WASHINGTON: As restaurants and bars across the United States shut their doors and lay off their staff in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, America’s famed service culture is moving online — with regulars paying their out-of-work waiters, favourite bar staff, and even total strangers via virtual tip jars.
The jars mainly consist of giant, city-by-city Google spreadsheets with more than 10,000 former employees’ names, restaurants, and links to their favored payment app. Those at the receiving end say tips are coming in from all sides — friends, regulars, and random well-wishers.