Gratuities

[suesings]

And conversely, there is no definitive proof that you are not cheating the crew. I love it when an argument works both ways.

 

 

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:D:D I can hardly believe this thread is still going :D:D

 

My feeling is, if there are no tip envelopes given to the waiters, room stewards, etc. at the end of the cruise anymore (like we did in the OLD DAYS ;-) then NCL "MUST" have used DSC monies to calculate crews salaries when hiring staff. The salaries MUST be hirer than the old days when they were given envelopes from guests or people wouldn't take the job. The tips back then made the job a fairly well paying job. If the workers get NONE of the DSC monies (meaning: it is not calculated in their salary) then that is just slave labor.

 

If some people can justify taking their DSC back and want to think that money was not calculated into the salary these people receive, then so be it.

[mjkacmom]

:D:D I can hardly believe this thread is still going :D:D

 

My feeling is, if there are no tip envelopes given to the waiters, room stewards, etc. at the end of the cruise anymore (like we did in the OLD DAYS ;-) then NCL "MUST" have used DSC monies to calculate crews salaries when hiring staff. The salaries MUST be hirer than the old days when they were given envelopes from guests or people wouldn't take the job. The tips back then made the job a fairly well paying job. If the workers get NONE of the DSC monies (meaning: it is not calculated in their salary) then that is just slave labor.

 

If some people can justify taking their DSC back and want to think that money was not calculated into the salary these people receive, then so be it.

 

Im under the impression that the DSC pays the salaries, and if enough people remove it, and NCL doesn't have the funds to pay contracted salaries, they can just raise the prices. So, stiff the crew and make the rest of us pay more.

[NLH Arizona]

 

If some people can justify taking their DSC back and want to think that money was not calculated into the salary these people receive, then so be it.

Agree, people can think what they want. I think a lot of it is just to justify not paying it, but that is just MHO.

[swedish weave]

Im under the impression that the DSC pays the salaries, and if enough people remove it, and NCL doesn't have the funds to pay contracted salaries, they can just raise the prices. So, stiff the crew and make the rest of us pay more.

 

NCL raises the prices on most cruises if you accept the booking bonus offers.

[nwo4life]

12]|

 

 

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[fshagan]

 

UK pays the same DSC as USA - its exactly the same for us.

The difference we have with USA is on the UBP - we don't pay the 18% on our free perk - but our prices are generally higher to start with - so it balances out.

But the daily service charge - we pay, we can either pay it with our booking or have it added to our account.

 

We (like most!) would never dream of removing DSC - and on top of that we tip as we go to individuals.

Blessed to be on a cruise - share the love and all that :)

 

The difference is that when NCL changed the system for adjusting the DSC they could not change it for UK citizens due to consumer protection laws (we think). Previously you could appear at the front desk and adjust them so that they were not on the final bill,. Now, except for Brits who can still do it that way, you have to email a form and get them refunded after the fact. So you pay the charges then get refined.

 

By the way, many of your fellow citizens claim no one ever tips in the UK. I know from watching British TV that tipping is done in the UK but just not to the extent it is in the US. The show "Very British Problems" had a segment on this and included the fact that in many restaurants in the UK you do tip and even now in some bars, but in America you have to throw a $5 bill out the window every time you stop the car. (We aren't quite that bad but we do tip quite a few service positions here.)

[bjlaac]

Im under the impression that the DSC pays the salaries, and if enough people remove it, and NCL doesn't have the funds to pay contracted salaries, they can just raise the prices. So, stiff the crew and make the rest of us pay more.

 

So let me get this straight. Its OK NCL is charging higher rates to me to give you a free UBP making me pay higher rate for you, but not ok if you need to pay higher rates because I removed the DSC?

 

Seems like double talk to me

[pokerpro5]

So let me get this straight. Its OK NCL is charging higher rates to me to give you a free UBP making me pay higher rate for you, but not ok if you need to pay higher rates because I removed the DSC?

 

Seems like double talk to me

 

It is double talk, but it's a moot point because NCL will never raise rates because of DSC removers.

 

Only a tiny percentage of passengers remove the DSC on a typical cruise. For example, on my Dawn cruise last year, I saw the logs of those REQUESTING a DSC removal form, and there were like 20 names. Some of these people will probably not submit the form (I was one of them, who just requested the form to see it), but even if all 20 did, and that's only about $6000 TOTAL removed from NCL's coffers.

 

While $6000 sounds like a decent chunk of change to you or I, it's a drop in the bucket to a huge company like NCL, even just for one sailing. A major cruise corporation would never raise prices to make up for a tiny shortfall like that.

 

NCL considers the DSC removers part of the cost of doing business. It's viewed the same way as the people who order 4 entrees at the MDR and nibble a bite off each, or those who drunkenly stumble around the room and accidentally break somethiing.

 

The narrative of, "Don't remove the DSC because it will cause all of our prices to go up" is just as fallacious as "Don't remove the DSC because you will be screwing the hard working crew members."

 

Neither of those statements are true, or will ever be true.

[elesay]

My impression is that it's basically the same as the service charge that you pay Papa Johns or Dominos for the privilege of having your pizza delivered to your home or business. After many many MANY drivers quit because people thought that was the tip, the joints finally had to admit that it's just a creative way to raise prices without customers noticing as much (drivers, not the company, are responsible for maintain minimum insurance coverage, so don't buy that argument). You'll notice that the websites of the pizza places now specifically spell out that it is not a tip.

 

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[fshagan]

The narrative of, "Don't remove the DSC because it will cause all of our prices to go up" is just as fallacious as "Don't remove the DSC because you will be screwing the hard working crew members."

 

Neither of those statements are true, or will ever be true.

 

Sure, at less then 1 or 2% service charge removers you are absolutely right. Raise that percentage to more than 10% and you would see some movement to replace that income in other ways. I doubt that will ever happen, but there has to be a tipping point that causes NCLH to react.

 

The cruise industry is already implementing more sophisticated demand pricing, and I fully expect to see "customer-based demand pricing" at some time in the future.When you go to book a cruise the price will be customized for you and your on board spending habits, with a marginally lower fare for those who drink, gamble or otherwise have large expenditures on board and higher fares for guys like me who spend very little on extras. They may implement this with a high brochure price on the website, and the much, much lower price when you log in. We will flock to log in for the lower prices without realizing we are paying 10 to 15% more than the big spenders on the cruise fare.