USA TODAY's guide to cruise ship gratuity charges

[Aus Traveller]

Then Princess had better inform the person in charge of paying crew when I asked her on a recent cruise. She said that all tips attributed to a ship stay with that ship's (and only that ship's) crew. Can you point us to the Princess announcement that you say says otherwise.

I can't point you to that announcement. I can remember a big discussion on this forum about it and people feeling the tips should stay on the ship and probably even the cruise in which they are collected. I agree with that sentiment. Of course, the discussion here in the past on this topic, could have been in error. ;p We know that not everything posted here is correct. :)

[Optotronics]

Then Princess had better inform the person in charge of paying crew when I asked her on a recent cruise.

 

She said that all tips attributed to a ship stay with that ship's (and only that ship's) crew.

 

Can you point us to the Princess announcement that you say says otherwise.

Yes, please show this announcement. if it exists that would be very disturbing; we are tipping the crew of our ship for their service and not carnival/princess corporate and if they want to give out "staff incentives and cash awards" they should be doing it with their own corporate funds and not our tip money for the crew on our voyage.

IF this were the case then they are taking auto tips, counting them as revenue for the company to make them look better on the books which may violate SEC rules and then then when giving out incentives/ bonus/ cash awards with our tip money they also reap the tax writeoff on those payments as if it was their money to beginning with.

Edited July 4, 2017 by Optotronics

[Aus Traveller]

I have found one item from Princess on gratuities that indicates the tips are shared across the fleet. I quote -

 

During your cruise, regardless of which Princess ship you choose, you will meet staff who provide you with excellent service. Crew members often rotate to different vessels within the Princess fleet which helps to maintain our high standards on every ship. These dedicated workers reflect our philosophy that all crew on all ships are but one family who share in our success.

 

To simplify the tipping process for our guests, a discretionary gratuity of $12 per person for mini-suites and suites, and $11.50 per guest in all other staterooms per day (including children) will be automatically added to your shipboard account on a daily basis. This gratuity will be shared amongst those staff who help provide and support your cruise experience, including all waitstaff, stateroom stewards, buffet stewards, and housekeeping staff across the fleet.

 

For all sailings departing on or after January 1, 2016, the price of the gratuities will be as follows:

 

• Inside, Oceanview & Balcony: $12.95 per person per day.
  
• Mini-Suite & Suite: $13.95 per person per day
  

 

A 15% gratuity is added to bar charges, dining room wine accounts, and Lotus Spa® services. This is shared amongst the beverage staff, their support staff and Lotus Spa® personnel.

 

Casino dealers and youth staff do not share in these gratuities. We know you will find these services onboard exemplary.

 

Please note gratuities will be deemed undisputed unless a request to modify is received prior to disembarking the ship.

 

All policies are subject to change at the discretion of the cruise line. (10-12-15)

[SantaFeFan]

I have found one item from Princess on gratuities that indicates the tips are shared across the fleet. I quote -

 

During your cruise, regardless of which Princess ship you choose, you will meet staff who provide you with excellent service. Crew members often rotate to different vessels within the Princess fleet which helps to maintain our high standards on every ship. These dedicated workers reflect our philosophy that all crew on all ships are but one family who share in our success.

 

To simplify the tipping process for our guests, a discretionary gratuity of $12 per person for mini-suites and suites, and $11.50 per guest in all other staterooms per day (including children) will be automatically added to your shipboard account on a daily basis. This gratuity will be shared amongst those staff who help provide and support your cruise experience, including all waitstaff, stateroom stewards, buffet stewards, and housekeeping staff across the fleet.

 

For all sailings departing on or after January 1, 2016, the price of the gratuities will be as follows:

 

• Inside, Oceanview & Balcony: $12.95 per person per day.
  
• Mini-Suite & Suite: $13.95 per person per day
  

A 15% gratuity is added to bar charges, dining room wine accounts, and Lotus Spa® services. This is shared amongst the beverage staff, their support staff and Lotus Spa® personnel.

 

Casino dealers and youth staff do not share in these gratuities. We know you will find these services onboard exemplary.

 

Please note gratuities will be deemed undisputed unless a request to modify is received prior to disembarking the ship.

 

All policies are subject to change at the discretion of the cruise line. (10-12-15)

 

Sorry, but that does not indicate what you are claiming. It means, to paraphrase, "Across the fleet, this gratuity will be shared amongst those staff who help provide and support your cruise experience, including all waitstaff, stateroom stewards, buffet stewards, and housekeeping staff."

 

The "across the fleet" words indicate that sharing the tips among the support staff is done on every ship in the fleet, not shared between all the ships.

 

Also note the words "This gratuity will be shared amongst those staff who help provide and support your cruise experience". Giving some of the tip amounts to crew on other ships other than the one you are on would in no way be supportive of your cruise experience. It would be supportive of someone else's cruise experience, not yours. That wording tells me the tips go only to the crew who supported the cruise that your tips are on, not another cruise on the same or other ship.

 

But I can see where that phrasing you highlighted could be confusing.

Edited July 4, 2017 by SantaFeFan

[Aus Traveller]

I agree that the ideal situation is for the tips on every cruise to be shared with the stewards etc. on that cruise, but I am not sure that that happens.

Unless we get more information, we don't know which interpretation of my previous post is correct - tips distributed on the individual ship or shared across the fleet. My previous comment was not prompted by the Princess document that I quoted a couple of posts back, but by information I read a year or two ago.

[caribill]

Unless we get more information, we don't know which interpretation of my previous post is correct - tips distributed on the individual ship or shared across the fleet.

 

I think my conversation with a ship's person in charge of payroll (as given in a post above) is all the additional information needed.

 

The discussion on Cruise Critic a while back on this subject was based on someone who posted the sharing among ships as truth without any reference to the source of that information.

[Aus Traveller]

The discussion on Cruise Critic a while back on this subject was based on someone who posted the sharing among ships as truth without any reference to the source of that information.

I could well be. :)

[Pierlesscruisers]

If a crew member filed a lawsuit against any cruise line chances are he or she will NEVER get a job on a cruise ship again. Don't you think???

Tony

 

Are you "thinking" again Tony? Hasn't your wife warned you many times that every time you do that you get in trouble? :p

 

Tom

[cruzsnooze]

I asked on a Princess cruise last year and an officer in the payroll area told me that the tips collected for a ship are distributed only to staff on that ship. No sharing with other ships.

We have all been told different stories but the Princess web site seems to confirm what I was told that the tips are distributed by corp and not per ship. I am considering removing my gratuity and using cash as I go because Princess is not upfront about where my daily gratuity is going. If the cash i give is put into the pool by it's recipient then so be it. I feel taken advantage of by not getting a definitive answer to a question of where my tip money actually goes, and i want to see it in writing. When I went to the guest services on Celebrity they printed out a detailed list and breakdown of who gets what from my gratuity.

 

HOW DO GRATUITIES WORK?

 

To simplify the tipping process for our passengers, a discretionary gratuity charge will be automatically added to your shipboard account on a daily basis. The daily gratuity amounts are $15.50 per guest for suites, $14.50 per guest for mini-suites and club class, and $13.50 per guest for interior, oceanview, and balcony staterooms. This gratuity will be shared amongst those staff who have helped provide and support your cruise experience, including all waitstaff, stateroom stewards, buffet stewards, and housekeeping staff across the fleet. A 15% gratuity is added to bar charges and dining room wine accounts.

[jimmieg]

I asked on a Princess cruise last year and an officer in the payroll area told me that the tips collected for a ship are distributed only to staff on that ship. No sharing with other ships.

 

Princess published policy is not in agreement with the random comment of an officer. You decide.

"This gratuity will be shared amongst those staff who have helped provide and support your cruise experience, including all waitstaff, stateroom stewards, buffet stewards, and housekeeping staff Across The Fleet." (Caps mine).

Sounds to me like a giant kitty from which payroll is made.

[caribill]

I am considering removing my gratuity and using cash as I go ... If the cash i give is put into the pool by it's recipient then so be it.

 

I assume then that you will properly include in your cash distribution the personnel behind the pizza counter on the pool deck, the personnel at the burger grill on the pool deck, the personnel at the soft-serve ice cream counter on the pool deck, the personnel at the International Cafe (including the staff that picks up your used dishes), the personnel that bring you juice/coffee/water in the buffet, the staff member who brings you cookies and milk by the pool, etc.

 

 

It is not just your dining room waitstaff that shares in the tipping pool.

[long cruiser]

If you dine in the specialty restaurants you are still paying for tips in the main dining room.

long cruiser

[Musky Ike]

I assume then that you will properly include in your cash distribution the personnel behind the pizza counter on the pool deck, the personnel at the burger grill on the pool deck, the personnel at the soft-serve ice cream counter on the pool deck, the personnel at the International Cafe (including the staff that picks up your used dishes), the personnel that bring you juice/coffee/water in the buffet, the staff member who brings you cookies and milk by the pool, etc.

 

 

It is not just your dining room waitstaff that shares in the tipping pool.

 

Am I missing something? If cash tips go into the tipping pool when auto gratuity is removed as stated repeatedly here, would not those positions also share in that cash tip? So basically it would be the same for the amount given.

 

If this is the case, the only reasons left to consider going to cash tips would be to pad your ego or your wallet.

 

FYI, I have not and would not remove the auto gratuity. Just so much easier.

[SantaFeFan]

Princess published policy is not in agreement with the random comment of an officer. You decide.

"This gratuity will be shared amongst those staff who have helped provide and support your cruise experience, including all waitstaff, stateroom stewards, buffet stewards, and housekeeping staff Across The Fleet." (Caps mine).

Sounds to me like a giant kitty from which payroll is made.

 

This was explained in post #54. It is a case of mis-interpretation or a badly worded sentence. There is no way the tipped staff on one ship would willingly let their tips be sent off to people on other ships. The idea of it is ludicrous. :rolleyes:

[Colo Cruiser]

I assume then that you will properly include in your cash distribution the personnel behind the pizza counter on the pool deck, the personnel at the burger grill on the pool deck, the personnel at the soft-serve ice cream counter on the pool deck, the personnel at the International Cafe (including the staff that picks up your used dishes), the personnel that bring you juice/coffee/water in the buffet, the staff member who brings you cookies and milk by the pool, etc.

 

 

It is not just your dining room waitstaff that shares in the tipping pool.

 

 

And the back of house crew that are inaccessible to passengers. :rolleyes:

[Pierlesscruisers]

This was explained in post #54. It is a case of mis-interpretation or a badly worded sentence. There is no way the tipped staff on one ship would willingly let their tips be sent off to people on other ships. The idea of it is ludicrous. :rolleyes:

 

While you are most probably correct in saying that the sentence is poorly worded/constructed and I believe that your interpretation of what is meant by that sentence. For one thing, to share tips throughout the fleet would be impossible to manage I would think, especially when you consider how many crewmembers start and begin contracts throughout the year. How in the world would you manage the program if it were not done on ship-by-ship basis? I'd sure hate to have that job. In the end, however, you, me, someone else...none of us know for sure how it's done, we are all basing our guesses on what we've heard through the rumor mill. Even if it's been told to us by "a bartender on the XX Princess" or "a ship's officer on the YY Princess", how do we know that they know for sure? And I doubt very seriously if Princess, the company, is going to pass out info like that, as it's really none of our business!

 

Only thing this discussion really does is build message traffic here on Cruise Critic! :)

 

Tom

[Iamcruzin]

What is a 'living wage' and how does one calculate the 'living wage'?

I don't know but depending on where you live in NY State the minimum wage ranges from $9.70 to $11.00. People in the service industry earn less per hour because they work off of tips. Anybody who lives in New York will tell you that this is not a living wage unless you live in a cardboard box.

[RocketMan275]

What is a 'living wage' and how does one calculate the 'living wage'?

 

I don't know but depending on where you live in NY State the minimum wage ranges from $9.70 to $11.00. People in the service industry earn less per hour because they work off of tips. Anybody who lives in New York will tell you that this is not a living wage unless you live in a cardboard box.

..

 

Since very few of the crew are from NY State, the minimum wage there is irrelevant. Please explain how you would calculate a living wage for the ships crew which come from many different countries each of which would have a different living wage. Would the compensation vary by country? Would a waiter from NY State have a different compensation than a worker from Indonesia?

[Dudleydog73]

On Australian-based Princess cruises, auto-tipping was removed on 1st May 2011. Princess announced that the crew members who had previously been in the tipping pool would receive a much higher wage, comparable to what they received previously. Stewards tell us they love the system because they know exactly how much they will get each month. The fact that they keep coming back to work on these ships proves that they feel the remuneration is worthwhile.

.

Is this for all passengers on Australian based ships or just the Australian/New Zealanders sailing on Australian based ships? I read "recent" posts that those of us from the US get charged with the auto tip even though the employees on the Australian ships get paid more. In the case of our recently booked cruise the price charged to us in USD is more than the price charged to those in Australia using their AUD dollars taking into account the exchange rate. I fail to see how this is fair seeing as we are being told that those in AUS/NZ pay "more" for the privilege of not paying auto tips.

[Iamcruzin]

..

 

Since very few of the crew are from NY State, the minimum wage there is irrelevant. Please explain how you would calculate a living wage for the ships crew which come from many different countries each of which would have a different living wage. Would the compensation vary by country? Would a waiter from NY State have a different compensation than a worker from Indonesia?

 

I don't believe there is such thing as a living wage in terms of the way it's being applied on this thread. My personal opinion is that the cruise line staff are far better off than the rest of us in terms of "A living wag" which is the point that I was trying to make by quoting the minimum wage for NY State. They don't pay for housing, food, medical, utilities or clothing and their uniforms are cleaned for them. Those necessities take a huge bite out of any take home income I receive. Any money they make via tips or salary would be disposable income. I don't care if they are sending money home to build a school or hospital. Even with that they probably have more disposable income than I do. With that said, I leave the auto tip in place. The only contract that I agreed to was the cruise contract. I'm not trying to be Norma Rae on my vacation. Whatever contract the cruise staff signed that's the terms that they agreed to. Whether the money stays with the ship or is dispersed across the fleet is none of my concern.

Edited July 11, 2017 by Iamcruzin

[Aus Traveller]

Is this for all passengers on Australian based ships or just the Australian/New Zealanders sailing on Australian based ships? I read "recent" posts that those of us from the US get charged with the auto tip even though the employees on the Australian ships get paid more. In the case of our recently booked cruise the price charged to us in USD is more than the price charged to those in Australia using their AUD dollars taking into account the exchange rate. I fail to see how this is fair seeing as we are being told that those in AUS/NZ pay "more" for the privilege of not paying auto tips.

You are correct. From 1st May 2011 stewards etc. on Australian-based ships have been paid a higher wage that brings them to what they would have received if they were on ships where the tipping pool applies. Strangely, people who book in either USA or UK are still charged tips. Maybe the company doesn't want passengers seeing that the sky doesn't fall down when there are no tips. It is up to you whether you remove these discretionary tips. I personally do not think you should feel guilty about removing the tips. Keep in mind that the crew are being paid quite well. You can always tip a bit extra if you wish. I point out that on ships where the tips apply, I believe these should be paid by all passengers as the crew rely on them to get a reasonable wage.:)

[caribill]

..

 

Since very few of the crew are from NY State, the minimum wage there is irrelevant.

 

Many of the staff earn more (including tips) by working on a cruise ship than they would earn in their home countries if they were doctors, engineers or teachers.

 

From the Internet:

 

Philippines’ residents in public hospitals can get as much as PHP 20,000-25,000 (USD 402 - 503) per month, plus bonuses that are given out to all government employees.

 

 

A chemical engineer earns an average of $491/month.

 

 

The starting salary of public school teachers is at P19,000 ($373) per month but may total P23,000 ($452) when the benefits or allowances are included.

 

A policeman has a P14,000 ($275) salary and a nurse a P19,000 ($373) salary.

[maz48]

I for one would rather see higher fares and no daily gratuity charge. As long as people are permitted to remove the daily gratuity charge, I can't help but feel that my higher daily charges (that keep going up and up!) are subsidizing those who remove the daily charges.

 

I would also like gratuities completely included in the cruise fare. No more tipping problems, worries, inferior feelings when someone says they tip excessive amounts. If they can do so for Australia and NZ, why not for the rest of the world? I can't understand that. But, if they did include them, some people would still tip, particularly Americans, and then crew could begin to expect it, and then it would all start all over again. Back to added gratuities but no reduction in fares to compensate, and more tipping threads.

 

I do hate that auto gratuity amounts have increased so much, and those of us who do keep them on our accounts(we have never removed them or cut the amount) have to pay more to cover those who don't.