Tipping Movers: How Much is Just Right?

• By: moving.biz Staff
• Date Posted: December 10, 2017
• Category: After the Move

Clients place a substantial amount of trust in moving companies, with established movers being as important to families and businesses as a plumber or mechanic. As a client, you are entrusting your belongings to people who you probably haven't met yet until the moving date.

Movers are categorized under service jobs. But unlike a bartender or a dog walker, there is oftentimes a greater degree of effort and workload that fall on their hands. If a bartender drops your glass of wine, he/she can simply run back to the counter and get a new one for you. If a barber cuts your hair too short, your hair will always grow back. For a mover, albeit, an antique bookcase or 60-inch flatscreen that's dropped even just for a few feet can result in costly repercussions. In addition, there are few professions in the world that put in as much effort on the job as movers.

Tipping Your Movers

Service jobs are usually the only professions who get tips. You won't ever tip a bank branch manager or a DMV employee. Some clients do not consider movers as a service job. Some see the work of a mover as part of the job and that good performance is only standard in the business. Nonetheless, movers must be treated with the proper service job etiquette, one of which is offering a tip. This can be in the form of cash or food and drinks.

How Much Should You Give?

Like how you tip your restaurant waiter or bartender, the tip amount you give to your mover should be directly linked to his/her performance on the job. If the mover acts in a very unprofessional attitude, such as being hostile towards your family or being careless, then not giving a tip at all is justifiable. If, on the other hand, you get a group of guys who are friendly, hardworking, and very professional, offer a tip that you think is fair.

Movers don't always expect a tip from their clients, but will happily welcome any amount that they are offered. A tip signifies what you thought about their performance during the move. You may think a small amount paid to a large moving agency is insignificant, but it actually helps the guys at the bottom a lot.

A Well-Deserved Treat

Moving can be very stressful for the family or business. It requires days if not weeks of preparation and hyper focus on even the smallest details. A crew of movers can certainly get the job done, but there are times when they need some push to get moving.

One great way to ensure they stay physically well to do the job is to provide bottles of cold water, soda, or energy drinks. Moving is physically intense and some may need to replenish the electrolytes they've lost from sweating so much during the process.

Some people also offer to buy their moving crews lunch. This is ideal if you are situated in an area that has access to many delis, restaurants, and fast food chains.