Waiting for the tip

[Amymacc]

Hi,

 

After a trip on the Voyager to Bermuda I got very friendly with our waiter from Jamaica and started asking him a lot of questions about how things work on RCCL. He was hesitant to answer the questions and very tactful when he finally did. I was suprised to find out that RCCL holds thier tips for at least one month when you pay for them on your sea pass account. Ever since then we tip them all in cash. As much as I LOVE RCCL they make enough off my money that they don't need to earn interest on their workers tips. If I am wrong about this and Christian was trying to work my sympathies please let me know. I'm not afraid to be corrected.

 

Happy Sailings!

 

Amy

[Sheffie]

Can you delete his name from this post? I think it is usually not best not to mention crew members names.

[Alexis]

Hi,

 

After a trip on the Voyager to Bermuda I got very friendly with our waiter from Jamaica and started asking him a lot of questions about how things work on RCCL. He was hesitant to answer the questions and very tactful when he finally did. I was suprised to find out that RCCL holds thier tips for at least one month when you pay for them on your sea pass account. Ever since then we tip them all in cash. As much as I LOVE RCCL they make enough off my money that they don't need to earn interest on their workers tips. If I am wrong about this and Christian was trying to work my sympathies please let me know. I'm not afraid to be corrected.

 

Happy Sailings!

 

Amy

 

We had been told that also, by more than one person on different RCCL ships. It makes it difficult for them if they are leaving for their time off to have to wait for their tips.

I do know they prefer the cash. That is what we have always tipped.

 

Can you delete his name from this post? I think it is usually not best not to mention crew members names.

You are correct. I deleted it from my quote response too.

[bplazo]

I do not see anything wrong with getting your pay in a few weeks. I work as a server and anything that is charged is paid through our paychecks. It usually takes about two weeks to receive. They probably dont spend alot because of living on the ship.

[Sheffie]

Amy, check the next to the last line.

 

I agree w/ giving them cash, especially extra!

[Alexis]

From talking to so many of them over the years, most of them send their money home to their families who are in other countries. I prefer to make it more convenient for them. They have to feed their kids too. :)

Just my opinion. ;)

[cruisin from florida]

I do not see anything wrong with getting your pay in a few weeks. I work as a server and anything that is charged is paid through our paychecks. It usually takes about two weeks to receive. They probably dont spend alot because of living on the ship.

 

no, no, no...

The more I read here the happier I am that we have always tipped in cash. Particularly if we overtipped based on outstanding service. I want the person who provided that service to receive our gratuity, immediately.

I worked as a server years ago. If someone charged a tip, we were paid at the end of the shift, not weeks or months later.

As far as not spending a lot because of living on the ship, that is not the point at ALL. These folks spend long periods of time away from their families, often to provide for their families. I strongly suspect that the majority of the service personnel do not spend their tips on themselves. We last cruised JUST before Christmas. We debarked on the 23rd of December, which means we tipped on Dec. 22. Our service personnel, if they had wanted to, could have wired Christmas money back home. And I talked to some sweet, homesick folks that week. I hope our tips made their Christmases a bit happier.

 

We'll continue to tip in cash. All these threads have only reinforced our decision to do so.

[Coralc]

Tips charged to your Seapass, as well as the automatic 15% gratuity on beverages, appear in the server's paycheck. They are paid once a month. The server who sells you the drink and runs his card through the register, does receive a large percentage of that 15% in his check.

 

Cash tips given to bar servers during the cruise are supposed to be pooled. Last night tips given to individuals may be kept.

 

We spent some talking to bar servers during a rainy Monarch cruise. :)

[MGoBlue2]

From my conversations with staff over the years, they care a lot more about whether you tip, and how much, than they do how you decide to do it.

[FinelyCruising]

****As much as I LOVE RCCL they make enough off my money that they don't need to earn interest on their workers tips. If I am wrong about this and Christian was trying to work my sympathies please let me know. I'm not afraid to be corrected.***

 

 

Many people may actually beleive this, but I think rules of banking and public corporations don't allow the cruiseline "make interest" on the liabilities, aka the accounts payable disbursements of tips to the staff, assuming the thought is that the cash cruisers post are commingled into ownership accounts.

 

While all the cash may all be placed into a bank account of the cruiseline and later disbursed, all the deposits are not for the benefit of the cruiseline, which is clearly known at the bank. Those are not accounts that can be associated with interest since they are merely a clearing house. It would be inappropriate for the cruiseline to benefit to gain interest for the temporary hold by the cruisers intended deposits to the staff until the ultimate distribution to the end recipient of the staff is made by the cruiseline.

[MGoBlue2]

****As much as I LOVE RCCL they make enough off my money that they don't need to earn interest on their workers tips. If I am wrong about this and Christian was trying to work my sympathies please let me know. I'm not afraid to be corrected.***

 

 

Many people may actually beleive this, but I think rules of banking and public corporations don't allow the cruiseline "make interest" on the liabilities, aka the accounts payable disbursements of tips to the staff, assuming the thought is that the cash cruisers post are commingled into ownership accounts.

 

While all the cash may all be placed into a bank account of the cruiseline and later disbursed, all the deposits are not for the benefit of the cruiseline, which is clearly known at the bank. Those are not accounts that can be associated with interest since they are merely a clearing house. It would be inappropriate for the cruiseline to benefit to gain interest for the temporary hold by the cruisers intended deposits to the staff until the ultimate distribution to the end recipient of the staff is made by the cruiseline.

It's not a matter of "making interest", RCI - or any other company - does not have to pay its employees for credit card tips until they get paid by the credit card company. Otherwise, they would "lose interest" by having to pay it out before they actually received it. Also, legally, they can also decuct the amount discounted by the credit card company before they pay their employee the tip.

[Silvery Seas Cruiser]

Another reason we tip in cash on RCI is that we had signed up for the pre-paid tip arrangement and then had such an unpleasant time with our dining room waiters on one cruise, we stopped eating in the dining room and didn't want to tip them for other than they two nights they actually "served" us.

 

So I asked at the Customer Service if I could reduce their tips because we did not go to the dining room after the first two nights. I was told that once you sign up for the pre-paid tips, no changes can be made!!!

 

Having learned my lesson, I bring envelopes with me on a cruise and hand out my own tips to those who truly deserve them. We give tips to Windjammer waiters who have been extra helpful and I like to tip musicians if I feel they have played exceptionally well or played a special request for me.

 

Speaking of tips, one RCI crew member told us they really, really appreciate it if they are mentioned by name in the Customer Comments card and praised for their special service. I now make it a point to get the names of very helpful staff who have gone above and beyond for us.

[FinelyCruising]

duplicate of below....

[FinelyCruising]

Mgoblue2 - I also do not beleive the cruiseline is allowed to take as "a deduction" the fees associated with the net the staff will recieve less the credit card fees as a reult of the percentage the credit card companies charge for those fees. The hit goes to the staff.

[MGoBlue2]

Mgoblue2 - I also do not beleive the cruiseline is allowed to take as "a deduction" the fees associated with the net the staff will recieve less the credit card fees as a reult of the percentage the credit card companies charge for those fees. The hit goes to the staff.

I'm not sure what you're saying but, yes, the hit goes to the staff - a company is not required to give more to staff than the net they get.

 

Having said that, again, from my conversions with staff - their main concern is getting tipped, and how much, not the 1-2% hit or the slight delay.

[FinelyCruising]

Mgoblue2 -- Just saying the cruisline is not benefitting from the hold on the guests gratuity by way of interest or from the vig on the hold from the difference between the actual intended tip and the credit card companies hold back for the usage of their card for payment. On American Express the hit is 4%, that's why many stores don't take it.

[pcur]

First, Hi, Alexis and Patty!! Just got back on the boards.

 

I'm just getting more and more reinforcement all the time to no charge my tips. I like the idea of the tip the staff get from us being from US, not a bi-weekly or monthly lump sum.

 

Gonna go back to cash tipping.

[MGoBlue2]

Mgoblue2 -- Just saying the cruisline is not benefitting from the hold on the guests gratuity by way of interest or from the vig on the hold from the difference between the actual intended tip and the credit card companies hold back for the usage of their card for payment. On American Express the hit is 4%, that's why many stores don't take it.

I think we're in agreement. The staff gets slightly less when you use a credit card. My main point was they care a lot more whether you tip the recommended amount (or higher) than whether you use cash or a credit card.

[megessey]

Can you delete his name from this post? I think it is usually not best not to mention crew members names.

 

I had never heard that before, and have seen many people's reviews with their servers or stewards names..... sometimes they'll mention a bartender you should go say "hi" to, etc....

 

Not meaning to be confrontational, just curious to know why this would be bad?

[Sheffie]

I had never heard that before, and have seen many people's reviews with their servers or stewards names..... sometimes they'll mention a bartender you should go say "hi" to, etc....

 

Not meaning to be confrontational, just curious to know why this would be bad?

 

We all love our waiters, etc. from our cruises, (well most of us do) and we wouldn't want anyone reading these boards to take something that we are repeating from out of context and possibly construe it as having been said in a negative way about their employer.

 

Using someone's name to say great things about them is fine. Just my opinion.

[Coralc]

OT: Hi Peggy, we were wondering what happened to you. Someone actually started a thread, looking for you.:) I will send email tomorrow.

[Hypo]

The subject of tips is alway shrouded in mystery. The traditional tip for good service has been presumed to go to the person providing it. However, from discussions I have had over the years with cruise waiters and stewards, shoreside restaurant and hotel staff, any tips are shared with the backstaff. Waiters pay off the maitre'd for better tables and more hours. Some goes to bus boys, etc. Several years ago, there was a thread on CC where a waiter, who worked on RCI ships, explained the pooling of the tips. According to him, there is a formula as to who gets what, based in part, on the guest comment cards.

 

The problem is that some people and cultures do not tip; that is the reason that the Windjammer is not open the last night, in order to move as many people into the main restaurants, where they will hopefully tip. The concept of charging tips automatically (as some lines do) is another way to help assure that people pay. When they started automatic tip programs, (and like RCI, still allowed some passengers to tip in cash) a new problem arose; occasionally a waiter or room steward would just pocket the cash tip (instead of pooling) and say that the guests in cabin so-and-so did not pay the tips. Who was going to know?

 

The natural progression for the cruise lines was then to institute mandatory daily resort charges (like the $10.00/day/pp that NCL is doing).

The rest of the Cruise lines will probably follow this trend.

 

Most of us realize that tips are a part of the cost of cruising, but there will always be some cruisers that try to beat the system. For my part, I truly wish that tips went to the person I gave them to, however, there are many people behind the scenes that we never tip, and they are surely as deserving. Maybe a better solution is to add the value of the tips into the cost of the cruise (after all it equals the same amount we are paying for the cruise), but then the questions is will service suffer?

 

Always enjoy reading everyone's comments.

 

Hypo

[FinelyCruising]

Mgoblue2 - We are :)

[Nliedel]

I think that the reason this persons name should not be mentioned is that perhaps it could be construed as a violation of line policy and perhaps be something that could place their job in jepardy. When a crew member is outstanding mentioning their name is encouraged.

[FinelyCruising]

I can't imagine not singing the praises of Freddie the Martini bar tender....I am OK with names....:)