Photo: Andrew Angelov / Shutterstock & TikTok
She wants to see her food before she hands over a tip. But is that fair for drivers?
By Hawthorn Martin — Written on Apr 09, 2023
Whether it’s online shopping, ordering groceries, or even getting a pizza delivered, most of us have ordered something to be delivered to us at one point or another.
As a result of that, we’ve all likely run into a delivery issue at one time or another. It isn’t uncommon for a driver to get confused about an address, to mistake someone’s name, or to just plain deliver the wrong thing. Most of the time, these issues can be quickly resolved through communication with neighbors or calls to the delivery company. However, it isn’t always that simple, and for one woman on TikTok, enough was enough.
After receiving the wrong person’s order from DoorDash, one woman argued that it was time to stop tipping drivers before they do their jobs.
Native Honey, a TikTok user, posted a video expressing her frustration over a messed up order she had received from DoorDash. The order is meant for an entirely different person and has none of the food she paid for. She points out the name on the receipt, which is clearly visible, and complains that the delivery drivers are “f---ing idiots”.
“People should do their jobs before they get their tip,” she said. “This is exactly why they shouldn’t require you to tip ahead of time.”
DoorDash and similar companies have been around for about 10 years, with the goal of making life easier for everyone. The company saw a particular streak of success during 2020, at the height of quarantine and the COVID-19 pandemic. Since then its profits have dwindled some, but it is still a common resource for households to use when they don’t feel like dining out.
DoorDash drivers are usually residents of the community they serve, as anyone with a license, insurance, and clear driving record can become a driver. It isn’t the best-paying job in the world, since base delivery fees can vary, and so most income the drivers make comes from tips.
In order to guarantee higher pay for the drivers, DoorDash’s website requires customers to pay the delivery driver a tip before actually receiving the food.
For DoorDash, that tip cannot be changed once the order has been placed, for better or worse.
Native Honey’s frustration with the tipping practices of DoorDash received both support and backlash, with some commenters sharing her frustration and sympathizing with her story, as similar things had happened to them.
Others pointed out that a refund is provided for faulty deliveries anyways, so Honey really lost no money.
Another user then stitched Honey’s video to make his own commentary.
“You said a keyword there,” he pointed out. “People should do their jobs. It’s not their job. DoorDash isn’t somebody’s job.”
He explained that, because DoorDash functions as a “gig economy” position, it is rarely a job people base their entire income on. It is a position people take up to “help make ends meet”, usually when they aren’t making enough with their other work.
In his argument, the “middle man”, or the app of DoorDash itself, is the one to blame for poor service and mistakes, not the individual drivers who are just trying to get by.
The built-in low wages and inconsistent schedules provide less incentive for drivers to do a better job, and mistakes are rarely held accountable for.
Many commenters on the video have taken issue with his description of delivery as “not a job”, since it is still a service that provides an income, but others are agreeing wholeheartedly with the meaning behind his word choice.
“$2.50 if there’s no tip.” One user wrote, pointing out the low wages. “People that order need to ask themselves what they would do for $2.50.”
One user disagreed with him, commenting: “It’s not our place to make other folks' ends meet… Why should they be rewarded?” The creator replied: “Well I guess that logic is good for someone that doesn’t want people doing the Delivery.”
His point, as emphasized by comments like these, is that the blame for a faulty business model should not be placed on the driver just trying to make ends meet.
Everyone makes mistakes, but when on a strict schedule that provides poverty wages, cutting tips would just hurt the individual dashers rather than the system that prevents them from succeeding.
Even though tipping is highly debated in today’s age, it is unfortunately still very necessary for customers to tip, otherwise tipped workers could lose a significant portion of their income.
For better or worse, DoorDash’s requirement for patrons to tip before ordering does guarantee at least some additional income for the drivers, which protects them from the anger of people like Honey.
Hawthorn Martin is a news and entertainment writer living in Texas. They focus on social justice, pop culture, and human interest stories.