I have no idea how the Tim Hortons employment structure works, but I think msommers had the most accurate answer
I suspect at Tim Hortons, they already know they aren't getting any tips, and I am assuming there is a power-tripping manager at every location keeping everyone in line. You don't need to speak English well to work there and I think overall it attracts a different type of employee (i.e. I see people my parents' age working there but rarely do I see that in a traditional restaurant). Also they are just so busy all the time that if anyone was slacking off it would probably be extremely obvious to the rest of the staff. At Tim Hortons they know what they signed up for, they get $X/hr and that's that. They also can work normal hours, where as many restaurants don't open until 5pm. At a restaurant, they are getting $15/hr plus 15-20% on almost every table regardless of how good they are so there is no motivation whatsoever to do anything other than the bare minimum. They only thing they care about is getting you another bottle of wine after you're still on the first glass because it has the highest tip return for the lowest effort. If there was any correlation between service quality and tip % in Calgary, I think that would change in a hurry and you would see service quality increase dramatically. Or do like many states do and make server minimum wage $5.00 - then you will see them actually work for tips at times other than check delivery. I think that is a very reasonable solution because then the people who deserve it will make the same money and the slackers will get weeded out. As it is there is no motivation and unless that motivation is financial, nothing will change IMO.
I don't get a bonus at my job just for showing up to work - there is careful performance tracking, etc. throughout the year and it is entirely based on that.
The best service experience I've had in recent memory was at Prairie Dog Brewing and surprise surprise - there is no tipping expected there. The bill was lower than it would have been at competing pubs/breweries, service was 10/10, the servers are being compensated fairly - win/win all round.
If you're implying that I am not a generous tipper you need to re-read my posts
I think the difference is who I choose to tip and I no longer blindly give 20%. My overall money spent on tipping is probably exactly the same. My outlook on tipping is what has changed towards rewarding those who actually deserve it.