life of a bar steward

[luckyinpa]

found this interesting

https://crew-center.com/bar-steward-true-engine-behind-bar-operations-cruise-ship

[Mike981]

This article reminded me of when I bussed tables at a restaurant when I was a kid (12-14). There were a few wait staff that didn't tip bussers at the end of the night or what they did tip was an insult.

So I took VERY good care of the good tippers and the others had to wait. It was interesting at the end of the night when I would hear the "not good tippers" complain on how little they made and little ole me had made more than them.

[SPacificbound]

Interesting article!

[ilikeanswers]

Wow that is so weird to me that the bar tenders pay the bar steward. That whole system is so foreign to me. Though I do wonder why the cruise lines don't just pay more for such a difficult and hard job especially if they have such a high turnover. If you have a good worker you should be doing everything to value them make them want to stay in that job instead of not promoting them just to force them to stay in that job. 

[chengkp75]

Just to contradict and clarify some statements made in the article.  By law, the minimum wage for any crew, working any kind of ship, is $658/month, for a 40 hour work week.  Any hours worked over 40 in a week must be paid at 125%.  Tips (not sure what line he worked for, or their policy, but typically the bar steward is included in the bar tip pool) are allowed to make up some of the pay, but if they don't reach the statutory minimum wage, the cruise line has to make up the balance.

[sparks1093]

1 hour ago, chengkp75 said:

Just to contradict and clarify some statements made in the article.  By law, the minimum wage for any crew, working any kind of ship, is $658/month, for a 40 hour work week.  Any hours worked over 40 in a week must be paid at 125%.  Tips (not sure what line he worked for, or their policy, but typically the bar steward is included in the bar tip pool) are allowed to make up some of the pay, but if they don't reach the statutory minimum wage, the cruise line has to make up the balance.

Thank you for the clarification, the article sounded too pat the way it was. I have worked as a bar back once, which sounds very similar to what is described, and I was an hourly employee of the land based establishment where I worked. I received no tips from any of the bartenders and while I tried to provide the same service to all, the ones that got my absolute best were the ones that treated me as a human being. Of course there are bar backs out there who do share in the tips in one fashion or another since each establishment may handle it differently.

[wowzz]

A Brit point of view here - and obviously everyone knows us Brits aren't big tippers !

Went out for lunch today. Paid with credit card  - added on a 10% tip - (no cash, obviously).  The waitress said that the tips are shared equally amongst everyone working that shift, from the kitchen porter to the chef.

That seems to me to be a great way of building team spirit and camaraderie.  

[George C]

3 to 5 bar stewards on a ship , they have that in just the martini bar on celebrity