Question for those who remove auto tips

[setsail]

Tips are pooled. When one reduces/removes tips then the pool is affected which in turn affects the amount all the crew gets, not just one waiter/steward/etc. They don't do individual bookkeeping for each crew member.

[BonTexasNY]

Unfortunately, there are those that have the mindset of not tipping the wait staff if they can opt out. I don't how how people can not tip and ignore the fact that the crew works practically non stop to make sure every expectation is met to their satisfaction.

 

Before auto pay we had a family of 3 sit at our table on The Rhapsody a few years back. They came to every dinner and kept the waiter hopping with many additional requests after their food was served. The waiter, btw, was wonderful. The last night they didn't show up and the waiter told us they never left a tip. .

 

Something just not right about that :(

[LMaxwell]

the waiter told us they never left a tip. .

 

Seems odd for a waiter to discuss that.

[Retired LEO]

Unfortunately, there are those that have the mindset of not tipping the wait staff if they can opt out. I don't how how people can not tip and ignore the fact that the crew works practically non stop to make sure every expectation is met to their satisfaction.

 

Before auto pay we had a family of 3 sit at our table on The Rhapsody a few years back. They came to every dinner and kept the waiter hopping with many additional requests after their food was served. The waiter, btw, was wonderful. The last night they didn't show up and the waiter told us they never left a tip. .

 

Something just not right about that :(

 

I agree. There use to be so many empty tables on the last night. I always felt so sorry for the wait staff.

[blondie from arizona]

Part of the answer is that YES I can change the tips. I want to know specifically if I can adjust the tips down, but not to zero?

 

And, if I can leave one department with full tips and lower the tip for another department?

 

Does anyone have a copy of the form or a description of the form?

 

Thanks for your help.

[maureencruiser]

I agree that if the room steward is that terrible, you need to bring it up on the cruise. The OP did state they had MTD, I wonder if that affects the steward, since he doesn't know when you will be out of the cabin for dinner. I always put out the servive this room sign when I leave, it has never failed me on any cruise line. Also, it is hard for me to believe service could be so terrible, you refuse to pay him 3.85. Really, people spend more than that on a cup of coffee.

[2thesea]

if they call it anything other than Gratuities or Tips it may work.

 

You are correct if in fact they call it something other than tips. "Fees" listed cover a wide array of things, mystery things that I have never gotten a clear answer on. Back in the "old days" you had your cruise fare and port taxes…..that was it. Not sure when they added the "fees" as a line item but they can't be removed.

 

They could add a "resort fee" so to speak and it cover tips I guess. Resort fees at hotel resorts are a set fee per night.

 

Tips are tips and up to the individual passenger. It's a shame the amount of passengers that still do not tip. Have you ever noticed the amount of people missing from the last night in the MDR? A lot of times they are people that decided not to tip. I have heard this from a lot off servers over the years. Last year on our cruise on FOS group (family I believe) took up 2 10tops and did not tip the servers one red cent. :eek:

Edited May 17, 2015 by 2thesea

[depplep]

My parents have the tips removed from their account every cruise because they don't trust that Royal actually gives the full amount to those that served you. They hand out cash instead on the last evening as in the old days. I wonder if it isn't almost impossible these days to do that as there are so many other dining venues that you never actually see the same person twice and have been waited on by scores of employees.

[BonTexasNY]

Seems odd for a waiter to discuss that.

 

Not at all. We discussed where they could be and my husband told him that since they got such wonderful service, he hoped they showed their appreciation. It was a comment, not a question but the waiter chose to say they didn't. I don't know whether he should or should not have commented. After 7 nights, sometimes even lunch time, we established a very friendly rapport with the waiter and I think he just felt comfortable talking to us.

[spookwife]

My parents have the tips removed from their account every cruise because they don't trust that Royal actually gives the full amount to those that served you. They hand out cash instead on the last evening as in the old days. I wonder if it isn't almost impossible these days to do that as there are so many other dining venues that you never actually see the same person twice and have been waited on by scores of employees.

 

 

if they do not trust the cruiseline then maybe they should not be cruising on that line.

 

the employes would NEVER stay for multiple contracts over years and years if the company as a whole were not treating them fairly. to include making sure they got their cut of the gratuities.

 

I think that part of the reason the recent increase took place is too many people were removing auto gratuities and claiming to want to 'put the money directly into the hands of the people that served me' and in reality doing no such thing.

 

I also firmly believe that the ones who are most vocal about this are looking to make themselves look better to everyone else, NOT looking to properly compensate the staff. "see how wonderful i am by personally handing over an envelope full of money!"

 

FTR I always pre paid even before the advent of MTD and the requirement to do so. and i also would tip extra when it was warranted.

.

[depplep]

I wouldn't put it past any business to undercut their employees if they can get away with it. "Oh, sorry, no tip for you this cruise, Mr. & Mrs. Depplep chose to remove prepaid gratuities.

[NewSalt]

How do you tip the behind the scenes people, the ones who also depend on gratuities for their income? I'm thinking of the people I see all the time on the public areas of the ship, shining away fingerprints and smudges and cleaning and polishing the hand rails, the pool attendants, the servers/bussers in buffet, and those who work in the laundry that produces the crisp sheets and fluffy towels we use. That last has to be one of the most unpleasant jobs on a ship.

 

In a perfect world, their pay would come from the cruise line, but my reading of the way tips are meted out, it would seem that part of the auto gratuity goes to them.

 

So how do you tip them?

[laura Bra]

So how do you tip them?

 

each time I pass them,I give each of them one dollar.

It makes me feel better, and I sleep better at night.

 

 

Your bud

Edited May 17, 2015 by laura Bra

[depplep]

if they do not trust the cruiseline then maybe they should not be cruising on that line.

 

the employes would NEVER stay for multiple contracts over years and years if the company as a whole were not treating them fairly. to include making sure they got their cut of the gratuities.

 

I think that part of the reason the recent increase took place is too many people were removing auto gratuities and claiming to want to 'put the money directly into the hands of the people that served me' and in reality doing no such thing.

 

I also firmly believe that the ones who are most vocal about this are looking to make themselves look better to everyone else, NOT looking to properly compensate the staff. "see how wonderful i am by personally handing over an envelope full of money!"

 

FTR I always pre paid even before the advent of MTD and the requirement to do so. and i also would tip extra when it was warranted.

.

 

I believe also that many were not tipping. Again, that's why my parents choose to hand it directly to the people that served them so that they know they were compensated accordingly. I on the otherhand am not going to hunt the ship on the last night to tip everyone I came in to contact with. I just assume the payments got distributed to the proper people.

[MadManOfBethesda]

So, does anyone know how Royal Caribbean is trying to justify posting that information?

 

Sure; it's very simple. If the auto tips are removed, the affected crew members are required to turn in any cash tips they receive from the occupants of the cabin in question. Those cash tips are then added to the tip pool for all to share.

 

Conversely, if the auto tips haven't been removed, then the crew members are permitted to keep any excess cash tips they receive from those passengers. Therefore, the crew must be made aware of who has removed their auto tips. Thus, the reason for the list.

[caribbean sailor]

no flaming please. This is a serious ? So, if you go to guest services to remove or lower the tips, is it an all or nothing proposition? A percentage? A certain $ amount? Or by department?

 

Example: Your wait staff was wonderful, but your room attendant was horrible. Can you leave the tips on for the wait staff and lower it for the room attendant? And, can you lower it by 20% or would i need to remove them completely and have enough cash to give to everyone else?

 

Thanks in advance for all the helpful information. Again, no flaming please.

 

 

yes

[LMaxwell]

Sure; it's very simple. If the auto tips are removed, the affected crew members are required to turn in any cash tips they receive from the occupants of the cabin in question. Those cash tips are then added to the tip pool for all to share.

 

Conversely, if the auto tips haven't been removed, then the crew members are permitted to keep any excess cash tips they receive from those passengers. Therefore, the crew must be made aware of who has removed their auto tips. Thus, the reason for the list.

 

Conjecture. But makes a nice story.

[caribbean sailor]

The cruise lines give to each attendant you have so if you want to self adjust I suggest removing all your tips and handing cash to each person. We have done this, and beware that there is a list posted in crew quarters with the names of who has removed tips. We have seen our service quality decline when doing this. I suggest doing this the night before your cruise ends so your service doesn't decline for too long.

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk[/quote

 

 

We have not seem any change in service.Who cares if there is a list.We tip the way we want,and don't need royal to decide who gets our money.And we decide how much they get.If they do a good job they get more.SOUNDS LIKE A SCARE TACTIC FOR NEW CRUISERS. :)

[Thetrail]

Seems odd for a waiter to discuss that.

Funny you should say that...had a waiter on Allure tell us the exact same thing. Doesn't seem odd at all to me. If you work your ass off all week to get stiffed at the end of the week I can absolutely see the frustration and angst it could cause a waiter and or assistant waiter. Venting or expressing their displeasure doesn't seem odd at all. We knew something was amiss when the table that was also there all week didn't show up the last night. Have seen it happen too many times. Edited May 17, 2015 by Thetrail

[RocketMan275]

Conjecture. But makes a nice story.

 

Conjecture? Actually a proven fact that HAL requires service personnel to turn in all tips from those who have removed gratuities. Probably true on other lines as well.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2206593

Edited May 17, 2015 by RocketMan275

[Thetrail]

Sure; it's very simple. If the auto tips are removed, the affected crew members are required to turn in any cash tips they receive from the occupants of the cabin in question. Those cash tips are then added to the tip pool for all to share.

 

Conversely, if the auto tips haven't been removed, then the crew members are permitted to keep any excess cash tips they receive from those passengers. Therefore, the crew must be made aware of who has removed their auto tips. Thus, the reason for the list.

And you know this how?

[caribbean sailor]

if they call it anything other than Gratuities or Tips it may work.

 

You are correct if in fact they call it something other than tips. "Fees" listed cover a wide array of things, mystery things that I have never gotten a clear answer on. Back in the "old days" you had your cruise fare and port taxes…..that was it. Not sure when they added the "fees" as a line item but they can't be removed.

 

They could add a "resort fee" so to speak and it cover tips I guess. Resort fees at hotel resorts are a set fee per night.

 

Tips are tips and up to the individual passenger. It's a shame the amount of passengers that still do not tip. Have you ever noticed the amount of people missing from the last night in the MDR? A lot of times they are people that decided not to tip. I have heard this from a lot off servers over the years. Last year on our cruise on FOS group (family I believe) took up 2 10tops and did not tip the servers one red cent. :eek:

 

Funny we just got off the Liberty,last night the MDR was full.Maybe you should worry more about what you tip,and stop guessing what other people tip.Have a great next cruise.:)

[Thetrail]

Conjecture? Actually a proven fact that HAL requires service personnel to turn in all tips from those who have removed gratuities. Probably true on other lines as well.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2206593

Probably doesn't hold much water......:rolleyes:

[Retired LEO]

Conjecture? Actually a proven fact that HAL requires service personnel to turn in all tips from those who have removed gratuities. Probably true on other lines as well.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2206593

 

Quite clear and to the point.

[iheartbda]

Conjecture? Actually a proven fact that HAL requires service personnel to turn in all tips from those who have removed gratuities. Probably true on other lines as well.

 

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2206593

Even if a deity from above would come down and post the same thing, there will be those who doubt it.

 

I'm sure someone will shoot this down as well. After so much discussion about tips/gratuities on CC, whatever you want to call it, on our last cruise I asked the steward a question. If I had prepaid the gratuities and I chose to give him something over and above in cash, was he able to keep that money and not turn it in to the pool? He said yes.