Help Tipping Info for Australia and New Zealand

[Brisbane41]

3 hours ago, Docker123 said:

 

There is a minimum wage, but it does not work the same as in Australia or for all staff. 

 

For wait staff, there is a minimum of around $2.15, with the assumption that tips will bring it up to the $7.50 figure (which is the minimum taxed amount). 

 

 

https://www.dol.gov/whd/state/tipped.html

I am wondering what you are suggesting by a minimum wage in Australia for all staff.....?

 

The hospitality industry recently had their penalty rates adjusted so that Saturdays and Sundays are a uniform rate. This makes sense to me as it would reduce all the infighting in workplaces over who is entitled to that coveted Sunday shift when they have nothing on. Saturday is when all the family sports are on and other events and people have to work for a lower wage on a Saturday compared to Sunday when there is next to no events on that people are obligated to attend. I for one kind of support that change to our system.

 

On the other hand if you are referring to same wages for all staff as in some get ripped off then you are right.

 

I have worked with a lot of Japanese people on working holiday visas in Australia. The horror stories I am told makes me disgusted at what people in this country can get away with. Foreign workers are often kept off the books and paid below the award wage if they are on a working holiday visa. The employer may falsify the hours worked or falsify a lot of things if they are paying them through a system the ATO monitors. I have heard stories from Japanese people who have to file a tax return in Australia for their working holiday where an employer has declared to the ATO that they have paid the correct wage where in fact the employer has pocketed half themselves, paid the foreign worker half and given them a false pay slip and the ATO another pay slip declaring they paid them in total. It is absolutely disgusting.

I can guarantee you that almost every Asian worker in Sydney at cafes, restaurants, coffee shops who is on a temporary working visa is probably earning half what an Australian citizen earns and employers can get away with it because the foreigner does not know our laws.

 

When it comes to housing it is even worst. The house or unit owners are so unscrupulous that they actually find the websites that Asians use to look for a unit to rent, advertise in all the Asian languages and pile them into these "share units" have up to six people in one room where the owner can make a fortune out of their lack of knowledge of our system.

 

Also these foreign workers if found to receive tips will have them confiscated to distribute among "all the staff" including Australian management, owners and so forth.

[Elorac123]

10 hours ago, TTFromSommersTown said:

First let me say that this forum is the most kind and helpful one on Cruise Critic.

 

I was born in England and for over 30 years lived there before emigrating to Canada where I have lived for over 20 years. When I am England on holiday I tip as the English do and when I am in Canada I tip as the Canadian do.

 

I will be in Sydney for a few days before going to New Zealand to visit relations and then returning to Sydney. I then will be taking a 34 day cruise on the Maasdam. The cruise will visit New Zealand, Tonga, Alofi, Fiji, New Caledonia, South Australia and Tasmania.

I would like your help with tipping so that I can conform to the the Australian/New Zealand way.

 

In England it is normal to tip the following.

1) Taxis, between 5 and 10%. Often just rounding up to the nearest pound so on very short journeys may be a greater percentage.

2) Airport shuttles to Hotel/ Cruise Ships, 1 or 2 pounds

3) Bars, nothing unless the bartender was very good or you are a long time customer.

4) Cafe's (MacDonald's type) nothing or a few pence if rounding up the bill.

5) Good quality restaurants/hotel restaurant,  up to 10% if service is very good. 

6) Tours, 5 for a half day up to 10 pounds for full day. Includes both tour guide and driver. May be more if tour is exceptional.

Please let me know what changes you recommend from the above English way. I understand that Australia and New Zealand may be slightly different so all comments are welcome. 

 

Thanks in advance for your help.

Since when did the tipping start in UK,,never heard if it ?

Bad habit started by citizens of underpaid workers.?

Cheers Carole

[lyndarra]

Tipping coach drivers and tour director was around 22 years ago when we did a Cosmos tour of England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland. Cosmos recommended 4 or 5 pounds for Tour director and 2 pounds for the driver. The tour was 30 days. The mostly Aussie passengers were not amused.

[Aus Traveller]

11 hours ago, lyndarra said:

Tipping coach drivers and tour director was around 22 years ago when we did a Cosmos tour of England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland. Cosmos recommended 4 or 5 pounds for Tour director and 2 pounds for the driver. The tour was 30 days. The mostly Aussie passengers were not amused.

My MIL did a few tours of the UK and Europe in the late 1990s. She told they were told that tips were expected and how much it was per day. To say that she wasn't amused is an understatement. I assume the amount you quote is  'per day'?

[lyndarra]

32 minutes ago, Aus Traveller said:

My MIL did a few tours of the UK and Europe in the late 1990s. She told they were told that tips were expected and how much it was per day. To say that she wasn't amused is an understatement. I assume the amount you quote is  'per day'?

Yes, per day.

[lyndarra]

On our first tour of China (during the SARS scare whatever year it was) we had to pay compulsory tips up front in cash on the first day. These were for the tour guide, porters, drivers. We discovered later that these people did not get a wage at all, their entire pay was from the tips.

[Bubbeh]

Do NOT tip; I can't stress this enough.  The remuneration relationship exists between employer and employee, not the employer's customer.  In our culture it can be viewed as a demeaning practice and changes the equal footing relationship of the customer and the employee.  It is encumbent on an employer to pay their staff a pre-determined living wage and each side of the equation knows and expects this.  If you receive absoulutley exceptional service you may feel inclined to tip but, when and if you do,  thank the staff member and let them know exactly what was so brilliant in their performance (as opposed to their colleagues) that has inclined you to pay more than you should for your experience.

[lyndarra]

My late wife, if she experienced exceptional service from an employee, would write a letter of praise to their boss.

[NSWP]

19 hours ago, Brisbane41 said:

They do not have gratuities added in.

 

For example a Uluru Sunrise tour and Kata Tjuta sells for $145. If for argument sake they sold out the entire 65 seat coach at that price then it is $9,425 in fares. A driver is likely to do more than one tour per day. Quite often 3 and a few charters. Therefore the driver could be driving people who have paid out in total more than $30,000 in fares per day. Out of that the driver is likely to get $380 or day give or take. I think working off commission would be much fairer!

But I bet the 'hat' still gets passed around on your coach, with contented pax throwing in a dollar or three.

Edited August 15, 2019 by NSWP

[NSWP]

4 hours ago, Aus Traveller said:

My MIL did a few tours of the UK and Europe in the late 1990s. She told they were told that tips were expected and how much it was per day. To say that she wasn't amused is an understatement. I assume the amount you quote is  'per day'?

We have done half a dozen Trafalgar coach tours in Europe, inc UK, Western and Eastern Europe.  Yes you are advised pre tour of the tipping required per day for driver/tour director, paid at the end.  Suffice to say more than a few Aussies did not open their wallets, whilst the North Americans did and probably doubled the suggested gratuity.    We had a couple of 20 something South African girls on one tour and they were aghast at the tipping because of the SA Rand being worth next to nothing.

Edited August 15, 2019 by NSWP

[GUT2407]

2 hours ago, lyndarra said:

My late wife, if she experienced exceptional service from an employee, would write a letter of praise to their boss.

I do that to, or on a ship seek out their boss, hand him the letter and tell him who and why I am so impressed

[Elorac123]

16 hours ago, lyndarra said:

Tipping coach drivers and tour director was around 22 years ago when we did a Cosmos tour of England, Scotland, Wales and Ireland. Cosmos recommended 4 or 5 pounds for Tour director and 2 pounds for the driver. The tour was 30 days. The mostly Aussie passengers were not amused.

Lived for many many years in UK and am a frequent visitor now I reside in Australia,

Never have I or seen anyone I was with tip anyone apart from rounding up taxi fares which is not expected.(forgot about tours and tipping)

Been on a couple of Cosmos tours in US and Canada and of course knew I needed to tip but did not tip the recommended as a few of us over dinner did some sums and I can’t remember now what it added up to but with a full bus (and Cosmos do pack them in )

It was a ridiculously huge amount so most of us tipped as a couple so reducing the amount by half and they still did well ,no idea how much wages they got from Cosmos but they made more than a good wage from tips.

Cheers Carole

[brian1]

2 hours ago, Elorac123 said:

Lived for many many years in UK and am a frequent visitor now I reside in Australia,

Never have I or seen anyone I was with tip anyone apart from rounding up taxi fares which is not expected.(forgot about tours and tipping)

Been on a couple of Cosmos tours in US and Canada and of course knew I needed to tip but did not tip the recommended as a few of us over dinner did some sums and I can’t remember now what it added up to but with a full bus (and Cosmos do pack them in )

It was a ridiculously huge amount so most of us tipped as a couple so reducing the amount by half and they still did well ,no idea how much wages they got from Cosmos but they made more than a good wage from tips.

Cheers Carole

Different parts of the UK have different attitudes to tips.My part have always tipped in restaurants,barbers and taxis.

[brian1]

On our Princess 6 day landtour of Aus in 2013,Princess suggested an excessive amount for guide and driver.At the end of the tour we just handed over all our excess Aus Dollars,I forget how much but it wasn't an insult.The guide seemed shocked,she wasn't expecting anything and was very grateful.I think all these "suggestions" are just standard patter based on American customs regardless of where in the world the tour maybe.

[GUT2407]

29 minutes ago, brian1 said:

On our Princess 6 day landtour of Aus in 2013,Princess suggested an excessive amount for guide and driver.At the end of the tour we just handed over all our excess Aus Dollars,I forget how much but it wasn't an insult.The guide seemed shocked,she wasn't expecting anything and was very grateful.I think all these "suggestions" are just standard patter based on American customs regardless of where in the world the tour maybe.

Yep, we did a circumnavigation of Aus Cruise was stunned to see tha patter recommending between 15 and 20% each Port, I hadn’t seen it on any of our other Princess cruises, before it since.

[OzKiwiJJ]

6 minutes ago, GUT2407 said:

Yep, we did a circumnavigation of Aus Cruise was stunned to see tha patter recommending between 15 and 20% each Port, I hadn’t seen it on any of our other Princess cruises, before it since.

I saw that on the Majestic cruise to Tasmania last year.

 

I don't think they actually check (or understand) some of the stuff they are printing. 🙄

[Brisbane41]

4 hours ago, NSWP said:

But I bet the 'hat' still gets passed around on your coach, with contented pax throwing in a dollar or three.

Usually never. With an almost all Australian bus load they know our culture and will never tip. Americans find a certain company I have worked with when I am out there to be too expensive for their tastes. If anyone tips it is usually people from South Africa of all countries and those people are few and far between and it usually only goes to the guide.

 

The only time I have been given cash be people at the resort which is more of a reward than a tip is doing things out of the realm of duty like going all the way back to the resort from the airport to collect a guests forgotten luggage in which case it is a reward for helping them out. Another time I have been given cash was for a charter group that was on a tight schedule and wanted to see Ayers Rock from a vantage point before getting to the resort. I managed to accomplish that in the way they asked which was kind of not part of the job description at the time but allowable by the company if time permits. Sometimes charter groups involve conferences where they are their for a major conference in a hired room and the company was too tight to pay for a tour. In this case if they request a look at the rock we can deviate to a Sounds of Silence site with a lookout to slow their arrival a little bit to facilitate a smoother check in as all the hotels are congested when flights arrive. Generally for that we may be given cash but not all the time. It kind of encroaches on our designated break time but given the logistics it is the kind of thing that is allowed.

 

When I am not working the tourist season at Ayers Rock resort I simply drive school buses. No tips there. You may get christmas cards or their parents may give you a box of Cadbury's favourites if you have assisted their children in any way when they were in a spot of difficulty.

 

You get paid more per hour to drive school children and it is worth it. You have to be watching them at all times as well as the road. 

[Chiliburn]

On 8/14/2019 at 7:59 AM, TTFromSommersTown said:

First let me say that this forum is the most kind and helpful one on Cruise Critic.

 

I was born in England and for over 30 years lived there before emigrating to Canada where I have lived for over 20 years. When I am England on holiday I tip as the English do and when I am in Canada I tip as the Canadian do.

 

I will be in Sydney for a few days before going to New Zealand to visit relations and then returning to Sydney. I then will be taking a 34 day cruise on the Maasdam. The cruise will visit New Zealand, Tonga, Alofi, Fiji, New Caledonia, South Australia and Tasmania.

I would like your help with tipping so that I can conform to the the Australian/New Zealand way.

 

In England it is normal to tip the following.

1) Taxis, between 5 and 10%. Often just rounding up to the nearest pound so on very short journeys may be a greater percentage.

2) Airport shuttles to Hotel/ Cruise Ships, 1 or 2 pounds

3) Bars, nothing unless the bartender was very good or you are a long time customer.

4) Cafe's (MacDonald's type) nothing or a few pence if rounding up the bill.

5) Good quality restaurants/hotel restaurant,  up to 10% if service is very good. 

6) Tours, 5 for a half day up to 10 pounds for full day. Includes both tour guide and driver. May be more if tour is exceptional.

Please let me know what changes you recommend from the above English way. I understand that Australia and New Zealand may be slightly different so all comments are welcome. 

 

Thanks in advance for your help.

Please don’t tip.

we are paid a decent wage and we don’t want to go down the Americans path of a low wage and beg and dance for money 

[Aus Traveller]

1 hour ago, GUT2407 said:

Yep, we did a circumnavigation of Aus Cruise was stunned to see tha patter recommending between 15 and 20% each Port, I hadn’t seen it on any of our other Princess cruises, before it since.

I have seen that in the Princess Patter - and we weren't on your cruise. Pity about that - I would like to meet you. 🙂 Maybe one day.

[GUT2407]

2 minutes ago, Aus Traveller said:

I have seen that in the Princess Patter - and we weren't on your cruise. Pity about that - I would like to meet you. 🙂 Maybe one day.

You must be the only one on earth who wants to meet me, even Mrs G wishes she hadn’t and today we recall (can’t say celebrate) 38 years of wedded something or another.

[brian1]

The bus driver on our Cairns leg of the tour only had 1 arm.Does that mean if we'd tipped him he'd only get half the handout.That's true by the way and he would laugh about it,he kept up the wisecracks himself all the way.

[Crisso]

 It has been interesting reading all the comments about tipping and I can say with some authority that in the over 60 years I have lived in Sydney I have never given anyone a tip in Australia. Occasionally in a cafe or perhaps a taxi I wouldn't bother taking the few coins change, but generally you should never feel like you have to tip in Australia.

[Adventures ahead]

On 8/13/2019 at 10:54 PM, SinbadThePorter said:

 

I was wondering if Canada does the same thing as in the US and require service staff to work for $2/hr plus tips.

 

Nope!  Here's the 'dope' on Canada...

https://www.narcity.com/life/heres-how-much-a-server-is-getting-paid-per-hour-by-province-in-canada

 

[Adventures ahead]

double post

 

Edited August 18, 2019 by Adventures ahead

[plode]

Don't tip in New Zealand, it is not necessary.  A few restaurants will have a jar on the counter where you can leave a tip if you want to but you don't have to.  Tipping is not our way of life here and we have never tipped in our home country.  Keep your tips money and spend it on sightseeing.  Enjoy