Gratuities

[lollyed]

going on Norwegian cruise ,can you opt out of gratuities and tip who you want as ,being asked for payment b4 hand

[Twickenham]

going on Norwegian cruise ,can you opt out of gratuities and tip who you want as ,being asked for payment b4 hand

 

The automatic gratuities are distributed to lots of behind-the-scenes personnel as well as people you are in direct contact with.

 

If you have the gratuities removed from your account and tip individuals, they will have to put that money into the common pot to be distributed - basically, you gain nothing.

 

However, leave the automatic gratuities on your account, and if you decide to tip a little extra to someone who has given you exceptional service, they can keep that money.

[lollyed]

Thankyou twickenham ,, so your saying each individual I tip will no if I have or have not opted out of gratuities and will no if they should pocket or pot the tip given

[easyboy]

We don’t opt out on gratuity to acknowledge the “behind the scene” services of other crew members

 

 

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[lollyed]

I do understand behind the scenes ,I just wish they would take a certain amount for them you don't see ,who I no do a good job ,,and leave it up to passengers to tip the rest they do see ,,

[LHT28]

I would as on the NCL Forum

They are not called Gratuities on NCL but DSC & for most pax you cannot remove them

There are many discussions on the NCL forum

 

Being from the UK you may have different rules than North Americans

[NLH Arizona]

I do understand behind the scenes ,I just wish they would take a certain amount for them you don't see ,who I no do a good job ,,and leave it up to passengers to tip the rest they do see ,,

Back in the olden days, we use to get envelopes to tip our servers in the MDR and the Cabin Stewards, but unfortunately the last night in the dining room, when folks gave out tips, you could almost hear a pin drop, because many stiffed the servers and just didn't show up the last night. So, I prefer that they keep it the way it is now, so it is a little fairer to the crew, even though they are still some who removed the DSC.

[Velvetwater]

Just a note on booking Norwegian, some UK travel agents do it for a lot cheaper than direct.

 

I assume you are booking the all inclusive that is pretty much the only option for most UK residents? In that case everything is included as a wrapped up package (we did it last year) so you cannot really take out the grats,the drinks package or the water etc. Its one set price. Obviously you can cancel beverage things on board but you are still paying for them. Some UK TAs may possibly be able to book on a booking platform where you can just book the cruise without the all inclusive part.

 

On the 'UK don't tip' its nonsense. We often tip in restaurants (not as much as the US mind) and do the odd rounding up for other services. This is mainly because of our country giving a good wage as standard- businesses pay their staff comparatively well and still keep food/drink prices as cheap as abroad.

[sloopsailor]

Thankyou twickenham ,, so your saying each individual I tip will know if I have or have not opted out of gratuities and will know if they should pocket or pot the tip given

 

The policy on most cruise lines is that all cash tips must be turned into the accounting department during the cruise. After the cruise an accounting will be made to reconcile which passengers have removed the auto gratuities. If they have not removed them, then all cash tips will be deposited into the employee's account. If the auto gratuities have been removed - even on the last day - then the cash tips will be put into the gratuity pool and distributed as they would have been if auto gratuities were left in place.

 

Be aware that the crew have agreed to a contract that stipulates that cash tips must be turned in. If they do not, and it is discovered that they have hidden them, they are subject to discipline and most likely contract termination. In other words, if they cheat their fellow crew members, they will probably get fired.

 

Better to just go along with the program and leave the auto gratuities in place and save yourself the trouble of not accomplishing anything at all. Leave EXTRA tips for those you want to reward.

Edited October 25, 2017 by sloopsailor

[wannavacay]

Be aware that the crew have agreed to a contract that stipulates that cash tips must be turned in. If they do not, and it is discovered that they have hidden them, they are subject to discipline and most likely contract termination. In other words, if they cheat their fellow crew members, they will probably get fired.

 

Better to just go along with the program and leave the auto gratuities in place and save yourself the trouble of not accomplishing anything at all. Leave EXTRA tips for those you want to reward.

 

Does this mean the EXTRA cash tips have to get turned in too??

Thanks

[BRENT AND DIANNA]

I just cannot believe how cheap some people can be. How would you feel if you were in the employees position? Don't be a cheapskate. If you feel any others went above and beyond, then give them an additional tip. These people on the ship make such small wages to begin with. Maybe it's just me since I live in Las Vegas, but I tip for everything and budget accordingly.

 

 

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[macandlucy]

Little off topic, sideways maybe, so sorry, but does anyone have any idea at all about the percentage of passengers who remove tips on lines where that can be done on board vs. the NCL way, which requires a mail in form. I'm interested to know if the NCL way preserves the tips for the crew better than the other way.

[evandbob]

I just cannot believe how cheap some people can be. How would you feel if you were in the employees position? Don't be a cheapskate. If you feel any others went above and beyond, then give them an additional tip. These people on the ship make such small wages to begin with. Maybe it's just me since I live in Las Vegas, but I tip for everything and budget accordingly.

 

 

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I'm a New Yorker and tipping 20 - 25% is de facto for many services. Your advice or reprimand is fine for Americans.

 

However, the OP is from the UK, and they have a whole different culture about tipping there. In some English society's, like Australia and New Zealand, tipping can even be construed as offensive.

[swedish weave]

All these discussions can be put to rest by checking the website for the union that represents the crew members. They have a list of the contracted pay and the cruise lines are responsible for that amount. If the DSC fund is insufficient, the cruise line makes up the shortage.

http://Www.itfseafarers.org

 

NCL doesn't disclose their distribution of the funds, so most comments are speculation. If anyone has figures or numbers regarding how much removal of DSC affects crew wages, please c post the link.

[JennKach]

The automatic gratuities are distributed to lots of behind-the-scenes personnel as well as people you are in direct contact with.

 

 

 

If you have the gratuities removed from your account and tip individuals, they will have to put that money into the common pot to be distributed - basically, you gain nothing.

 

 

 

However, leave the automatic gratuities on your account, and if you decide to tip a little extra to someone who has given you exceptional service, they can keep that money.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[fshagan]

Be aware that the crew have agreed to a contract that stipulates that cash tips must be turned in. If they do not, and it is discovered that they have hidden them, they are subject to discipline and most likely contract termination. In other words, if they cheat their fellow crew members, they will probably get fired.

 

I don't believe this is true on NCL. On their FAQ page they state:

 

Unlike most other ships in the cruise industry, there is no required or recommended tipping on our ships for service that is generally rendered to all Guests. While you should not feel obligated to offer a gratuity, all of our staff are encouraged to “go the extra mile,” so they are permitted to accept cash gratuities for exceptional or outstanding service if you care to offer them.

From: https://www.ncl.com/faq#tipping

The "service charge" is not called a tip by NCL, it is a "service charge" much like a resort fee, that is used to "help support" the incentive programs the crew receives to work together as a team. At least that's what NCL says.

The crew belongs to the seafarers union and receives a negotiated wage that is guaranteed, and far above the mythical "$50 per month" you hear some people talk about. Cabin stewards earn about $1,000 a month to start, and bar tenders report earnings up to $4,000 a month as reported on glassdoor dot com. The average annual wage in the Philippines is under $5,200, so you can see why they work so hard and (for the most part) love their jobs.

[sloopsailor]

I don't believe this is true on NCL. On their FAQ page they state:

 

 

From: https://www.ncl.com/faq#tipping

The "service charge" is not called a tip by NCL, it is a "service charge" much like a resort fee, that is used to "help support" the incentive programs the crew receives to work together as a team. At least that's what NCL says.

The crew belongs to the seafarers union and receives a negotiated wage that is guaranteed, and far above the mythical "$50 per month" you hear some people talk about. Cabin stewards earn about $1,000 a month to start, and bar tenders report earnings up to $4,000 a month as reported on glassdoor dot com. The average annual wage in the Philippines is under $5,200, so you can see why they work so hard and (for the most part) love their jobs.

 

You might be referring to the Pride of America, a cruise ship built in the USA and is the only US flagged cruise ship in NCL's fleet. It adheres to US rules regarding pay and crew employment policies. All other ships in NCL's fleet are flagged in other countries and do not have to adhere to US rules for crews.

[swedish weave]

You might be referring to the Pride of America, a cruise ship built in the USA and is the only US flagged cruise ship in NCL's fleet. It adheres to US rules regarding pay and crew employment policies. All other ships in NCL's fleet are flagged in other countries and do not have to adhere to US rules for crews.

The rules are not USA rules. The contracted wages are ITF agreements and apply to seafarers worldwide.

Please read the link I provided in a previous post to alleviate your confusion.

[DirtyDawg]

I do understand behind the scenes ,I just wish they would take a certain amount for them you don't see ,who I no do a good job ,,and leave it up to passengers to tip the rest they do see ,,

 

In an ideal world they would have a smaller DSC for the behind the scene crew and allow passengers to tip the rest of the crew directly but that is not the system. The DSC is reasonable at about 10% - 15% of the daily fare, it saves me from the effort of tipping average performers (and most of the crew are average performers) and still allows me to reward superior performers. For example, when I give my cabin steward an extra $50 or $100 for the week it may go into a tipping pool or not, (and frankly the tipping slit is none of my business) but I have shown my appreciation and I have increased their take home pay! That is what tipping is all about in first place.

[NLH Arizona]

A poster who has worked for the cruise lines says: Since 2013, when the Maritime Labor Conventioncame into force, there is a minimum wage set for all mariners (anyone workingon a ship) of all nations. Cruise ship crew who fall into the DSC pool, will bepaid a combination of base wage and DSC that generally falls slightly higherthan the minimum wage. If the DSC is removed by a passenger, then everyone inthe pool gets slightly less that week. If enough people remove/reduce the DSC,then everyone in the pool can get less, until the minimum wage is met.

[KeithJenner]

I assume you are booking the all inclusive that is pretty much the only option for most UK residents? In that case everything is included as a wrapped up package (we did it last year) so you cannot really take out the grats,the drinks package or the water etc. Its one set price.

 

I assume that the OP booked before all inclusive came in as they say they are being asked to pay up front. If they had booked all inclusive then there would be nothing to pay, so they wouldn't have been asked to pay.

[Ammoniaguy]

We chose the beverage package and the free gratuities for our cruise on the getaway from Copenhagen to Miami. The "free" beverage package cost us over $450 and is called a service charge. Does that service charge go to the bartenders and bar servers?

[fshagan]

You might be referring to the Pride of America, a cruise ship built in the USA and is the only US flagged cruise ship in NCL's fleet. It adheres to US rules regarding pay and crew employment policies. All other ships in NCL's fleet are flagged in other countries and do not have to adhere to US rules for crews.

 

The POA must have an American crew or workers with permission to work in America and pay Hawai'ian minimum wage. That is true.

 

But NCL has agreed to have all of their other ships covered in an agreement with the seafarer's union. You can go to http://www.itfseafarers.org/look_up_ship2.cfm and enter "Norwegian" in the search box and get the display below:

 

 

The seafarer's union contract is between the ship and the workers, and guarantees the worker a minimum wage, overtime pay for hours over 48 hours (I think it's 48!) and limits the number of hours per day they can work.

 

NCL says the daily service charge helps "support" crew incentive programs. I have no idea what that means. I do know the workers get the pay they were promised even if you remove the daily service charge, or the ship sails half full.

 

I believe that's the limit to the facts we can determine here. I never reduce or remove the daily service charge but not because of the many myths surrounding the treatment and pay of seafarers.

[fshagan]

We chose the beverage package and the free gratuities for our cruise on the getaway from Copenhagen to Miami. The "free" beverage package cost us over $450 and is called a service charge. Does that service charge go to the bartenders and bar servers?

 

As far as I can tell no one here in this forum really knows. I've heard it's put in a tip pool for the bartenders (who earn about $4,000 a month in senior positions) and I've heard that it is just general revenue for the ship.

[fshagan]

I do understand behind the scenes ,I just wish they would take a certain amount for them you don't see ,who I no do a good job ,,and leave it up to passengers to tip the rest they do see ,,

 

When did you book?

 

My understanding is the new bookings from the UK do not have the daily service charge as a separate line item and they are indeed part of the overall cruise fare. If you booked before that new "all inclusive" policy you'll see the separate line item for the daily service charge.