No Gratuities

[mildew1951]

If you notice a strange smell on your toothbrush, or there appears to be a shoe print on your steak, you will know why.

 

Any cruise staff with this attitude don't deserve tips. It's just blackmail.

[luddite]

Incorrect........it is the optional gratuities that are removed. Service charges are part of the fare.

 

Ah. Clearly you do not understand how the system works.

[navybankerteacher]

That's a ridiculous comparison. Zero for relevance.:mad:

 

So you really believe that someone who gives you the opportunity to choose between being generous or miserly is responsible for your decision to be miserly?

 

At what point do you consider accepting responsibllity for your actions and stop blaming them on someone who enables you to choose?

[Husky61]

If you notice a strange smell on your toothbrush, or there appears to be a shoe print on your steak, you will know why.

 

Any employee that does what you mention should be immediately terminated. They don't deserve the position.:mad:

[mildew1951]

So you really believe that someone who gives you the opportunity to choose between being generous or miserly is responsible for your decision to be miserly?

 

At what point do you consider accepting responsibllity for your actions and stop blaming them on someone who enables you to choose?

 

Haha nice try. The only person giving me the opportunity to be generous is me, not the cruise line. Even if there were no gratuities charged I would still hand out my envelopes where I considered they were deserved.

 

It's my choice and your patronising name calling attitude is clearly misplaced.:p

[BruceMuzz]

Any employee that does what you mention should be immediately terminated. They don't deserve the position.:mad:

 

The 13 major cruise lines that I have worked for have never specifically forbidden nor prevented this type of behavior.

 

Just like removing gratuities / service charges, they have seemingly left these actIvities as options. They even give the staff daily advance reports listing names and cabin numbers of who has removed the money.

 

You can freely exercise your option to remove the service charges.

Staff can freely exercise their option to clean the toilet with your toothbrush.

 

You save money.

They get even.

Everybody wins.

Edited October 10, 2016 by BruceMuzz

[ducklite]

The 13 major cruise lines that I have worked for have never specifically forbidden nor prevented this type of behavior.

 

Just like removing gratuities / service charges, they have seemingly left these actIvities as options. They even give the staff daily advance reports listing names and cabin numbers of who has removed the money.

 

You can freely exercise your option to remove the service charges.

Staff can freely exercise their option to clean the toilet with your toothbrush.

 

You save money.

They get even.

Everybody wins.

 

 

 

Touché

[electro]

The 13 major cruise lines that I have worked for have never specifically forbidden nor prevented this type of behavior.

 

Just like removing gratuities / service charges, they have seemingly left these actIvities as options. They even give the staff daily advance reports listing names and cabin numbers of who has removed the money.

 

You can freely exercise your option to remove the service charges.

Staff can freely exercise their option to clean the toilet with your toothbrush.

 

You save money.

They get even.

Everybody wins.

 

I wonder how these employees feel when they are handed an envelope at the end of the cruise with their tip?

Edited October 10, 2016 by electro

[BlueRiband]

I wish the cruise lines would institute a policy where the passenger has to declare that they are not paying the gratuities/service charges on the first or second day of the cruise, sans those with true service issues. That way a list could be given to the crew of these folks and when it is between giving service to someone who pays them or someone that doesn't, they can address the passenger who pays theirs first. Not saying that someone who doesn't pay the gratuities shouldn't get good service, just saying the crew would know not to go above and beyond for these passengers.

 

I like what NCL did earlier this year: they will NOT remove or reduce any gratuities on board. Somebody who wants to do so has to get a form, fill in their service complaint and how it wasn't resolved, then image the form and email it to a shore side address. Brilliant. Shore side now has a digitized central database in the passenger's own handwriting. The chronic "removers" can be told to sail another line if they are never satisfied.

[BruceMuzz]

I wonder how these employees feel when they are handed an envelope at the end of the cruise with their tip?

 

I suspect they feel the same way as a passenger who receives stellar service all week and then walks away without tipping anyone.

[navybankerteacher]

You conveniently forgot to mention we also have the choice as decreed by the cruise line to remove the gratuities, no questions asked. I repeat it is gratuities not a service charge. Service is part of the fare.

 

FWIW I always hand out envelopes at the end of the cruise and yes they contain money not paper. However, I choose who I want to reward. What they do or are required to do with this tip is not my concern.

 

The high and mighty righteous attitude of many people on here saying you must do it this way or that way gets up my nose. Whilst I have choice I will continue to exercise it. I don't tell you how to manage your finances so don't tell me.:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:

 

If your list of past cruises represents actual experience, you should be aware that the employees of those lines are not permitted to retain cash tips received from passengers who have removed the service charge.

 

I am not suggesting that you are untruthful - rather that you do not seem to know what you are talking about when you claim that you are effectively choosing "... who (you) want to reward".

 

Consider your eyes rolled back to you.

[BruceMuzz]

Typically, the average passenger really doesn't (or doesn't want) to understand how the system really works.

 

For the past few decades, all tips/gratuities/service charges were pooled among all the service crew.

Then there were passenger complaints that bar patrons were carrying a larger load of the service charges than non-drinkers.

So the cruise lines split up the pool.

Beverage tips now go to bar staff only.

The remainder of the hotel service staff splits up the hotel pool.

 

I began working as a tipped cruise line employee 37 years ago.

Today, looking at the current average earnings of cruise line service staff, and value of the US Dollar, my earnings then were 7 times greater than the money paid today. Does anyone here see a potential problem with that situation?

 

In all the major cruise lines, each service staff is held responsible for earning his/her share of the pool. If any one of that staff's guests decides - for any reason - not to go along with the tipping/service charge/gratuity program, service staff connected to that guest are held personally responsible for the monetary loss. Peer pressure and pressure from supervisors is very strong.

Waiters and Cabin Stewards who have higher numbers of guests who do not tip are not promoted, and sometimes are not offered contracts to return after their holidays.

Everyone is asking what the crewmember has done wrong that resulted in no tips. Many waiters and cabin stewards who are unfortunate to have non-tipping guests are often compelled to take money out of their pocket and cover the missing tips, (claiming that the guest gave him cash) in order to avoid trouble from fellow employees and their bosses. This means they lose twice.

 

This system has been developed and enforced by all the major cruise lines.

It is not the fault of your cabin steward that they do it that way.

It is not your fault that they do it that way.

Passengers who want to save a buck can take advantage of the situation.

Crewmembers who feel taken advantage of have their own ways to get even.

Edited October 10, 2016 by BruceMuzz

[Husky61]

The 13 major cruise lines that I have worked for have never specifically forbidden nor prevented this type of behavior.

 

Just like removing gratuities / service charges, they have seemingly left these actIvities as options. They even give the staff daily advance reports listing names and cabin numbers of who has removed the money.

 

You can freely exercise your option to remove the service charges.

Staff can freely exercise their option to clean the toilet with your toothbrush.

 

You save money.

They get even.

Everybody wins.

 

Difficult for me to understand how you can condone behavior such as that by the staff because they didn't receive a tip. Unbelievable! You are saying that the cruise line accepts that type of behavior from their employees? The cruise line leaves the option to the staff to wash toilets with the guests toothbrush because they didn't receive a tip? I don't believe that for a moment.

[slidergirl]

You conveniently forgot to mention we also have the choice as decreed by the cruise line to remove the gratuities, no questions asked. I repeat it is gratuities not a service charge. Service is part of the fare.

 

FWIW I always hand out envelopes at the end of the cruise and yes they contain money not paper. However, I choose who I want to reward. What they do or are required to do with this tip is not my concern.

 

The high and mighty righteous attitude of many people on here saying you must do it this way or that way gets up my nose. Whilst I have choice I will continue to exercise it. I don't tell you how to manage your finances so don't tell me.:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:

 

Sorry, but you are thoroughly wrong. On NCL, it is called the DAILY SERVICE CHARGE. It is NOT gratuities. You are NOT charged both DSC and gratuities. This is the way it is set up on the US side of cruises for NCL.

The GRATUITIES that are posted automatically are the ones for spa service and drinks. That is not part of the DSC. How many of you who want to cheap out on the DSC also ask that those spa and drink gratuities are removed so you can tip your $.25...

[slidergirl]

Difficult for me to understand how you can condone behavior such as that by the staff because they didn't receive a tip. Unbelievable! You are saying that the cruise line accepts that type of behavior from their employees? The cruise line leaves the option to the staff to wash toilets with the guests toothbrush because they didn't receive a tip? I don't believe that for a moment.

 

Unless management sees it happen or a crew member rats out someone or a guest sees it happen, no one can do anything about it.

[Husky61]

Unless management sees it happen or a crew member rats out someone or a guest sees it happen, no one can do anything about it.

 

I understand that, but I am confident that if the cruise line was aware of this happening and knew who was doing it they would take action, I know I would.

[LHT28]

bad things happen on land as well

 

http://stainedapron.com/index.htm

[BruceMuzz]

Difficult for me to understand how you can condone behavior such as that by the staff because they didn't receive a tip. Unbelievable! You are saying that the cruise line accepts that type of behavior from their employees? The cruise line leaves the option to the staff to wash toilets with the guests toothbrush because they didn't receive a tip? I don't believe that for a moment.

 

Did l say I condone anyone's behavior?

 

I personally do not think that cheap passengers should walk away without tipping - just because they can get away with it.

I personally do not think that disgruntled service staff should do nasty things to them to get even - just because they can get away with it.

I personally do not think that cruise lines should allow any of this to happen - just because they can get away with it.

 

It's better if you don't believe it happens. People who have never worked in the service industry are better off not knowing what really goes on behind the scenes.

 

Did you ever hear of the "10 second rule" when a cook drops food onto the floor?

In my service days, disgruntled waiters made a "Special Coffee" for difficult passengers; 3 drops of Visine in your coffee. Colorless, tasteless, odorless.

After that, you spend 2 days on your toilet.

 

Everything in life is a gamble.

You pay your money -or not - and you take your chances.

Edited October 10, 2016 by BruceMuzz

[BruceMuzz]

bad things happen on land as well

 

http://stainedapron.com/index.htm

 

GREAT Website !!!

This is the way it really is.

I plan to upload a few stories of my own.

 

Thank you.

[sloopsailor]

.... I choose who I want to reward. What they do or are required to do with this tip is not my concern.

 

Nice attitude. :rolleyes: To you, giving a tip is all about making yourself feel good. It clearly has nothing to do with caring about the person you are giving it to.

 

I have always had the belief that giving a tip to someone was all about rewarding them and not about taking credit for what a great guy I think I am.

Edited October 10, 2016 by sloopsailor

[mrs and mrs]

We are new to cruising, 4 cruises down.

We went on our 1st and 2nd, 3rd cruise, out of AUS, (No Grats), but still tipped.

Now we will be going on our 4th.

We started reading ,the tipping threads on here, with interest, and what perked our interest was the talk about the big-time tippers.$100 to the room steward,$10/$20 to the servers and the bar-people.

BIG DEAL.

We were tipping our room steward $400/$600,our MDR waiters/waitresses $50, and our Fav bar-people $50.

$850 our last tipping excursion.

So I would like to say thanks to the big-tippers, who have wised us non-Aussie tippers up.

So now it will be $200 room steward, and $20 for the others.

Cheers you big timers have just saved us oh about $550.

Its awesome how learning about a diff culture,can help one.:):)

[GUT2407]

Did l say I condone anyone's behavior?

 

I personally do not think that cheap passengers should walk away without tipping - just because they can get away with it.

I personally do not think that disgruntled service staff should do nasty things to them to get even - just because they can get away with it.

I personally do not think that cruise lines should allow any of this to happen - just because they can get away with it.

 

It's better if you don't believe it happens. People who have never worked in the service industry are better off not knowing what really goes on behind the scenes.

 

Did you ever hear of the "10 second rule" when a cook drops food onto the floor?

In my service days, disgruntled waiters made a "Special Coffee" for difficult passengers; 3 drops of Visine in your coffee. Colorless, tasteless, odorless.

After that, you spend 2 days on your toilet.

 

Everything in life is a gamble.

You pay your money -or not - and you take your chances.

 

I'd love you to name what line that was on.

[ducklite]

Difficult for me to understand how you can condone behavior such as that by the staff because they didn't receive a tip. Unbelievable! You are saying that the cruise line accepts that type of behavior from their employees? The cruise line leaves the option to the staff to wash toilets with the guests toothbrush because they didn't receive a tip? I don't believe that for a moment.

 

 

 

Until there is credible proof it has been done, I don't see where a cruise line can do much about it.

[Bug2travel]

At the conclusion of every voyage, the Purser sends me a report, detailing many financial aspects of the just-completed cruise.

These details include tips received, tips adjusted up, tips adjusted down, tips removed, and by whom. That "by whom" category is then broken down by cabin category and by nationality.

 

The highest percentage of tips removed is invariably done by those in the least expensive cabins.

In the nationality column, the highest percentage of tips removed:

#1 Aussies

#2 Brits

#3 Canadians

 

The top 3 never change.

Positions 4 and below change based on the nationality mix.

 

As a Canadian, I would like to say that we cruise frequently, as do our family and friends. With the exception of my very cheap brother-in-law, we all leave on the automatic gratuity and always tip at least the cabin steward extra. Even with decent service in the MDR, we tip extra because these guys work their butts off. The only time we don't tip extra is if they are not friendly. As previously state, this is the wage model on board. Tips make up the majority of the crew pay so please don't penalize them.

[LHT28]

BIG DEAL.

We were tipping our room steward $400/$600,our MDR waiters/waitresses $50, and our Fav bar-people $50.

$850 our last tipping excursion.

So I would like to say thanks to the big-tippers, who have wised us non-Aussie tippers up.

So now it will be $200 room steward, and $20 for the others.

Cheers you big timers have just saved us oh about $550.

Its awesome how learning about a diff culture,can help one.:):)

You tipped $850 for an excursion???:eek: how much was the excursion ?

 

Were your generous tips on top of the Auto tips or were you on a cruise where gratuities were not added to you onboard account ?