OP i had a similar situation when i went on vacation so i understand. i never had used skycaps and when we go to the airport we saw a line with a sign and assumed it was the official airline baggage check since it had their logo on it. much to our confusion we got up there and realized it was not the airport counter but these skycaps. i tipped like $2 because quiet frankly it's not worth the annoyed dirty looks from them not to tip but my friend thought i was nuts to tip airline employees as she still did not understand it was not the airline counter. they did nothing except print our passes and take the luggage and put it on a cart (we took out of car, hauled up to line and dragged in a long line). when we got inside the lines were the same or smaller. there was an elderly couple in front of us who was just as confused when they got to the counter that it was not the airline and did not want to hand over their luggage!
so i get back from vaca and go to the foodstore the next night, not my usual one but i was in a rush. the cashier had a cup out for tips! at that point i was like if one more person wants a tip for doing their job.......
The same guys that haul your bags from the baggage claim to your car or from your car to the check in counter, are the same label as the guy standing behind the curbside check in. Skycaps are also the ones to bring a wheelchair to and from the terminal gate.
I've been googling skycap tips since last night, and it's very interesting to read stories. Even if an airline charges a fee for checking a bag, that fee goes to the airline, not the skycap person actually doing the job. So a tip is expected to them as well as the fee.
I highly doubt 6 figure incomes are the norm, and most sites people chimed in making about 20-30,000 depending on location. All of them are independent or work for an outside company on a contract for airlines.
What I have noticed is the level of service for that $1-2 tip per bag, which has been customary for about 30 years now. Before they would almost be standing next to your car ready to open your door. Of course they were eagerly awaiting a tip, but went out of their way for every customer in hopes of a good tip. All the bags had to be brought to the counter of the airline to be sent in the back for sorting. It was almost like paying to skip the line.
Now airlines boast curbside check in as a privilege for flying with them. However it's still contracted out work. Most get paid below min wage like a waiter because it's expected to make up the difference in tips. Now newer buildings (like San Jose) are set up for curbside check in with conveyor belts set up for taking the luggage and sending it off to the TSA to be inspected and then sorted. I've rarely seen a skycap standing in the walkway ready to help people out of their cars and get the luggage from the trunk. I'm sure they have to be summoned first. Never really paid attention at baggage claim though, but that seems more like the olden days, since they're waiting for that next customer that seems to need a little bit of help.
On one hand it seems strange people still tip the same $1-2 per bag, but their job has also seemed to get significantly easier with the design of new buildings, and more airlines incorporating them into flow of things. And online check in is almost standard across the board. So there's no hope of getting that emergency exit row when you check in your bags, some one's claimed that 24hrs before or paid extra to claim it even earlier.
California is also one of a few states that require minimum wages even when tips are involved. So they guy wasn't making $2 an hour, and CA has higher than federal level. So overall, I don't feel bad any more.
Orlando's airport is totally backwards, and yes, I've checked bags once or twice there. Went to the airline counter, and then proceeded over to the TSA agent for bag inspection. I don't know if skycaps outside take care of that or not, but that would seem like a reasonable service for a tip. They're doing something for you (whether you can do it yourself or not).
America seems to be more and more of a service nation, but when do we cross the line of some one going out of their way to help you (to receive a tip) and some one just doing their job (like Starbucks)?
When I worked at Disney, most CMs are in a strictly no tip position, but it baffles me some of the positions that are tipped. Some of those jobs are less hazardous/less stressful than those that can not receive a tip. I provided a service to Guests, and the policy is, you are to politely decline the tip three times. After that, you must report it to management. From there management will usually ask you to donate it to one of the many charities that Disney works with. There's an option in pay check to make a continued or one time donation to a charity. Overall I received a tip about 5 times. One time it was the BBB in the Castle. The mother tipped the FGMIT, and that's a normal wage job, but tips are allowed. Then she wanted to tip me for taking the photos, and I had to decline (did my decline three times, and then reported it to management). I think once, one manager let me keep $3 some one gave me for taking photos of their group.
Sure it felt nice to be recognized for making some one's day special, but that was also my job. I wasn't standing there waiting for a handout.
. I would never think to tip an airline employee who works behind a counter and doesn't do anything extra for me. I always thought skycaps helped you get your bags from point A to point B 
. A skycap and a clerk are not the same thing.
