Just had my Rudest Carnival Staff Member Ever!

[jimgo140]

Well, I thought she might be upset about us playing dominoes in there, but the shelves were full of board games to play, so I figure that wasn't it. Evidently, the Carnival "Library" isn't really for being quiet in if you are encouraged to play games in there. Also, we were pretty quiet, just us and our 80 year old Moms. No teenagers or kids were in there at all. She was rudest to the couple who she crowded off of "her" desk so she could eat breakfast and the ladies who wanted to visit in there. Most of us have been around alot a people in our lifetime and it's pretty easy to see if someone is disgusted. She was not the typical Carnival employee and she did not perform well by Carnival's own standards of everyone being nice to you and even calling you by name if they get the chance. She didn't even say "Hello", HaHa. Anyone who wouldn't find how she acted to be rude, might have some issues with rudeness themselves. I'm also sure that your Mom isn't being paid to be nice to "Everyone" as Carnival employees are. It's not a sin to look or be disgusted or rude, but it IS her job and she failed miserably that day. Anyway, we will live and so will she. Mainly I used this as a vent and knew I'd get some good stories of other rude encounters which would make me feel better. It has.

 

I may be out of line here, but I wonder if crew members are supposed to be eating breakfast during assigned duties? I doubt she will be getting the "Employee of the Month" award.

[SMSACE6]

We had a rude, obnoxious and down right nasty head waiter on our 2008 cruise. He wasn't happy in his job and made no attempts to pretend. One lady in our group asked for hot tea and was told that tea was no longer available. Then he told her that she should have arrived promptly at 8:15 for dinner if she desired tea. That was the only night I dined in the MDR, but I heard many other instances like that from members in our group.

 

I'm not one to stereotype, but it has been my experience that certain cultures are just not customer service oriented. People from the West Indies for example. We have had numerous negative experiences with them. Oh, BTW - our waiter was from the West Indies :rolleyes:

 

That is what the maitre'd is there for. I would not have accepted that behaviour. When you have to deal with that person for the 4, 5 or 7 or more days every day, ie MDR, then one should at least expect some reasonable interaction with the waiter/s. They are not all expected to be perfect or even personable, but courtesy is definitely necessary.

 

Some would have left and or removed their auto tips. I would have gone to maitre'd and asked for a different table. The food in the MDR is for me something to look forward to everyday, so I would be very peeved to miss out on this because of a surly waiter.

 

As for people from the West Indies, I have had the opposite experience. I have enjoyed great wait staff from many of the islands without exception. So I dont really get the the cultural difference thing. Cant say that I can identify one region, culture of the world, who were not good at their shipboard jobs. Have mostly enjoyed excellent service from people from all over the world, have also had a few who were less than great and only one very bad encounter, so cant pick out one group. That is my experience.:)

 

and by the way, that one rude employee I encountered was caucasion.

[PAPERBKWRITER]

If you described her behavior accurately she was way beyond a "bad day." Over the years I've encountered a few who could have used a little polishing up on customer service, but never nothing like this. I suspect if she continues this way she won't be working for Carnival very much longer.

[oncruisecontrol]

Well Sue, that couldn't be farther from the truth:rolleyes: In all of my travels I have only had a negative experience with that culture. Plain and simple. There are just some cultures who will go out of their way to be nice to let's say, "you" but will have a completely different attitude toward "me" and not because you're any more pleasant than I.[/quote]

Sue may be right. Between the lines in your posts there is a hint of disdain towards West Indians. It is possible for a person to unconsciously give off a vibe of disdain towards others that those, to whom it is directed, can perceive. Maybe you are reaping what you are sowing.

[nhraformula00]

Some of these people work 16-18 hours a day for months on end. Bound to have a bad day once in a while, you think?

[Jimmy Geegitz]

OP If thats the worst that isn't bad at all. Not even worth posting.

[stewpapa]

OP If thats the worst that isn't bad at all. Not even worth posting.

 

Actually I get to decide what is "worth" me posting and you get to decide what is "worth" you reading and commenting on. I guess we both decided that it was.

[lillian marie]

We had a problem with our door on one cruise, it wouldn't open with our key card and I met a very surly woman at the purshars desk. I think she was unhappy or really felt powerful.

[sum1savage]

Not trying to cheerlead or anything, honest I'm not... but I don't see anything exceedingly rude here.

 

She was obviously there to run the library, maybe part of running the library is to make sure the door is shut?

 

People aren't supposed to talk in a library, so I wouldn't be bothered by her not striking up conversation. I also think looking disgusted is subjective. My mom has a serious set face, she could be perfectly happy and look mean and mad. It's just how her face looks. I don't find lacking a constant smile to be rude, either. Crew are human.

 

As for slam, I doubt she slammed a laptop down, maybe set it down a little hard. I'm guilty of letting things fall too hard or shutting doors too hard because I'm oblivious at times.

 

Maybe she wasn't as friendly as she could be, but I don't find her rude. I'm sorry that you did but good on you for not letting it ruin your cruise, too many people would come here screaming that their cruise was ruined! RUINED!!! :)

I directly manage roughly 60 employees in the service industry, and one conversation I am constantly having with employees is "perception is reality". It does not matter what the actual circumstances of the employees situation are, it matters how they are perceived by those they are assisting. In this instance, the customers perception is that the employee was rude, and therefore that is the customers reality.

[littysmom]

:eek:

 

The absolute best treatment we ever received was from the staff at sandals negril in jamaica. :d

 

worst were the snotty french at club med turks & caicos. There, i actually did confront one young man who held court in the dining area every night, who said something very snarky to me in front of other guests. I reminded him that we were paying $500 a day to be there, and he was being paid to serve us and keep a civil tongue in his head. He shut right on up after that.

 

Because of him and others like him, we never returned to a club med.

 

Geographically speaking, both those places are in the west indies (greater and lesser antilles, respectively). ;)

 

good for you!!!

[Cactuscruise]

Been Cruising on Carnival for 12 years, and have had NO problem with ANY Carnival Crew or Staff EVER. But last week on the Triumph we had an appallingly rude staff member who made me feel uncomfortable on a cruise fo the first time ever. We just got out of there and steered clear of her for the rest of the cruise. Nothing was said and our cruise was as wonderful as always, just surprised at the bad attitude never encountered before. Maybe she was just having a bad day. I hope so, but if not, she needs to go!

 

My wife and I were playing Dominoes in the Library with our Mothers. There were two couples studying and reading and another group of ladies just getting there for a meeting.

 

This Carnival Dancer Girl comes in and throws her bowl of cereal, laptop and backpack down on the desk, where a couple were studying. She looks around disgustedly and starts unlocking the bookshelves. She asks the ladies if they are using a chair that is out of place and they say yes, they are waiting for a friend. Again she looks disgusted. She closes the door to the library and plops down and starts eating and looking at her laptop at the desk where the young couple is studying. She never says "Hi, how is everyone doing today?" or anything, just acts as if we are all invading her personal space. The couple at the desk packs up and leaves. The ladies at the table pack up and leave. The couple reading pack up and leave. Each time someone left, she got up and shut the door behind them, never saying another word or acknowleding anyone. We finish our Domino game and leave. Come to find out, she was there to check out books from the library if anyone needed one from 10-11 and 2-4. We avoid the Library and her from then on. I have never seen such a rude Carnival Employee before and hope never to do so again. Even if they are tired and overworked, it is thier job to be nice and realize that each person on board is there for their long awaited vacation and we are not just another slob who will be getting off in a few days never to be seen again. The people cleaning our toilets do it with a smile. The ones scrubbing the floors as kids run past them dripping ice cream and water from the swimming pool do it with a smile. All this girl had to do was sit in the Library for an hour and she is disgusted and rude. She needs to go.

I know many of you have, but I have never met a rude Carnival employee before. I guess we are lucky.

 

Just one minor incident. Doesn't all that rude just not pleasant. Everyone doesn't have to smile at you, sometimes an employee just has a bad day. I certainly have at my job. I wouldn't have avoided the library just because of this. A bit of an overreaction if you ask me.

[stewpapa]

Just one minor incident. Doesn't all that rude just not pleasant. Everyone doesn't have to smile at you, sometimes an employee just has a bad day. I certainly have at my job. I wouldn't have avoided the library just because of this. A bit of an overreaction if you ask me.

 

Funny that you would say it was an over-reaction since we didn't "react" at all. Nothing was done or said. Everyone left the library but us right away. We quietly finished our game, left the library, didn't comain to guest services, didn't remove anyone's tips.... We went about our business and had a great day. It was unusual in our experience and I posted it here to see what others have experienced. No "reaction" at all.

[richfret]

I work in retail. I bet if you asked this Carnival employee for her stories, she could top this in a few seconds.

[srlafleur]

I may be out of line here, but I wonder if crew members are supposed to be eating breakfast during assigned duties? I doubt she will be getting the "Employee of the Month" award.

 

 

Hmm. Now there's a thought - the breakfast thing. Kind of confirms my suspicion that she may have been called in at the last moment to substitute for someone.

Which doesn't condone her inability to put on her happy face in front of the customers, but it does explain it, particularly if she was rudely awakened for the task after a long night performing. Wonder if she was even on duty in the library for the rest of the week?

[julee407]

I was there too. She DID slam her stuff down on table. She DID make everyone in that room feel like they shouldn't be there. She WAS rude. And yes, I'm sure she was having a bad day. No overreacting here at all. I am an office manager at a physical therapy office. I work with the public every day, and if I'm having a bad day, I still have to put forth a good front, even when I don't feel like it. It's called customer service.

[wrigley80]

Last March we were on the Fantasy and on our first morning waking up on the ship. We woke up to a broken porthole window.......and I mean shattered. We thought maybe it was just fog on the tempered glass so my dad touched it and we was cut on his finger. We called guest services and our room steward. They both arrived after about 10 minutes.

The room steward immediately started accusing us of breaking the window. He said I must have kicked it during the night :eek: anyone who has ever had a porthole window knows that would be impossible if you are laying in bed. I showed the room steward and the lady from guest services that I had glass in my bed. I politely asked our room steward if he could change all my bedding because there was glass in my bed. He said he would. The next night about 1:00 am when I got back to my cabin to go to bed......my bedding hadn't been changed and the glass was still there :mad: I was furious. We called guest services and a Pursers officer came down to change my bedding :) he was very nice and said that he would have a "talk" with the room steward. Yeah I bet they talked ;) Needless to say but the tip for our room steward was removed from our sail and sign.

Only bad experience that we have ever experienced on a Carnival Ship

[maruba]

As the Mom of a Carnival Dancer, (no , not one on the ship referred to here), may I just say my heart goes out to the girl. Yes, these girls are payed to entertain you ON THE STAGE. They can be in rehearsal from 3 to 8 hours each day. Something the passengers never see. In addition they do Port duties, immigration, library duties, safety drills daily (many are trained as lifeboat captains). They assist with bingo, art auctions, photography, first aid, medical emergencies, dance classes for passengers, fitness sessions for staff, ping pong competitions, lead deck parties and so the list goes on. They are all away from their families, many having left loved ones and even their children at home. That lap top maybe her only link with her family, I know it was my daughters only link with her young child as she worked to try to secure a future for them both.

It saddens me that you did not see this young ladies name. Carnival empleyees always wear their name badges clearly displayed. The fact you noted she was a "dancer" indicates you read the badge but did not see the name which is in letters 3 times ther size of "dancer" which also by the way if you take the time to look shows the country they are from. I think you saw dancer, and thought now entertain me. Take a moment and see the person, please. Don't always wait to be greeted and bowed to, take the time to be the first to say hello, and maybe, if you think they are not doing their job, "why are you here today". You might be surprised by the response.

Also on a final note, did any of you know the dancers are NOT part of any tip pool and can be fired for accepting tips from passengers. Yes they do all demanded of them and fill in all the gaps on the wage they sign up on to perform for you.

[sum1savage]

As the Mom of a Carnival Dancer, (no , not one on the ship referred to here), may I just say my heart goes out to the girl. Yes, these girls are payed to entertain you ON THE STAGE. They can be in rehearsal from 3 to 8 hours each day. Something the passengers never see. In addition they do Port duties, immigration, library duties, safety drills daily (many are trained as lifeboat captains). They assist with bingo, art auctions, photography, first aid, medical emergencies, dance classes for passengers, fitness sessions for staff, ping pong competitions, lead deck parties and so the list goes on. They are all away from their families, many having left loved ones and even their children at home. That lap top maybe her only link with her family, I know it was my daughters only link with her young child as she worked to try to secure a future for them both.

While this may all be true, it is a choice they have made when they accepted the position. My job has a lot of drawbacks as well, but it is how I chose to support my family and I therefore complete the duties of my job as they are described to me. I don't have the option of not doing my job because it's difficult at times.

[missdebi]

When they take the job they know their duties and I speak from experience, it would be great if the entertainment staff only had to perform but that is not the case. We all have bad days but when you deal with the public in a job that involves people spending money on a much needed vacation you need to suck up your attitude and leave in in your crew quarters!

[maruba]

OMG people read my whole post PLEASE. See past your selfcenterdness, self entitelment. NO dancers ARE NOT part of the general entertainment staff. They do NOT sign on for the job to be at your beck and call 24 hours a day. I have my daughters original contract, they sign on to DANCE for you and to do X amount of shows a week for X amount of dollars.

I think it speaks for itself that you skipped over the part where I asked you to see the person.

[maruba]

When they take the job they know their duties and I speak from experience, it would be great if the entertainment staff only had to perform but that is not the case. We all have bad days but when you deal with the public in a job that involves people spending money on a much needed vacation you need to suck up your attitude and leave in in your crew quarters!

If your experience is different please share the details. Remember I am only the "mum" but have cruised several times with my daughter and have seen what the dancers do.

[missdebi]

My daughter is also a dancer and she didn't take a cruise line position because she had friends who HATED the other jobs they had to do and after looking at the contract it was stated that they would have other duties which were outlined in the contract they work lots of hours! I am just tired of the "I'm having a bad day excuse" this girl could have sucked it up for an hour, I'm sorry if this seems harsh but we have to stop giving ourselves excuses.

[Cruisin 4 Ever]

I'm surprised so many are saying they've never encountered a rude staff person on Carnival. I have. And every time, ironically enough, it's been the "Customer Service" staff and usually the manager of Customer Service.

[sum1savage]

OMG people read my whole post PLEASE. See past your selfcenterdness, self entitelment. NO dancers ARE NOT part of the general entertainment staff. They do NOT sign on for the job to be at your beck and call 24 hours a day. I have my daughters original contract, they sign on to DANCE for you and to do X amount of shows a week for X amount of dollars.

I think it speaks for itself that you skipped over the part where I asked you to see the person.

I don't care who the "person" is, they are the face of carnival as far as the consumer is concerned. Therefore their job is to make the consumers experience as pleasant as possible. I did read the entire post, all I saw was a "mum" refusing to see the situation for what is was.

As far as "self centerdness and self entitlement", you need a reality check. I'll bet you still fold your daughters laundry, don't you?

[iluvdoxies]

As the Mom of a Carnival Dancer, (no , not one on the ship referred to here), may I just say my heart goes out to the girl. Yes, these girls are payed to entertain you ON THE STAGE. They can be in rehearsal from 3 to 8 hours each day. Something the passengers never see. In addition they do Port duties, immigration, library duties, safety drills daily (many are trained as lifeboat captains). They assist with bingo, art auctions, photography, first aid, medical emergencies, dance classes for passengers, fitness sessions for staff, ping pong competitions, lead deck parties and so the list goes on. They are all away from their families, many having left loved ones and even their children at home. That lap top maybe her only link with her family, I know it was my daughters only link with her young child as she worked to try to secure a future for them both.

It saddens me that you did not see this young ladies name. Carnival empleyees always wear their name badges clearly displayed. The fact you noted she was a "dancer" indicates you read the badge but did not see the name which is in letters 3 times ther size of "dancer" which also by the way if you take the time to look shows the country they are from. I think you saw dancer, and thought now entertain me. Take a moment and see the person, please. Don't always wait to be greeted and bowed to, take the time to be the first to say hello, and maybe, if you think they are not doing their job, "why are you here today". You might be surprised by the response.

Also on a final note, did any of you know the dancers are NOT part of any tip pool and can be fired for accepting tips from passengers. Yes they do all demanded of them and fill in all the gaps on the wage they sign up on to perform for you.

 

waaa- nobody forced her to take the job