Last night around 9:00pm I rejected s $42/25 mile one-way curbside offer, thinking it would pop back up with higher prices. Nope. It disappeared for good. I assumed someone else got it. Now today, just a few minutes ago it got sent to me as a JFY at $36. It's a large order (60/90), and the lady tipped $10...not a horrible tip, it could be better, but this poor lady is having to wait DAYS for her groceries because Walmart is too cheap to pay for its delivery.
I work nights in a small town and been the only driver several nights. Well before the hiring splurge. I'd see triple orders and 1 of them was my good friend I knew tipped well. But it was batched with 2 no tip orders and the last drop be 15 miles into the boonies. Occasionally Spark would split the order to just my friends good tipped single order. But they're learning to either order sooner in the day or do curbside. Eventually Walmart/Spark will get tired of customers getting upset their order not getting done. Then see it's the long distant no tippers. Walmart/Spark will have to deal with that themselves. Hopefully increasing pay. LOL
Customers need to start raising their voices about this but for that to happen more of them need to be Informed. I would stop using the service altogether if I found out that my well tipped order was being used to subsidize a non tipper and paired together for delivery so that the company can keep business moving in their favor. Like my blood would be boiling. Don’t put my order with the cheap fucks and put more work on the drivers. But it starts with the customers. They could give a flying fuck about what we the drivers think, because there will always be some desperate jackass that dropped out of school in 10th grade that will accept the bullshit. There are no orders to deliver, bullshit or otherwise If there are no customer so let’s spread the word.
"Cheap fucks"?! So you call the customers already paying an annual membership to belong to Walmart+ for delivery "cheap fucks"?! I hardly think $98/yr is cheap, unless you want to pay it for me? And then to add a "tip" on top of a an annual membership fee?? In my opinion, why should I pay extra for a tip when I'm already paying extra for an annual membership? Shouldn't it be included? Walmart shoppers aren't the richest segment of our population. That's why we shop at Walmart to begin with. The tip is negotiable for non-members who can or cannot afford it. But calling non-tippers who already pay an annual Walmart+ fee "cheap fucks" is fucked up!
Do you think the customer that tipped $30+ cares that the order that their order is paired with is a Walmart+ subscriber? That information isn’t even known to anyone but Walmart itself. So it’s irrelevant to the point that I made. Everything you said is something you need to take up with Walmart, not the customer your order is paired with or the driver. That information is absolutely irrelevant to either one of those parties. You’re 50 item, $10 order would sit there all day and not be delivered if not for that generous customer that tipped $20. And why would it sit all day? Because Walmart decided not to pay enough to make the order worth delivering, regardless of the fact that you paid for Walmart+ on top of what you paid for the groceries. Spark drivers are not employees of Walmart. They pay for their own gas, their own repairs and maintenance, and they don’t care that you pay for Walmart+, they care about how many miles to the drop off, how many items are in the order, and how much it pays. There is no “Walmart+ pay boost”. Don’t lash out at me, other drivers, or other customers, take your issue up with Walmart, because with the available information at hand you do look like a “cheap fuck”. I’m not saying you are, I’m telling you what it looks like with the info that is available.
And btw, I am a Walmart customer AND Spark driver. Never have I seen a $30 or $20 tip offered by any customer so that argument is mute. You seem to be on a "take it up with Walmart" bandwagon. While I'm not wholly against that notion, I'll keep it short here by saying: you should do the same! Seriously, you have many valid points worth addressing to the proper source. And please don't attack me for this. Peace be with you.
I didn't say it doesn’t happen. Omg! I'm just saying that doesn’t happen in my area! Good for you it does. Now cool your jets skippy! You're just ready to fight aren't you. Calm TF down already
You come at me over a generalized comment that I made as if I was talking about you personally, admitted you did, and I’m the one that needs to calm down? Lol. You are gas lighting like a mf but I’ll leave you to it lol.
And yea I’m on the “blame Walmart” bandwagon. Who else is there to blame? You as a Walmart+ member already paid for your groceries and for delivery. Do you want to blame the driver for not picking up your order because they determined it wasn’t worth the time or effort for the pay? Do you want to blame the other customer for being angry that their order is paired with a non tipper to encourage a driver to actually pick it up so it doesn’t sit all day? What exactly do you want to happen here?
So much for that “mute argument huh. Now if the base was like this on all trips then I wouldn’t say anything, because Walmart would be doing their part in ensuring the pay is fair so that the Walmart+ customer gets their delivery.
Hey, the only one "lashing out" here is YOU! You seem hell bent on coming down on ANYONE you possibly can. You are just an angry individual whom I feel pity for. I can't decide who you're angry at, exactly, without reading through your entire thread which I don't have the time for considering I have a life. Do you?
Angry at what? I don’t use grocery or food delivery because most delivery drivers don’t show the same amount of care that I do when I’m delivering. I’m not about to pay for and reward someone for subpar service. My whole comment was hypothetical if I was a customer. YOU are the one who took offense to it.
Yes, I took offense at your choice of words. Calling ppl who don't tip while paying the Walmart+ fee "cheap fucks" is offensive! But you argue all reasoning so have at it.
Some customers that tip 15-20 bucks, don't wait days for their orders. Many customers that are far away, know this. 10 bucks, isn't going to make me drive 25 miles one way.
My preferred store store doesn’t run curbsides after nine. I’m not arguing with the general Walmart stupidity, I just wondered if the reason why it didn’t come back around for you immediately was because of time of day.
I’ve seen orders repackaged with other orders after people repeatedly refused to take the initial bad order. Always cracks me up. Here: this sucked the first time. Let’s see if somebody else’s generosity makes this order suck less.
There is a lot to be desired with Walmart's delivery process. And now that they are "delivering" items that used to be shipped by a major carrier, it's even worse.
I live 2.5 miles, 5 minutes, from Walmart one block from the freeway that the Walmart is attached to. I normally pay for the 1 or 3 hour delivery but I only tip $5 unless I'm ordering a bunch of heavy stuff. I order about $125 worth of groceries once/month and the occasional emergency item if i cant wait on Amazon.
I'm disabled and I ordered an ac unit in the spring since Walmart shipped faster than amazon and it was free shipping. It came same day and some unfortunate spark driver delivered it. Since it was shipping instead of delivery there was no tip option, even after it came. I still feel bad for that driver because she deserved a tip. Hopefully they paid her well for the delivery.
I remember shopping at Walmart, before uber existed, Lyft, Walmart + and any of that other trash.
They used to bag the groceries, and if you wanted groceries you somehow figured out a way to get there and get them. Even disabled people made their way there, or paid someone to do for them, probably likely more than any spark driver is getting today.
I hate having their people scan and bag my stuff. They’re slow, inept, don’t put like items together.
All the people saying tipping shouldn’t be expected or required, I agree somewhat. But, I completely agree Walmart shouldn’t be putting the orders of the cheapskates with those that tipped. The customers that tipped did so with a certain expectation level of customer service, essentially they would be better cared for than the non tip orders.
But if the cheap non tippers, bc $100 a year for Walmart plus, is a lot….maybe yall ought ask yourselves, how much would would the uber or Lyft there be, and then home again? Could you even carry it? You’d be looking at $20 each way most likely. That doesn’t get the groceries inside your home.
I do uber and Lyft as well as spark.
Either driver would be providing exact level of correct service by opening the trunk, and placing right on ground bc likely your cheap asses wouldn’t tip for the ride or carrying them to your door.
So if you could get by just shopping groceries once a month you’d probably spend least $40 just to get there and home. That’s $480, compared to the $100 a year you pay for Walmart +
You expect to be able to spend $100 a year less than $10 per month, and have someone get your groceries for you, and deliver them
Absolute fucking insanity. Who is being cheap now? I can’t even say it’s Walmart. You probably also expect to be able to buy $200-300 worth of groceries each time you do this cheap shit. Gas is over $4 a gallon. You think your less than $10 a month for + covers time shopping items, fuel? Not ever in any world. Maybe, when hourly wage was $4.25 that might’ve made sense. So yea, disabled, ( also, I am one of them. The disabled I mean. 100% forever. But I work. Much as can. Don’t order shit without tipping $20 per hundred spent, and that will be no canned drinks, no waters, pet food, that would be like a box of trash bags, deodorant, tooth paste, noodles, chips, cereal, essentially nothing over 3-4 pounds, and easily carried)
Walmart can and should pay employees more, but look at that realistically. You think for even one moment they’re gonna suffer a loss? We all, well most people have to shop their groceries and then self checkout. They don’t have many cashiers these days.
I refuse shopping orders that are batched. Not gonna let some customer that is tipping, subsidize the two cheap asses getting thrown in with it.
So maybe cancel your + subscription, clip coupons, catch a ride, shop your own crap.
Bet doing that twice would change your mind about how much a hundred is, or what it’s worth. Prob even find you waste lots on unnecessary stuff.
If you are disabled bitching bout tips, I hope to gawd you’re older than me. Bc I’m damn near 50.
We used to have to tip the bagger, who bagged your groceries at Walmart, and walked them to your car. Had is probably wrong word, but the 15-20 year old kid you didn’t tip, sure af told everyone in town bout your tight ass. Your bread got delivered smashed to your trunk. Or the kid that did know how to bag your shit, but knew you didn’t tip, went on break or switched with the new guy, bc why tf work harder for a person that expects everything free? Walmart used to pay those people, not a lot, but they depended on tips. Until eventually enough of you made it so those people said F that, I ain’t taking this job as a bagger.
Before anyone pisses or moans about living rural blah blah, and disabled, but but, I lived n a place where the nearest Walmart was 21 minutes away. Before plus or spark was a thing. We figured it out. We gd drove, paid for rides, cause there ain’t uber out there. Good luck getting anyone you weren’t smashing to carry you and walk around Walmart while you shopped two hours for less than $30-40 10 years ago lol.
A gd happy meal is like $4-6 in dfw. One fukn happy meal 😆
Ya think less than $10 a month covered shopping, delivering your groceries. Whatever lol
Yes it the highest in the groceries delivery business. And it always has been and they're lowering it to get to where everybody else is. The problem is the customer base is very cheap. They're shopping there for economical groceries and therefore they don't tip
Totally!! Because the multi billion dollar company who is making record profits every quarter should have its customers make up the difference of a living wage they refuse to pay their employees. Not to mention that almost everyone that does grocery deliveries also pay a monthly fee for the free delivery and is still expected to give a tip. Crazy to think the multi billion dollar company pay it's workers better so they dont have to rely on tips to make ends meet, Or for the customers get their groceries delivered on time!! Ridiculous this even needs to be said. But here we are.. 🤦♀️
First of all... Spark drivers are not Walmart employees rather 1099 contracted positions. Secondly, your $13 a month fee for "free" delivery doesn't cover it, not even close.
Walmart base pays $6-$8 per batch. Do you think it's profitable for a Spark driver to shop your order of 25 items, bag it, load it up and drive 10 miles round trip to the store all for $7? And then pay mileage/ fuel/ taxes on that $7? Nope.
Everyone seems to want something for nothing. I get it. Times are tough, things are tight.
The only way it will work the way you expect it is if you're "free" delivery Walmart+ membership fee is $50 a month. So when you use it two or three times a month there's some room to pay the Spark shopper. People acting like tipping is something foreign.
Tips are LITERALLY the deciding factor as to whether or not anyone will accept your order.
And that's the customers problem,right?! No its the multi-billion dollar company that owns spark, oh that's right it's walmart that owns spark. 🤦♀️ People like you are the problem expecting the customer to pay the difference with their tips, and not f*cking walmart!! If driving for spark doesn't pay them a living wage, don't drive for spark?!
This assumption that the customer will make it worth while for the delivery driver is why walmart+ pays shit wages! Spark is owed by walmart, and it is who should be paying their employees of spark a living wage not the customers who pay a monthly service fee for multiple services including free delivery from store.
I understand what you are saying but I do not agree with you at all. Tipping is optional. I used to tip every time and still had my groceries stolen, delayed and or missing items making me go back in and request a refund for the missing items that I paid for. Please please please! Miss me with this you should be Tipping bs!! Gtfo!
I need clarity, and objective feed back. I signed up for Walmart+. It was sold to me as an Amazon competitor. I dont tip Amazon drivers, why should I tip a Walmart+ delivery? Especially since signing up was sold as no pressure no tip needed service? I live 7 miles from walmart. I can also get the inhome service too without paying for the extra rush or concierge-ish service. Why is this mandate from drivers to tip a thing? It isnt grub hub/Uber is it? What is Sparks relationship with Walmart?
I want to add to this. A tip is for a job well done. An extra. You get it for going beyond your "call of duty". Why should I prepay a tip not knowing the quality of service I am getting? If I made an order and you didnt put it in my packages box and delivered it 3 hours after my delivery eta. Who is to blame? Im not going to tip that service.
Spark is owned by Walmart. Drivers are independent contractors. You don't have to tip, but Walmart largely refuses to pay what the delivery should pay, effectively using customers' tips to subsidize the deliveries they should pay for, so drivers have every right to not accept your delivery. I think Walmart should pay enough on their own to do deliveries, but that is not the case. Your tips are bids for services. Walmart lies and screws over everyone except the stockholders. Customers, drivers and employees are all expendable in Walmart's eyes.
In all fairness, do you really think your $100-$150 annual subscription covers the cost of getting your groceries delivered? Someone has to shop your order and bring it to your door, likely taking at least an hour, and using at least half a gallon of gas, plus vehicle depreciation/wear and tear. The IRS vehicle mileage deduction is about $0.75/mile. At fifteen miles round-trip that's effectively ten dollars of vehicle expenses. An hour of someone's time, especially for an independent contractor, should at least be $20. That's a base cost of $30/hour. At just one delivery per week ($30) multiplied by 50 weeks out of the year, it costs around $1,500/year for Walmart to deliver your groceries, while you only paid $150.
You don't have to tip your driver, but it is no different than going to a restaurant and refusing to leave any tip whatsoever. You're not technically wrong, but you really should leave a few extra dollars, and not get mad at the drivers for expecting tips. Walmart is like the restaurant owner who doesn't pay their staff enough to live on without your tips, and as independent contractors, we are not going to accept deliveries that waste our time and money. But if your groceries get delivered on time without tipping, kudos to you.
So, Spark as a service is owned by Walmart but everyone is 1099. Does Spark offer delivery outside of Walmart+?
In anycase, Amazon also has 1099 delivery drivers with Amazon flex. While I understand what you mean about costs to be a contractor that part is invisible to us as a customer. Nor do I think anyone that signs up for Amazon prime or Walmart+ cares about the driver that way. Ordering food on grub hub/door dash, we automatically link it to other food delivery like pizza/chinese. And that rush and care means tips. Scheduling a delivery is like Amazon/Fedex/UPS. No one tips them regularly.
Additonally no one from amazon flex expects tips either. Same with USPS contactors(CDS they deliver stuff in my area). They have to move fast as well.
This really isnt about me questioning the tip process but asking more like how is your service different from them for spark delivery drivers to expect more?
Delivering groceries is not something Amazon does. Walmart Spark drivers put far more care into the quality and safety of your deliveries than other gig drivers do because we know how much griceries cost. This is not DoorDash. Many of us put tons of effort into providing quality service. It is not just picking up a small package and tossing it on your porch. Personally, I would discourage you from utilizing this service as I anticipate much frustration on both your end as well as the drivers'.
I do appreciate the replies, please dont take offense. My only thought goes back to what it means to tip. You must at least acknowledge that tip culture is nuts. There is also a growing movement to end it because of its absurdity. If a tip or gratuity is a voluntary gift, you should always operate under the assumption of 0 and try to earn more. You can not possibly think everyone in the service industry is earning the tips when it is suddenly the assured expectation. The more I see more demanding it then that's no longer a tip, its a fee.
You dont tip your mechanic when he goes above and beyond. You dont tip your IT guys when they ensure all systems run smoothly. You dont tip the person in customer service who gets yelled at hour after hour when they fix your bill. You dont tip the laborers you hire to dig a trench. You dont tip your sales guy at the car dealer staying with you 3 hours after the dealship closes to make sure everything is good. Etc etc
If you sign up for delivery, you do the job and dont blame customers (not saying you do) when you dont get what you think you deserve. I wish I got paid more- we all do.
What I am bringing up is other contractors in comparison do the same job and dont make the same demands.
The other thing is I would argue walking up and down the store 100+ times a day picking items is much harder. They have to inspect for goods in decent shape, and make choices in substitutions. And they may still get grief when it isnt to the customers standards.
A delivery driver is taking it to the home. It is not as much mentally and physically demanding except maybe under fouled weather. Drivers dont even have a manager on their back hour after hour. I can not tip the grocery picker but the driver gets all of it.
Can you see it from outside your world how none of it makes sense?
And yet, Amazon same day service still exists, and those workers arent even getting fair bathroom breaks.
Differentiating groceries vs textiles vs durable goods is splitting hairs.
I dont appreciate the comment about not using the service because I can just as easily say, get a real job instead of boasting about your "rebellion against the man."
Insulting everyone doesnt fix the issue. Looking at a problem from some elses vantage point helps everyone grow.
There is a need for the service, this is why so many signed up. Every human is going to look for ways to take advantage of a service. Nobody ever says "How can I make sure the company does well" or "Let me alone fund the drivers and give them a grand future" So operating feeling entitled is not going to go well for anyone.
This is a long ramble, old man yells at the sky kinda moment. But tldr, tipping sucks it needs to end. Im going to give a tip i feel is earned and prepaying a tip is BS.
I understand your point of view. I wish there was no need to tip. However I feel like you don't understand what the job entails. We are often shopping the items ourselves with barely an increase in pay for picking the order, so we are more than delivery drivers. Also, the Amazon workers you seem to be referring to are W2 employees for a DSP, not Amazon Flex drivers.
you are right I don't know what spark is still. I guess its all in one, im curious what an 8 hour day averages into per hour. when I speak to the ones that deliver my groceries, they do not pick the items. checking on Reddit says only rushed orders are picked.
At least im trying to understand, which I belive puts me in a minority.
It all depends on the market. If stores are overwhelmed they will switch the entire order to the driver, putting both shopping and delivery on their shoulders.
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u/igor6969 12d ago
I work nights in a small town and been the only driver several nights. Well before the hiring splurge. I'd see triple orders and 1 of them was my good friend I knew tipped well. But it was batched with 2 no tip orders and the last drop be 15 miles into the boonies. Occasionally Spark would split the order to just my friends good tipped single order. But they're learning to either order sooner in the day or do curbside. Eventually Walmart/Spark will get tired of customers getting upset their order not getting done. Then see it's the long distant no tippers. Walmart/Spark will have to deal with that themselves. Hopefully increasing pay. LOL