Automatic Gratuities

[sandancer]

You will find that your tips are not always included in your holiday regardless of living in the UK. You may get a promotion that includes gratuities, but that is not the norm.

 

 

Perhaps the poster was told that grats were included by a travel agent. We always pre-pay as we prefer to have as much as possible paid up front. Our TA knows this and always includes them when she gives us a quote for a cruise.

 

 

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[Thetrail]

The cruiseline should pay them. I will remove the automatic gratuity also and will tip cash to the people who serve me directly.

I assume your ferret in suffering from malnourishment!....:rolleyes::rolleyes::rolleyes:....K.O.

[Arzeena]

Wow, uncalled for. You don't know what OP's plans are concerning this.

 

Hey, don't be the Entertainment Police:p;):D I just put a bag of pop corn in the microwave!

[Redrobo]

Living in the UK our gratuities are pre payed and included in the price of the holiday. We wouldn't do it any other way, I see it as part of the cost of the holiday and like to have it payed and out of the way. We have just done our 4th cruise and never had bad service, it would never cross my mind to remove gratuities.

 

 

past Cruises

independent, Oasis, Radiance, Rhapsody.

 

Not quite, you can remove gratuities at the time of booking and at any other time prior to the cruise.

[Dayenu]

I'll pay for it if it's good popcorn! :D

 

With or without tips? :D

 

Now, seriously. Our distant relatives went on the first RCI cruise, and not knowing how this tipping system works, they removed gratuities and tipped as much and whoever they thought appropriate.

 

The didn't know that every room steward, waiter - whoever get the tips in cash, must give it up for the tipping pool for the amount that would be charged daily (approx. $12 pp/day - not sure about the exact amount).

 

Some time after the cruise they got a letter from RCI. In that letter they were asked if this is true they gave employee A. - X amount of $, and employee B. Y amount of $, or are they lying and not giving up all cash. Don't know how the story ended, we saw them before they replied, and later forgot to ask.

[blackshirt]

We generally do remove some of the prepaid grats because quite frankly, the amount you pay doesn't all go to the people you think it goes to, and that is just fact. The cruise line itself does get a good portion of all the gratuities, whether you believe it or not. People like our room steward, and our wait staff are the ones we handsomely tip WITH CASH so that it goes directly to who is deserving of it.

I've seen others say this but I don't believe it. You claim this is fact but can you offer any proof that auto gratuities are not dispersed exactly as Royal says they are?

[Grandma Dazzles]

I know that's true, especially as the lines like to push all the specialty restaurants. But in our specific case, we are doing traditional dining so we should have the same staff. We pretty much never do the specialties. If it ever gets to point where that doesn't exist, and specialties are the only choice, then i could see going with the auto since that's the only way to be sure everyone gets paid.

 

As a long-time cruiser I do remember the envelopes well. However, I think we have to change with the times.

 

I also use traditional dining and occasionally a specialty restaurant. On my last two cruises I had a dining room waiter, but often two or more assistant waiters. Our waiter also filled water, etc. it was more of a team effort. I am much happier having gratuities billed to me daily. In this way I feel everyone is covered, especially as more and more I see "my" waiters in the Windjammer as well.

 

I also feel that way I cover the incidental behind the scenes people. If I choose to tip extra, my room steward as an example, I get envelopes from guest services to use. I also tip cash to room service and in the diamond/concierge lounge; again using envelopes on my final visit.

 

In short, yes you can remove, but so easy to leave in place, and should you decide anyone deserves extra you can.

[Charles4515]

As to tipping the 'unseen, behind the scenes' personnel, my question would be, in the days before automatic tips became the rage (and that was not that long ago), how did those people get paid?

 

They were paid the same way they will get paid now if you tip cash. The cash tips are pooled.

Edited August 19, 2016 by Charles4515

[Donna_In_India]

Thanks all, even those who chose to get a little pissy. And actually, yes, we are old school and we do tip in cash, and for what it's worth, very well. Just never liked the idea of tipping before service. And we also go on the many comments we've had over the years from crewmembers who told us they prefer cash. So no, we aren't monsters out to rip off the crew.

 

I'm with you about tipping before service. I would never remove my tips or stiff anyone but....tips are supposed to be for excellent service, not because you showed up for work. Everywhere you go these days, there is a tip jar. That being said we've never had bad service because tips were prepaid/automatic.

Edited August 19, 2016 by Donna_In_India

[gliles]

Until RCI either adds it to the cruise fare or does not permit removing gratuities/service charge, some passengers are going to continue to do it. Paying in all cash is absolutely an option - some guests enjoy the "old school" way of doing things.

 

ANYWAY, at no time did I say I condone removing the grats. I simply offered that we do not know OP's intentions from his two sentences. Gee.

.

 

We enjoy the old school way but we enjoy a lot of the old school things about cruising that are gone but things change, we'd never dream of removing the gratuities and to do it before you are even on the ship? What possible reason for that?

[Donna_In_India]

And how might you be planning to tip the behind the scenes crew working hard to make your vacation enjoyable that you will never actually see or meet?

 

And how were these hard-working people tipped for decades before automatic gratuities were implemented?

Edited August 19, 2016 by Donna_In_India

[gliles]

Thanks all, even those who chose to get a little pissy. And actually, yes, we are old school and we do tip in cash, and for what it's worth, very well. Just never liked the idea of tipping before service. And we also go on the many comments we've had over the years from crewmembers who told us they prefer cash. So no, we aren't monsters out to rip off the crew.

 

So you'd probably really freak out to know we prepaid our tips over 6 months in advance! And I will admit, it is odd to tip in advance, how do you know the service you'll get? I really think they should call it a "staff service charge" and not allow people to remove it.

[gliles]

I can understand asking about this. I understand why cruiselines went to including it on the bill. It's definitely convenient, and I am sure it helps cut back on some people getting stiffed altogether, but it's also a drawback in a way. I've always tended to tip well, whether it's on a cruise or at a restaurant, but personally it irritates me when they take the decision of what to give as a tip away from me and just add to the bill. In most cases my servers end up getting less they otherwise would have. Where I might have added 30% to a bill in a restaurant, when the bill comes with the tip already on it my thought (right or wrong) is okay fine, I wanted to be the to decide how much I think your service was worth, but now you've taken the decision of how big a tip you are going to get out of my hands. Could I always add more? Sure I could, but I find that I don't, not unless something extra special occurred. I suppose in the end it end up 'saving' me money, but I still find the practice a bit irritating. Other the other hand, as I said it likely works out in favor of the servers/staff who might have gotten stiffed or undertipped if it was completely left up to everyone to handle on their own.

 

I guess also on the plus side is that I find I now travel with less cash. I used to always ensure I had plenty of cash expressly earmarked for tipping. (which kind of made me a bit paranoid I was going to lose my wallet, lol)

 

That makes sense BUT it isn't likely the waitstaff that decided to auto add the tip and in the end, they are the ones who hurt from that. It annoys me too but I don't take it out on the person serving me.

[packercruising]

My daughter is a waitress (poor college student). Her only wages are her tips, because her salary is $2.13 an hour, which gets eaten up in taxes (the government assumes she is getting tips). Back in the day, traditional cruising had fixed people you saw everyday, every meal, and you would tip them at the end of the cruise (or hide from them). Now you could have a different server at every meal, and they changed the salary structure.

 

And those tips probably have to be shared, right? Some people seem to have trouble grasping this concept. The server in the MDR, also probably has to serve in the Windjammer, where nobody serves, or they might have additional duties that provide service for the pax we never see.

[LMaxwell]

And how were these hard-working people tipped for decades before automatic gratuities were implemented?

 

You and I both know they were paid a fair wage before their pay structure moving to being shifted towards discretionary pay by guests.

[Toodang]

Get the popcorn!

 

 

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[Merion_Mom]

You and I both know they were paid a fair wage before their pay structure moving to being shifted towards discretionary pay by guests.

 

Completely false. They have always had a very minimal base pay and have always relied on passengers' gratuities for the bulk of their income.

 

Royal Caribbean was the last of the mainstream cruiselines to add automatic gratuities.

[LMaxwell]

Completely false. They have always had a very minimal base pay and have always relied on passengers' gratuities for the bulk of their income.

 

Royal Caribbean was the last of the mainstream cruiselines to add automatic gratuities.

 

No Merion Mom, you are wrong on this. The behind the scenes workers used to be paid a higher flat wage not tied to any gratuity. The gratuity was the lions share of the guest facing service providers pay.

[ColoradoGurl]

Who are these people we don't see or realize ?

 

Family of 3,13 night cruise $507 tips measly ?

 

 

There have been lots of tipping threads where people have found the breakdown of who the tips get split amongst. I don't recall, but I believe the waitstaff in the buffet, for instance, are included.

 

I realize not everyone uses the windjammer, and I know that there is a valid debate about whether this is a "tip" or a "service charge" and if we should be covering the salaries on behalf of the cruise line etc. But right now, it seems the company is using the tactic of making their fares appear lower, but then adding a service charge (tip) that they use to cover their salaries expense. We may not like it, and we may not feel it's our job to pay salaries, but we do that all the time when we pay the cost of products; factored in is the cost of producing and selling the good, which includes worker salaries.

 

If enough people continue to remove the tips, the cruise line will just start increasing fares to cover it (and it'll probably be a higher increase than $13/day). I can see how the $13/day becomes less measly as you add more family members, but if you can't afford all those kids, don't have them. Or if you can't afford to travel when you have a big family, don't travel. I would have loved to have a couple more kids than I had, but I didn't because I knew that I wouldn't be able to live the same lifestyle if I did. Why do people always expect others to feel sorry for them because they can't afford to do things with their 2 or 3 kids...maybe you should leave the kids at home, so you can afford the trip, including all the expenses that go with it, so the rest of us don't have to supplement your inability to cover the costs of your family.

 

 

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Edited August 20, 2016 by ColoradoGurl

[ColoradoGurl]

And how were these hard-working people tipped for decades before automatic gratuities were implemented?

 

 

They were probably forcing the front of house staff who get tipped directly by the customers, to share the tips with the back of house staff (similar to how waiters get tips from customers, but then are supposed to share their tips with the bussers and the greeters). The problem arises when the employee who receives the tip, doesn't share it like they've been told, so then the company starts to implement another way to force the tip sharing, such as how the cruise lines are doing now, by charging auto gratuities and splitting it up themselves.

 

 

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Edited August 20, 2016 by ColoradoGurl

[tinkertwo]

Okay, I have to throw this in. While people like to think the staff prefer cash it is not true. They will certainly take it and will never say no however it is more inconvenient to them then you would think. They can't keep large amounts of cash in their rooms and it would be unsafe to do so anyways. Rooms are shared and there can be theft. This means that when they get extra money they need to take it down to the pursers office and deposit it to their account. This is time they do not have to spare. It must be done in their own time off which we all know they don't get a lot of.

Once the purser has the funds it works like a bank and the purser will do with the funds as the staff member has requested. It mostly goes into their bank accounts automatically in their home country. Only a small amount is kept in their on board account for their personal needs.

This information comes directly from a close friend of mine who worked on the ships. Take what you want from it, believe it or don't. Doesn't matter to me, just thought I would share what I know.

[Langley Cruisers]

...Rooms are shared and there can be theft. This means that when they get extra money they need to take it down to the pursers office and deposit it to their account. This is time they do not have to spare. It must be done in their own time off which we all know they don't get a lot of....

 

I do believe you, but I also know they do get time off to spend however they wish. If they have cash, I'm sure they make it a priority to take care of the situation as soon as possible. Some crew and staff sleep, others exercise, some use the Internet - I'm sure they all have time to take their cash to their staff purser. :)

[kc13]

We always do prepay gratuities. Yes there was one cruise where we contemplated having gratuities taken off because there was A lot that went wrong but in the end we didn't remove them. We tip regardless of these hiccups because it's a part of how they make their living. If we have a good waiter, we personally tip them extra and we always leave an extra tip for our room steward.

 

It's not for everyone but my whole family tips this way on cruises.

[deliver42]

I always pre pay and wouldn't even think about removing the pre pays. I also tip extra at the end for good service to the cabin attendant, waiter, and ass't waiter. I also tip the bartenders or servers per drink.

[Donna_In_India]

So....if you NEVER eat in a MDR who gets your tip? And if you use My Time Dining and have a different server each night, who gets the tip? There's no way I am believing any cruise line/BUSINESS is on the up and up with this. You're talking about thousands of possible combinations per meal to calculate it all out. I also think - MDR teams especially - are making out much better these days with so many people tipping extra.

 

It's time to call it what it is and add it to the cruise fare. Pay your employees a decent salary.