb and lazy.
Yes I'm a System Administrator. Yes I get paid about double what everyone else does. Yes, I work very hard at what I do. Yes I do get the best computer toys before everyone else does. No I don't talk down to my users because this is a service I provide and if my users aren't happy then I'm not doing my job right.
On tipping, no I don't think people should tip us. We get paid enough and if I go above and beyond then I'm just making sure my users are happy. I also think that tip boxes that are showing up in coffee shops, stores, and at fast food restrants are stupid, what did those people do to earn a tip?

Why do I not tip IT people? Simple - I've never used any in a situation where I am physically able to. I do not use PCs in my work, but I do use one for leisure, and, when I first decided to get a PC, I decided to teach myself about PCs by reading up on them, selecting the components, and building it. This sparked an interest in the area, and, whilst I have never actually been trained in IT, any issue or question I've come across to which I haven't already known the answer (which doesn't happen often), I've usually had to phone a 'tech support' person of some description, who's either helped me track down the problem myself over the phone, or sorted something on their end to fix it. It's kinda hard to tip them then.

As to the whole 'IT folk are clueless idiots' claim, in my experience, the only ones who fit that description are the ones who sit in call centers, having received zero training, being paid minimum wage (or, quite often, less that that as they are actually somewhere like India) trying to answer questions put to them by reading from scripts. Personally, I don't really regard them as 'IT folk', I regard them as simply phone operators, because in order to actually get proper help, you need to be put through to someone else who actually knows what he's talking about (and, therefore, actually gets paid a decent wage).

Hi,

I work in IT at a school and everyone always tries to feed me, never cash but it seems like a tip. When I freelance from time to time I get tipped, at the same time I am very friendly and don't make people feel stupid. Maybe if other IT people will step up the customer service tips will follow. IT support is more about customer service than actual knowledge in my opinion. You need skills but with a friendly face you can buy time to look up the problem and get it fixed.

I would imagine that a lot of IT service people make more than minimal wage--I wouldn't tip those people. The ones that do make minimal wage doing a job that may be more stressful than a Starbucks barrista, those I would tip.

Brian.
http://www.brianjones.ca