First, see my Ask the Org thoughts on tipping dealers.
When it comes to tipping floor staff, this gets complex. People routinely tip floor staff, but it’s almost always transactional: “Here’s $20, and isn’t that my name at the top of the two-hour wait list?” As a guy wallowing in privilege, I’m not leaning any further into it. But I do want to express my appreciation to the floor people. So I find ways to tip them when there’s no transactional subtext. When the board person calls my name for my seat, I give them a nickel. When a floorperson brings me color-up (or color-down) chips, I give them a nickel if I haven’t done so already that day.
I also reward good floor play. If a floorperson makes a solid ruling in an awkward situation, I often get them away from the table, tell them they made a good ruling, and slip them a nickel.
Now, does all this result in preferential treatment for me? Yeah, it probably does. For instance, I suspect I unknowingly float up wait lists. But I’ve never asked, implicitly or explicitly, for that. I’m not going to make a scene about it either way. I’m doing what feels right and am content with that.
