Tips/Hotel/Gratuity Charges (MERGED)

[senior49]

This will be our first time on the Cunard line in July, 2013. We always use the auto tipping method on any cruise line. If there are circumstances where we receive something special from our cabin or dinner server then we pay a little extra to that person. Come on--you Brits have a reputation for being cheap tippers.

Mary:)

[bazzaw]

[quote name='dencruise80']

I have heard that P&O removed tipping in Australia. Cunard should do the same. [/QUOTE]

This has happened on P&O AND Princess ships which operate permanently out of Australia - both being Carnival Corp Companies. However they are separate Companies to the "other" P&O and Princess Companies.

This appears to be working quite well for Australian passengers on Australian ships in Australian waters - where the problem lies is with what are essentially US ships sailing in various Northern Hemisphere waters with a mix of passenger Nationalities.

This American "disease" of not paying "service" workers - and expecting them to get their remuneration from tips is apparently also fairly well entrenched in the UK (must be the close proximity to the US?). The new arrangements for the Australian lines came about around the very time that other cruiselines (Carnival Companies and others eg RCI) have gone in the exact opposite direction.

Barry

[bazzaw]

[quote name='glojo'] Here in Torquay I can assure you the British workforce is the main nationality that works within the hotel industry,

[/QUOTE]

We stayed in a number of UK hotels last year - when we did the Cunard "3 Queens" cruises. And, of course, tasted many pints in others . I can't really say that I came across a single "English" person in any of them - most were very hardworking and attentive people from places like Poland. Didn't get to Torquay though.

Barry

[bazzaw]

[quote name='senior49'] Come on--you Brits have a reputation for being cheap tippers.

[/QUOTE]

And you Americans have a reputation for not paying some of your labour force - expecting them to receive their remuneration by grovelling. I recall a baggage handler at Fort Worth airport - who wore a badge which said [B]"I work for tips"[/B]

Barry

[glojo]

[quote name='bazzaw']We stayed in a number of UK hotels last year - when we did the Cunard "3 Queens" cruises. And, of course, tasted many pints in others . I can't really say that I came across a single "English" person in any of them - most were very hardworking and attentive people from places like Poland. Didn't get to Torquay though.

Barry[/quote]
Barry,
I TOTALLY accept in a number of locations foreign employees make up a significant number of the work force BUT........ I can assure you that here in Torquay, Paignton and Brixham (Torbay) this is NOT the case. Fawlty Towers might have had Manuel but that was a comedy show. A quick Google for [URL="http://www.channel4.com/programmes/the-hotel/4od"]'The Hotel' [/URL]will show a fly on the wall documentary series that features a hotel here in Torquay and surprise, surprise the significant nationality of employees is British!! Of course there will always be the occassional European but the great majority are British.

[bazzaw]

[quote name='glojo']Barry,
I TOTALLY accept in a number of locations foreign employees make up a significant number of the work force BUT........ I can assure you that here in Torquay, Paignton and Brixham (Torbay) this is NOT the case. Fawlty Towers might have had Manuel but that was a comedy show. A quick Google for [URL="http://www.channel4.com/programmes/the-hotel/4od"]'The Hotel' [/URL]will show a fly on the wall documentary series that features a hotel here in Torquay and surprise, surprise the significant nationality of employees is British!! Of course there will always be the occassional European but the great majority are British.[/QUOTE]

I believe that I said that we did not get to Torquay - so my post certainly does not contradict what you have said. What is does do however is to qualify what you have said - and to advise others that the situation in Torquay is not necessarily representative of what we experienced elsewhere in the UK.

Barry

[glojo]

[quote name='bazzaw']I believe that I said that we did not get to Torquay - so my post certainly does not contradict what you have said. What is does do however is to qualify what you have said - and to advise others that the situation in Torquay is not necessarily representative of what we experienced elsewhere in the UK.

Barry[/quote]
Totally agree and that applies both ways although sadly it is fair comment to suggest that in some areas of the UK Europeans will take on work that UK folk will turn away from :(

[Whitemarsh]

[quote name='balf'][COLOR="Red"]Unfortunatly the British workforce does not nowadays regard waiting on as a suitable job for them,[/COLOR] so I would not expect to find any working on cruise ships. Also cruise lines tend to recruite from particular areas: P&O employ Indians from Goa and almost invariably the security staff will be from the Philipines.

I am always wary of undercover exposies on tv and in papers. The fact is we do not know the answer to this question and Mr Shanks made it quite clear that he did not wish to reveal all. But, the staff on Cunard ships and all the others I have sailed have never given the impression of being unhappy to be working there, although the worst part of the job for many is being away from home for long periods. And you will often notice staff returning from port shopping trips laden with bags, often from leading retailers. And why not, but I do not believe they do so badly, with Cunard anyway.

David.[/QUOTE]

Our waiter in the Queens Grill was British, he was from Liverpool. He told me he was on the only British waiter on board.

[glojo]

[quote name='Whitemarsh']Our waiter in the Queens Grill was British, he was from Liverpool. He told me he was on the only British waiter on board.[/quote]

I had to laugh when I read this post as we have quite literally hundreds and hundreds of Liverpool folk down here and indeed the honest ones do work in the catering history but sadly most have a very bad reputation..

[QUOTE]Many of the places now seen as Liverpool strongholds have good transport links for moving drugs about, are hit by deprivation or have a mass market.

Places like Blackpool and Devon were firm family holiday favourites in the 1960s and 1970s before they became favoured spots to make ill-gotten gains – police in [B][U]Torquay[/U][/B] in the 1980s even had a team nicknamed “the Scouse Squad” to deal solely with the influx of Mersey crooks.
[/QUOTE]

This clip talks about the 1980's but nothing has changed :);)
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[bazzaw]

[quote name='Whitemarsh']Our waiter in the Queens Grill was British, he was from Liverpool. He told me he was on the only British waiter on board.[/QUOTE]

Yes -- we once came across an Australian waiter on QM2. A very unusual exception to the "rule" though :)

Barry

[Whitemarsh]

[quote name='bazzaw']Yes -- we once came across an Australian waiter on QM2. A very unusual exception to the "rule" though :)

Barry[/QUOTE]

Oh we had an Australian waitress as well. She also worked in the Queens Grill but not at our table. We would see her at afternoon tea in the QGL.