Sorry Andy! I am glad you appreciate the tips.
I meant it more from the perspective that the owner negotiates the price, while a hired hand doesn't. Therefore a hired hand gets the same pay whether they are nice or not, while the owner gets more custom if the price is right and the treatment is too.
If you are an owner/operator it is something of a gray area, but personally for me it would then depend on the price and the service. If I felt like I paid for class A and I got class B, then I would probably not tip. Conversely, if I clearly paid for class B and got class A+ I would certainly tip appropriately and be back next year!
For example, I hired a Captain to help me bring my boat around to Boston. He was very nice and proved to be quite helpful, but not very mechanically inclined and made an simple error in navigation on the trip that was avoidable. His cost was mid-range, but based on his input I spent nearly $2000 and a month making repairs to the boat that, in hindsight were perhaps unnecessary and delayed the trip. He was quite fair, and refunded a small portion of the fee to reflect the extra time cost due to the error, which I appreciated. I ultimately didn't tip him, but sent a framed photo of a nice picture I took on the trip in appreciation.
I strongly prefer to work with owner/operators because I like to know who I am doing business with. I prefer to have a relationship based on mutual trust and a reasonable estimate, with an understanding that adjustments may be necessary. I agreed to pay my roofer an additional $1400 as he had to get a third dumpster and put extra time and effort into the job...but he doesn't get that money until he fixes a few unsatisfactory things he and I discussed after we looked things over together ;-)
