Cruise Terminal Porters

[not-enough-cruising]

3 hours ago, FamilyCruiserUK said:

Hold on you tip someone for doing their basic job......this is the issue with employers paying rubbish wages and making the employees fight for tips. Its not set up to tip for good service. A total scam.

However the Porters are not paid rubbish wages, they are paid well above a "living wage" and often receive VERY generous union benefits.

[not-enough-cruising]

9 hours ago, StrikeEagle said:

interesting fact,  I think beside me, and who been cruising with RCI,  I thought those people at the RCI terminal (beside the custom agents)  also a reflection and represent of what RCI experience is and RCI should manage it.  

I agree with your premise, however, that is easier said than done. 

How can you manage people that don’t work for or report to you? 

[FamilyCruiserUK]

23 minutes ago, not-enough-cruising said:

However the Porters are not paid rubbish wages, they are paid well above a "living wage" and often receive VERY generous union benefits.

If thats the case then why do people tip them? My tiny british mind does not get it. If my bag dosnt get on the ship and i can identify the porter then a formal complaint will be submitted. 

[not-enough-cruising]

Just now, FamilyCruiserUK said:

If thats the case then why do people tip them? My tiny british mind does not get it. If my bag dosnt get on the ship and i can identify the porter then a formal complaint will be submitted. 

EXCELLENT question. 
 

Myself, personally, do.not tip them, unless they do something above and beyond their job description. Getting my bag from the sidewalk to the ship is quite literally their job description  

[FamilyCruiserUK]

4 minutes ago, not-enough-cruising said:

EXCELLENT question. 
 

Myself, personally, do.not tip them, unless they do something above and beyond their job description. Getting my bag from the sidewalk to the ship is quite literally their job description  

This is so true. 

[ukestrummer]

Look, those people working at loading are union workers, many getting PAID over 100K just to do their job of LOADING luggage on to the carts, used to be signs around loading area telling you this

[NoShoes2]

It probably helps when cruisers arrive at  the port per this assigned time. Less congestion.  Our first cruiser experience with luggage was very hectic and confusing. I actually had a porter tell me that for a certain amount that he could guarantee our bags would arrive by a certain time. As a newbie we fell for it. LOL 

Since then we haven't been caught up in the craziness. We take our time, tip the porter and watch that our bags are handled correctly. 

[S.A.M.J.R.]

43 minutes ago, FamilyCruiserUK said:

If thats the case then why do people tip them? My tiny british mind does not get it. If my bag dosnt get on the ship and i can identify the porter then a formal complaint will be submitted. 

I'm guessing because it's been taught that you tip anyone handling your luggage (think bell boys at hotels).  And it just carried over. 

[Joseph2017China]

I'm finding the whole post amusing.  First the poster did not loose the bags, but a "friend".  Bags are put on carts and than loaded.  The process at the terminal you can usually see them load a bag on a cart.  Now, just like in an airport, those bags are touched by many people, not just one.  So tipping and throwing in a tipping amount is completely irrelevant to the discussion, so, it sounds like it is a topic to encourage people to tip a longshoreman more money to supplement their 100K jobs.  Yes, at any point, something can happen to the bag, and it was possible it happened.  In the event it happens, the cruise line will ship the bag to the next port.  So being without the entire week, without knowing any facts is also questionable.  

 

Not saying it did not happen, but the post has may questionable statements in it, to make me wonder why it is being posted.  

[Airbear232]

11 hours ago, deepcman said:

Porters, Travel Agents and Stockbrokers have all outlived their usefulness. 

If you can checkout your items at Walmart you can put your luggage in a bin.

 

 

Really depends on what level of service you’re looking for.  If you want that Walmart experience, then you’re right.  But if you want a higher level of service then no.  Service professionals aren’t going anywhere, we live in a service economy. 

[Airbear232]

15 hours ago, Scotico said:

How do you overlook a large bag.  Not going to say it was intentional but would not put it past them to flag their bag because they felt the tip was inadequate.  What is the normal rate for each bag when tipping

Porters are unionized, bonded and longshoremen.  Whether you tip or not is your concern.  The reality of the world is stuff happens for any number of reasons.  It is highly doubtful a bag would be “left” due to a $10 tip.  The only conceivable way I could see it happening is if someone were excessively rude and condescending.  And, we all know all cruisers are polite, undemanding and never complain. Hmmm. 

Edited January 6, 2023 by Airbear232
Grammer

[BND]

12 hours ago, boscobeans said:

The porters toss your bags onto trolleys, and it would be obvious if they left a bag sitting on the ground  by any number of other porters or passengers.

If they did this routinely when tipped 10 dollars there would be a few thousand bags left on the platform.

This is port dependent. Baltimore and Cape Liberty the luggage goes right on trolleys or covered wheeled bins, like airport baggage trains and then to the forklifts.

In Baltimore, they go onto a covered tram.  They are delivered to the ship in the bins.  I've seen it done many times. What the porters load the luggage onto is not what is forklifted onto the ship.   The bins that re forklifted onto the ships are cubes.   The carts that are loaded by the porters at the curb are not cubes.

 

This is a video of Baltimore.  At 1:35 it shows that the porters load the luggage onto and these are not (metal bins/baskets)  what the forklifts lift onto the ship.

 

https://www.google.com/search?q=baltimore+cruise+port&source=lmns&bih=852&biw=1504&rlz=1C1SQJL_enUS881US881&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwipptiJjrP8AhUzD1kFHY0uDNsQ_AUoAHoECAEQAA#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:9796e6f4,vid:9IbkpHx8zA0

Edited January 6, 2023 by BND

[Cruiser_1977]

14 hours ago, cruiseguy1016 said:

 

How do you know what time these people plan on boarding? I would bet the majority of passengers board after the hallways to the staterooms have been opened.

I didn't say anything about timing. The folks who embark later (when staterooms are open) has nothing to do with my post. I was simply referring to those passengers that choose to both carry their large/multiple bags onto the ship AND to take up space with said bags in public areas. 

[nolegirl01]

14 hours ago, shellunderwater said:

Ever been to an airport?  Anyone can walk off with your bag at baggage claim. 

 

9 hours ago, S.A.M.J.R. said:

Airlines? 

That it's not unusual for bags to go to the wrong flight?  

That bags are put in the collection area for anyone to walk off with (just like the cruise lines, I know)?

 

Not that it means anything, but I found this sign when disembarking at PC:

 

I wasn't talking about baggage claim. I am talking about when you check in to your flight and they check in your luggage and put it on the conveyor belt. I was making a point of the security of the bag once you drop it off. Yes luggages get lost in airports as well, but my point was I think there has to be a better system then just handing my luggage to a porter on the sidewalk and praying he takes my luggage inside. I wish there was a place that I can go into and safely hand my bag off to an employee that will add it to a cart. Many times I've seen my bag at the port just sitting outside the terminal on the sidewalk just waiting for the porter to get them and put them inside the terminal. At that point anyone can walk away with my bag and also runs a risk of porters casting them to the side to get more tips and more bags and forgetting your bag all together. I think they get so crazy wanting tips that they don't take care of your bags like they are supposed to. Go to port of miami when there are 3 ships embarking at the same time and you'll know exactly what I'm talking about. You can't walk 2 steps without porters hounding you for tips and taking your luggage when you are no where near the luggage drop off area. It's chaos.

[shipgeeks]

Scotico, I'm still curious about which port this happened at.

[Cruiser_1977]

@nolegirl01 It is my assumption that a "better" system would also decrease the number of union workers needed/required. Therefore, any attempt at such "progress" would most likely be fought by the union(s).

[mjkacmom]

13 hours ago, HappyTexan44 said:

What can we do to make this less likely to happen?   Not tip until they put it on the cart?   It sounds like the bad ones are hustling for the tips but not providing the service to get the tips.  

It’s really not a huge problem in the industry.

[nolegirl01]

11 minutes ago, JennyB1977 said:

@nolegirl01 It is my assumption that a "better" system would also decrease the number of union workers needed/required. Therefore, any attempt at such "progress" would most likely be fought by the union(s).

yeah I see that also... which is sad 😞 

[topnole]

16 hours ago, Scotico said:

They never got their bag.  Thankfully it only had their nicer clothes, shoes and toiletries.  Royal was able to assist with the bathroom stuff since they felt bad and gave them shipboard credit to use in the store for any meds/creams/etc.  It was in Ft Lauderdale.

 

The bag was waiting for them in an office but there were no apologies.  They submitted a claim with their travel insurance to see if they are entitles to any compensation.  They suspect the porter pushed it to the side since they only tipped $10 for the 3 bags. 

That would be hard to believe and most definitely an extreme exception to the rule.  Are porters hustling for tips?  Of course.  But I can’t imagine a scenario where a $10 was given and a porter purposefully made sure a bag missed the boat.  More than likely it was some type of honest mistake or unfortunately an unintentional screw up.  
 

Just think about it.  There are a lot of non US folks cruising every week.  As we all know many cultures don’t tip or tip much.  I’m sure many folks from these countries don’t even know to tip a porter.  If bags went missing every time this happened we would hear about it a lot.  

[topnole]

2 hours ago, ukestrummer said:

Look, those people working at loading are union workers, many getting PAID over 100K just to do their job of LOADING luggage on to the carts, used to be signs around loading area telling you this

They do more than load load luggage on cruise ships.  They work cargo ships or any other ships in that port.   It can be a pretty dangerous job.  

[Mum2Mercury]

1 hour ago, nolegirl01 said:

... I wish there was a place that I can go into and safely hand my bag off to an employee that will add it to a cart. Many times I've seen my bag at the port just sitting outside the terminal on the sidewalk just waiting for the porter to get them and put them inside the terminal ...

But this is exactly what I've seen in every port from which I've sailed.  I walk up to the porters, and I hand over my bag.  I always verify, "This is the right place for ______ of the Seas?"  Usually the porters ask whether I have my passport /boarding documents in my carry-on.  I see my bag piled onto a three-sided metal cart, and I tip $2 per bag.  The porters always seem happy with the tip, but none have ever seemed demanding or rabid to leave me /search for more.  My bags literally spend zero time on the sidewalk.  

 

As to whether they're paid enough or whatever, I don't care -- not my business.  $2 per bag is going to make no difference to my bottom line. 

 

 

Edited January 6, 2023 by Mum2Mercury

[boscobeans]

1 hour ago, BND said:

In Baltimore, they go onto a covered tram.  They are delivered to the ship in the bins.  I've seen it done many times. What the porters load the luggage onto is not what is forklifted onto the ship.   The bins that re forklifted onto the ships are cubes.   The carts that are loaded by the porters at the curb are not cubes.

 

This is a video of Baltimore.  At 1:35 it shows that the porters load the luggage onto and these are not (metal bins/baskets)  what the forklifts lift onto the ship.

 

https://www.google.com/search?q=baltimore+cruise+port&source=lmns&bih=852&biw=1504&rlz=1C1SQJL_enUS881US881&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwipptiJjrP8AhUzD1kFHY0uDNsQ_AUoAHoECAEQAA#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:9796e6f4,vid:9IbkpHx8zA0

That being said do you think a lone piece of luggage would not be seen by either a Royal employee or a dock worker when all the busy times slow down to nothing?  Whether it be when you drop your luggage, when it goes on a tram or later loaded, HOWEVER, into the ship?

[shellunderwater]

2 hours ago, nolegirl01 said:

 

I wasn't talking about baggage claim. I am talking about when you check in to your flight and they check in your luggage and put it on the conveyor belt. I was making a point of the security of the bag once you drop it off. Yes luggages get lost in airports as well, but my point was I think there has to be a better system then just handing my luggage to a porter on the sidewalk and praying he takes my luggage inside. I wish there was a place that I can go into and safely hand my bag off to an employee that will add it to a cart. Many times I've seen my bag at the port just sitting outside the terminal on the sidewalk just waiting for the porter to get them and put them inside the terminal. At that point anyone can walk away with my bag and also runs a risk of porters casting them to the side to get more tips and more bags and forgetting your bag all together. I think they get so crazy wanting tips that they don't take care of your bags like they are supposed to. Go to port of miami when there are 3 ships embarking at the same time and you'll know exactly what I'm talking about. You can't walk 2 steps without porters hounding you for tips and taking your luggage when you are no where near the luggage drop off area. It's chaos.

I'm 15 cruises in... tip varying amounts up to about $5 a bag.  Never had a bag lost. 

 

I'm sure it happens.  I just don't think there is some nefarious scheme to screw with your luggage. Given comments on these boards, I'm sure many don't tip at all and port lost bags hasn't been a major issue on these boards.

 

I've never seen a porter go crazy for tips. And rarely is a lost bag a problem so it doesn't warrant developing a complex system to fix a largely non-existent problem.

 

Time to move on to more important topics...like robes in the main dining room.🤪

[Longford]

17 hours ago, pcur said:

However, don't get me started on the OAK baggage handlers.  There's one common denominator to the theft of my prescription medications and  miscellaneous items.  That would be coming in or out of OAK.

Cruise lines, airlines have … for ever so long advised passengers to keep prescription medications and valuables in carry-on only.  It’s advice I follow.  Also, all checked luggage should be locked, to minimize the risks of pilfering and theft.

[pcur]

12 hours ago, Mum2Mercury said:

Doubtful.  I always tip $2 for a small bag, and many people tip nothing -- yet lost luggage is not a common problem. 

Respectfully, your prescription medicines should have been in your personal tote -- not handed over to someone else.  

Disagree.  You hand over your bag, and it goes on the three-sided cart immediately -- no waiting around and staring is necessary.  They're efficient:  they only handle the bag once; that is, they take it and put it on the cart.  They don't set it down, then move it again later.  

 

Yes, they are now in my tote bag. 

 

And, thank you for your public service to me and the other posters on this thread.  Nice to know you have our backs, and can educate us on the error of our ways.