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Tipping in MDR - Breakfast, lunch?

andnosyd

By andnosyd,
in Holland America Line

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RMLincoln

RMLincoln

Posted
Posted

One of the things I love about cruising is that the service is with a smile, not a hand waiting for a tip. All the servers share in the tips. Usually the servers in the MDR for breakfast and lunch are rotated to other positions including lido and other meals. They are all in the tip pool sharing in the Hotel Service Charge which can be adjusted up or down from the standard according to your desires. If guests want to tip extra per meal per server I think that would be unusual but I'm certainly not aware of everything that other people do.

 

If we want to tip extra we usually do it at the end of the cruise. Of course, others may do differently, I can only tell you what we do. m--

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RuthC

RuthC

Posted
Posted
What do you mean 'share tips'? thanks

There is a Hotel Service Charge added to everyone's account. It amounts to either $11.50 or $12 (depending on cabin category) per person, per day. This is the amount that is distributed among the crew in lieu of tips. The amount given to any individual varies based on such things as job, length of time in service, and possibly other factors their union has negotiated for them.

 

If you leave the Hotel Service Charge intact---that is do not reduce or remove it---you may give additional tips to any individuals you wish, and they may keep what you give them. If you do reduce or remove the HSC, they must turn over any additional tips to the HSC pool.

You may also increase the HSC added to your bill.

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sassy~one

sassy~one

Posted
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If you do reduce or remove the HSC, they must turn over any additional tips to the HSC pool.

 

This doesen't seem fair to me. We very seldom use the mdr, so i do cash tips in the lido. To the ones that served me and dh.

 

thanks

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igraf

igraf

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There are literally hundreds of crew working for you on a typical cruise. Most of them you never see. It is not just the lido versus the MDR staff. The daily service charge ensures that the tips are distributed fairly to all deserving crew.

 

To only tip the crew that are dealing directly with you face to face is most unfair. I don't have much of an opinion of those (not saying that you do this) who reduce or eliminate the service charge and then strut around handing out a few cash tips to their favorites.

 

igraf

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you do reduce or remove the HSC, they must turn over any additional tips to the HSC pool.

 

This doesen't seem fair to me. We very seldom use the mdr, so i do cash tips in the lido. To the ones that served me and dh.

 

thanks

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rkacruiser

rkacruiser

Posted
Posted

Knowing that all of the MDR staff receive a portion of the hotel service charge that I pay, I have never even thought about offering an additional gratuity to the breakfast or lunch Stewards. While I almost always receive very satisfactory service in the MDR for those two meals, the best service has always been when my usual Lead Dining Room Steward or my usual Assistant Dining Room Steward is assigned to the table that I am fortunate enough to be seated. This is one other reason why I always offer an additional gratuity to these individuals at the end of my cruise.

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RuthC

RuthC

Posted
Posted
If you do reduce or remove the HSC, they must turn over any additional tips to the HSC pool.

 

This doesen't seem fair to me. We very seldom use the mdr, so i do cash tips in the lido. To the ones that served me and dh.

 

thanks

It must seem "fair" to the union representing the crew, though, or they would be negotiating for a different system.

You do realize that the Lido crew also shares in the HSC?

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jaguarstyper

jaguarstyper

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If you feel you want to give additional tips for breakfast and lunch, it seems to me the best way to do it would be to add to the hotel service charge. That way, everyone who contributed to providing you a good breakfast and lunch will be included.

 

How would the server know you reduced the hotel service charge and they have to put your tip into the pool? Personally, I can't even imagine a reason to reduce the hotel service charge. Everyone breaks their butt to serve you and even if something does go wrong, why punish everyone? Makes no sense to me.

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cb at sea

cb at sea

Posted
Posted

The suggested tips you pay cover ALL of your servers. You need not tip additionally. That's why they say a ship is a "cashless" society. No need to carry cash around with you!

 

Just tip as suggested, and you're done. Everyone who is supposed to be tipped will be tipped. Easy.

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pmd98052

pmd98052

Posted
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It must seem "fair" to the union representing the crew, though, or they would be negotiating for a different system.

You do realize that the Lido crew also shares in the HSC?

 

I don't believe many (any?) cruise ships have unions for wait staff, cabin stewards etc?

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Mary Ellen

Mary Ellen

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Posted
I don't believe many (any?) cruise ships have unions for wait staff, cabin stewards etc?

Google can be your friend too.

 

Holland America Cruises Through Inaugural Sustainability Report

 

Benefits for the seagoing staff include: free training before and during engagement, free health care, room and board, and small but extremely meaningful benefits like the preparation of foods from home on board and the observation of the Filipino new year. 100% of the Indonesian and Filipino crew have union representation.

That is just a portion of the article and the bolding is mine. There were other hits on Google should you care to do your own research.

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pmd98052

pmd98052

Posted
Posted (edited)

Bing is my friend. It works better.

 

http://www.cruiselawnews.com/2012/07/articles/crew-member-rights-1/carnival-fires-150-crew-members-from-india-for-protesting-low-cruise-ship-wages/

 

"Indian cruise ship employees, like virtually all crew members, are not members of a union and work entirely at the mercy of the cruise company"

 

This article also suggests there are not unions - at least not as we think of them in the USA. http://www.cruisejunkie.com/ot.html

 

"By registering their ships in these countries, companies successfully avoid having to pay income taxes, and they also avoid having to abide by national labour laws. They also avoid unions this way. The regulations that a ship must follow are those of the country where the ship is registered, and whose flag it flies.. "

 

So perhaps HAL's Filipino and Indonesian staff are union members?

 

Who knows for sure.

 

The article you link to, like mine, is not authoritative by any means.

 

But I know crew members post here from time to time so perhaps one can comment?

Edited by pmd98052
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Mary Ellen

Mary Ellen

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And yet Bing gives you supposedly pertinent info on "Indian cruise ship employees". Unless my geography is WAY off, neither the Indonesian or Filipino HAL employees are from India. :rolleyes: I don't need to read any further.

 

There was plenty on here years ago when the HAL tipping policy changed about the union representation of the crew.

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pmd98052

pmd98052

Posted
Posted

You missed the, "like virtually all crew members"

 

I would be highly surprised if they had union representation in the same way we think of unions here in the US. But I'll defer to those who know. Would love it if HAL was different than the rest of Carnival.

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