Daily Service Charges are now officially out of hand

[ldubs]

2 hours ago, Incognito1 said:

The Philippines, for one.  Don't know about others, but 100% certain cruise ship employees from the PI are paying income tax.  (I did not say US income tax -- but I'm sure most countries have their own versions.)

 

The Philippines has income tax.  The question is does taxable gross income in the Philippines exclude gratuities?  I don't know the answer.      

[Ret MP]

1 hour ago, mpdog42 said:

A Lot of People joining the military come with Family's.... A Wife and a Kid..starting out as E-1..

Not a smart move on their part.....

 

I got out of the Army after my first enlistment in 1972.  In 1976 I enlisted again (Yes, that is an enlistment, not reenlistment).  I went from E-4 down to E-2 with my first assignment being at Ft. Meade, MD.  Had a wife and a baby, never took any type of public assistance other than the apartment complex we liked in in Glenn Burnie offered reduced rates for military and they paid the utilities.  I'm sure they were subsidized by the state or Feds or both.  I was young and didn't care.  I just knew my family had a new, clean, and secure roof over their heads.  Back then you didn't qualify for post housing unless you were an E-4 with 4 or more years of active service.  

 

My point?  We, my wife and I felt rich.  We did things every weekend (Smithsonian, Kings Dominion, Hershey Park, pot lucks with other Privates, you name it)  with the baby.  We pack our own meals and just go somewhere for the day on days off.  Seemed that the more money I made, the more I was worried about money and the less I had.  

 

Now that we are empty nesters (for a couple decades now), we treat ourselves to a Star Class cruise every now and then and when we get withdrawals, lay on the floor in the fetal position flopping around like fish, we book a Balcony. 

 

So, as much as I dislike a lot of things that are going on with the cruise industry and I'm very vocal about it, it is still something we love to do and it will take a few more Nickel and Dimes to turn us away from cruising, RCCL in particular.  I really love RCCLs Oasis Class and Quantum Class ships and the crews.  I'm good for now.

[mpdog42]

4 hours ago, Ret MP said:

Nope, my wife is disabled and has SS.  We live well below our means and save up for Star Class.  It takes about 2 years to do so.  But, we sometimes take a cruise, Ocean View Balcony or Boardwalk Balcony between the Star Class cruises.  

 

BTW, I've retire 2 more time after the Army.  

You know i was kidding right?😀

[Pellaz]

20 hours ago, FamilyCruiserUK said:

So not having to pay for their rooms or for utilities, gas elec, water etc, free medical, possible free food, i would say the crew have more disposable income then most people. Their outgoings are far less then someone paid the equivalent wage or more on shore who has to pay all of the above. 

I know they work hard and i know they are away from families but still a good wage when you have very little essential outgoings on board. 

Yep.  There's a reason why the first building you see coming out of the port at Cozumel (International and Puerta Maya docks) is boldly labeled "I-95."    It's not a reference to the interstate per se; it's referring to the ships' length corridor called I-95 on most cruise ships servicing U.S. ports.  And crew go right there and spend that disposable income (or send it home to their families).   And more power to 'em!   🙂  

4 hours ago, ldubs said:

 

Oh man, that brings back memories of the paper route.  The monthly subscription was a couple bucks.  Anyone who gave a buck tip had their paper porched every day from then on.   Haha.  

I delivered pizzas for many years for Dominos (great money) and Pizza Hut (far less efficient).  Back then we'd generally get a buck or two per delivery on tips -- some might tip more, some not at all.  With our 10% cash commission added to that, it was really good money, and I'd sometimes not bother to deposit my little minimum-wage paychecks because I was going home with $100+ in cash on a good night...in 1983.    😮   
After a while you start remembering which customers tipped $3 or $4 or $5...and we'd fight over who got to take those "runs" and if we had more than one delivery on a run, they'd always get their pizzas first.  The true meaning of To Insure Promptness.  😄

Customers who didn't (couldn't) tip, as they clearly lived within their reduced means?   No problem.  

Customers who didn't tip but had nice cars in the driveway or a really nice house?   Yeah, we'll get your pies to ya at the appropriate juncture.  In the fullness of time.  😄  

[time4u2go]

7 hours ago, ldubs said:

 

The Philippines has income tax.  The question is does taxable gross income in the Philippines exclude gratuities?  I don't know the answer.      

Exactly. Thank you. 

[chengkp75]

8 hours ago, ldubs said:

 

The Philippines has income tax.  The question is does taxable gross income in the Philippines exclude gratuities?  I don't know the answer.      

Any compensation received from the employer is considered taxable income.  The only "gratuities" that are not taxable are those received directly from the customer.

[chengkp75]

On 12/12/2022 at 7:14 AM, FamilyCruiserUK said:

So not having to pay for their rooms or for utilities, gas elec, water etc, free medical, possible free food, i would say the crew have more disposable income then most people. Their outgoings are far less then someone paid the equivalent wage or more on shore who has to pay all of the above. 

If you were to go work on a cruise ship for 8-10 months, would you give up your apartment or sell your house, since you aren't going to be there?  Would you toss all your stuff into a storage unit?  Do you have a wife and/or kids, who need to eat, have a home, and pay for medical expenses while you are gone?  I know I had to pay all these things for the 6 months a year I was on ships for 46 years.  Unless the crew member is living in his parent's basement, they have expenses while on the ship.

[chengkp75]

On 12/12/2022 at 3:56 AM, Pellaz said:

The menu in the crew dining room might be better than the passengers'.

This is laughable.

[Ocean Boy]

22 minutes ago, chengkp75 said:

Any compensation received from the employer is considered taxable income.  The only "gratuities" that are not taxable are those received directly from the customer.

You mean the way we used to do it.

[chengkp75]

1 minute ago, Ocean Boy said:

You mean the way we used to do it.

As I've said many times over the years, and then I'll duck back out of this tipping thread, the cruise lines don't use the DSC model for any potential tax benefit for the crew, they use it for the following reasons:

 

1.  It allows them to advertise the lowest fare possible

2.  It provides a "carrot and stick" method of management (which has been long shown to be ineffective), making the crew responsible for policing the service of other crew, rather than investing in proper, modern, personnel management for supervisors, and also shifts the blame for the "stick" from the cruise line to the passenger.

 

That's it, that's all there is to it.  No tipping culture, no tax benefit, nothing.

[Ret MP]

7 hours ago, mpdog42 said:

You know i was kidding right?😀

Yes, of course.  Sometimes, my answers are for those that don't have the sense of humor we have.  

 

BTW, I know that my sense of humor can be very dry. 

Edited December 13, 2022 by Ret MP