The change in cleaning means 24 cabins per steward vs. 12

[island lady]

13 hours ago, Ocean Boy said:

I would be too OCD to enjoy anything else until my luggage was found.

 

Me as well.   I am anal...and just don't feel settled until my luggage has arrived and I am neatly unpacked.  😉 

[island lady]

23 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

Right now, with RCI's pricing for cruises, I'm not sure that they care what any of us think about anything. They seem laser focused on two concerns which are how much can they charge and how much can they cut.  I'm not sure that will change unless booking start falling off. The cruise lines had really better hope that the generation coming up loves cruising as much as we do.

 

LOL...they are falling off in my bookings.  😉 

[Jumping Cruiser]

On 4/24/2023 at 12:33 PM, silentbob007 said:

One a day service was a pain with the sofa bed made up taking up most of the floor space and a toddler in diapers with a tiny trash can. Yes I was able to put the bed away myself but for the money we were paying each day in gratuities for three people, it was a bit irksome. Perhaps we should have chosen morning service but our mornings were much less structured and didn’t want to feel rushed to give him time to clean. We saw him a lot in the hall and one day I did ask for him to change the trash midday. 

 

I thought I had heard that the stateroom attendant would put sofa-bed up of a night and back away in the mornings, despite what time your room is cleaned. I read that they would literally just put the bed up/away and only do a full clean once. Was this not the case for you?

[pilot]

19 hours ago, fsjosh said:

 

You'd be better off just telling the steward directly you'll tip him extra to come back in the evening to do turndown. Going over their head doesn't usually motivate people to do better work. 

I don’t understand why you would be willing to tip him extra for a service that was previously provided (and with an increase of daily gratuities).

 

 I am sailing in June and will not alter daily gratuities, but survey will start at “5” for housekeeping, exceptional service will get a “6”.

 

Also have future cruises on Celebrity and Princess…they will still get a “10”. 

[JsMom2]

On 4/22/2023 at 1:29 PM, goldfish65 said:

They'll make more, won't they? I am curious. Maybe some of them are ok with busting their butts for more money. 

Nope.  Our daily service fees went up, but the amount given to the stateroom attendants went down.  Remember our fees go into a pool.  And the cruise line decides how to divvy it up.  Our tips aren't tied to our room attendant.

 

[Pandamonia]

Im even more looking forward to cancel tips on Royal and not be expected to pay them on P&O.

 

How long until Royal expects 20$ a day tips and you have to make your own bed? Clean your own toilet? 

 

this cruise line is going down hill faster than its decline in food quality.

[fsjosh]

13 hours ago, PWP-001 said:

 

Let me clarify to help you see the difference:

 

Example of "Going over their head"

Guest:  "Can you do this?"

Employee:  "No"

Guest:  "Let me speak to your manager"

 

Instead, speaking with the manager first allows the manager to make a decision on the request and deliver a clear message to the employee as to what should be done.

 

In this particular situation, bribing the steward to go against policy, as you suggest, is really going behind RCI's back, per se.  The company has a new policy that a guest is asking their employee to circumvent by "motivating" them with an extra tip.

 

 

Finally, ask yourself:  If you were running a company, wouldn't you appreciate hearing from your guests about a policy change that impacts your guests?  And if there were enough negative comments, wouldn't you alter policy to accommodate?   

 

 

 

 

If you go over their head, you are getting the bare minimum from that point forward if not worse. These workers are motivated by money. If they aren't doing something I want done, and it's company policy not to do it, there is one way to get it done. Pay them. The steward knows his schedule and time constraints more than his manager or anyone at corporate. If you offer him more for a task, and the amount you offer is worth it to him he'll get it done. If he doesn't have time, he'll decline. You are asking for turndown, not for him to smuggle you some weed. Turndown isn't against corporate policy. I promise you very few people between that guys boss and Michael Bayley will give the slightest care if he makes some extra tips if it doesn't infringe on his other duties. 

 

If you go full Karen and complain to the manager, you absolutely aren't getting the extra service, and you complaint is not going any farther than that manager. He has no say in anything. If you want the people that make the decision to hear about it, there's ways to do it. Complaining to the rank and files will get nothing accomplished. 

 

 

4 hours ago, pilot said:

I don’t understand why you would be willing to tip him extra for a service that was previously provided (and with an increase of daily gratuities).

 

 I am sailing in June and will not alter daily gratuities, but survey will start at “5” for housekeeping, exceptional service will get a “6”.

 

Also have future cruises on Celebrity and Princess…they will still get a “10”. 

 

You are getting one a day no matter what the previous service was. If you need two a day, you are going to have to tip more to have any chance at getting it, or pay more by getting a suite. 

 

Personally I don't care. In normal hotels, I leave the DND up the whole time I'm there. I don't need two a day. 

 

You down rating the staff without context just punishes the people who have no say in this. They won't know you were mad about one a day service, they'll think your attendant did a bad job. 

 

Edited April 26, 2023 by fsjosh

[PWP-001]

10 hours ago, fsjosh said:

 

If you go over their head, you are getting the bare minimum from that point forward if not worse. These workers are motivated by money. If they aren't doing something I want done, and it's company policy not to do it, there is one way to get it done. Pay them. The steward knows his schedule and time constraints more than his manager or anyone at corporate. If you offer him more for a task, and the amount you offer is worth it to him he'll get it done. If he doesn't have time, he'll decline. You are asking for turndown, not for him to smuggle you some weed. Turndown isn't against corporate policy. I promise you very few people between that guys boss and Michael Bayley will give the slightest care if he makes some extra tips if it doesn't infringe on his other duties. 

 

If you go full Karen and complain to the manager, you absolutely aren't getting the extra service, and you complaint is not going any farther than that manager. He has no say in anything. If you want the people that make the decision to hear about it, there's ways to do it. Complaining to the rank and files will get nothing accomplished. 

 

 

 

You are getting one a day no matter what the previous service was. If you need two a day, you are going to have to tip more to have any chance at getting it, or pay more by getting a suite. 

 

Personally I don't care. In normal hotels, I leave the DND up the whole time I'm there. I don't need two a day. 

 

You down rating the staff without context just punishes the people who have no say in this. They won't know you were mad about one a day service, they'll think your attendant did a bad job. 

 

 

😳

I'm not sure whether I read a page from

How NOT to Win Friends & Influence People,

Cynic's Social, 

or simply Miss Manners ON ACID.

In any event, kind sir/madam, your sage advice is set aside as I pursue this in a kinder, gentler fashion.

 

At the request  of another, poster here, I will report back at the conclusion, should you care to lower the drawbridge to the fortress of your mind.

Edited April 26, 2023 by PWP-001

[bucfan2]

1 hour ago, PWP-001 said:

 

😳

I'm not sure whether I read a page from

How NOT to Win Friends & Influence People,

Cynic's Social, 

or simply Miss Manners ON ACID.

In any event, kind sir/madam, your sage advice is set aside as I pursue this in a kinder, gentler fashion.

 

At the request  of another, poster here, I will report back at the conclusion, should you care to lower the drawbridge to the fortress of your mind.

Both of you have valid points/approaches.  I can see where your 'drawbridge' can be considered a 'dream bridge to utopia', and can also see where his/her point may not win friends/influence people.  Different approaches to reach a common objective.

[pghflyer]

15 hours ago, JsMom2 said:

Nope.  Our daily service fees went up, but the amount given to the stateroom attendants went down.  Remember our fees go into a pool.  And the cruise line decides how to divvy it up.  Our tips aren't tied to our room attendant.

 

 

Is this factual?  I have read nothing that says when they raised gratuities that they reduced the percentage allocated to room stewards. Even if they did lower the percentage, wouldn't that be offset by an increase in number of rooms they are now getting a cut from? It is a little amusing how involved some are in monitoring wages - you don't see many people scrutinizing the wage allocation in a Holiday Inn but for some reason it is different on cruise ships.

 

I know some people post that the stewards are working "more" but we don't know if the amount of hours of work they are expected to be working in a day went up - we are just experiencing a change in what they are doing with those hours during the day. Instead of doing our rooms twice and towel animals and such, they now just do a basic once-a-day clean on a higher volume of rooms.  Again, we only see this from the perspective of the customer since we are not their employer and don't need to be involved in where their work is allocated.

Edited April 26, 2023 by pghflyer

[Ocean Boy]

20 minutes ago, pghflyer said:

Again, we only see this from the perspective of the customer since we are not their employer and don't need to be involved in where their work is allocated.

Ah, but you are forgetting about those customers that apparently spend a good part of their cruise vacation interrogating the staff and monitoring guest services for people adjusting their gratuities them reporting their findings on CC.

[kirtihk]

On 4/24/2023 at 9:04 AM, pghflyer said:

Just off a NCL ship that went to once a day as well. NEVER saw my room steward once and while I thought I didn't care about turn-down, we definitely missed the evening ice delivery and having glasses and plates removed.  Some families were sad to not have their kids bed (ex. sofa) taken up/ put down as well since they had to do themselves to use the balcony. Our room was less clean than on past cruises (some days floor not vacuumed) and carts stayed in the hallways almost all day.  We will always leave our auto-gratuities on (which by the way increased while they halved a large piece of our service being delivered), but at the rate auto-gratuities are going up inverse to service, our days of leaving a little more may be over.  Just a reminder this was NCL ($18 per day standard rooms vs $16 per day on RCCL), but I don't think any of them are that different in this regard.

It’s $20 now fir balcony and below, not $18 (unless booking occurred prior to January 1st and gratuities are pre-paid).

 

https://cruiseradio.net/norwegian-cruise-line-gratuities-increase-2023/

Edited April 26, 2023 by kirtihk

[fsjosh]

15 hours ago, PWP-001 said:

 

😳

I'm not sure whether I read a page from

How NOT to Win Friends & Influence People,

Cynic's Social, 

or simply Miss Manners ON ACID.

In any event, kind sir/madam, your sage advice is set aside as I pursue this in a kinder, gentler fashion.

 

At the request  of another, poster here, I will report back at the conclusion, should you care to lower the drawbridge to the fortress of your mind.

 

Gotcha.

 

Tipping staff extra for more service = Acid trip 
Complaining to the manager about something someone at least 4 pay grades above them decided = Kind and gentle

 

The fact that you think going straight to the manager instead of tipping the steward is the way to win friends and influence them is about as delusional as it gets. 

 

No need reporting back. I have no doubt that you are so sure of yourself that even when you don't get what you want, you'll twist it to suggest you did. 
 

[PWP-001]

On 4/26/2023 at 10:31 PM, fsjosh said:

 

Gotcha.

 

Tipping staff extra for more service = Acid trip 
Complaining to the manager about something someone at least 4 pay grades above them decided = Kind and gentle

 

The fact that you think going straight to the manager instead of tipping the steward is the way to win friends and influence them is about as delusional as it gets. 

 

No need reporting back. I have no doubt that you are so sure of yourself that even when you don't get what you want, you'll twist it to suggest you did. 
 

 

A number of years ago a group of passengers that I was part of witnessed an elderly gentleman loudly berate an attendant onboard claiming the attendant was doing a bad job.  His words included "...I'm going to report you, and you are going to lose your job," as he pointed his finger at the attendant.  He left the attendant visibly shaken, upset and close to tears.  I don't think any of the five or six others who witnessed this thought there was anything wrong with the attendant's performance and several of us consoled the attendant by telling him we thought he was doing fine.

 

The image of that angry man came to mind when I read your post #82.  Why? 

 

When someone refers to employees as "These workers" and uses pejoratives such as "...going full Karen" --and let's not forget the reference to "smuggling weed,"-- ... well, in all, it just made your communications feel crass and gruff.

 

As someone who has served in the hospitality industry for close to two decades mostly in managerial positions, including executive positions, I can tell you that your "perception" of management is highly inaccurate.  I am someone who was responsible for policy changes and implementation.  I've also developed policy & procedures that were adopted company-wide for a prominent upscale hotel chain.  This is EXACTLY the time that managers at all levels are observing closely and monitoring feedback from guests and employees.  This is a major shift for the company.  The individuals who generally fill the cabin steward position tend to prefer "routine," and they are now faced with a major disruption.

 

Behind the scenes RCI has created at least one video:  I've learned about one for Guest Services, so I can imagine that there are others.  This is to say that RCI recognizes this as a major shift.  And I'm certain they are confident that it will work.  Their stance is firm:  "No exceptions."  This is a further indicator that they are listening (not soliciting) feedback.  Because while they are confident, I'm sure they realistically understand that the program might need tweaking for it to be fully effective in its best form.

 

For the record, I have not ever worked for RCI or consulted for them:  my sole relationship to RCI is that of passenger.

 

My response to you, in post #83 was intentionally esoteric to mask what I truly was stating.  The few that got it probably laughed.

 

If you choose to respond, I'd simply ask that you give it some time and perhaps put some thought into how your words may be perceived.

 

  

[PWP-001]

On 4/26/2023 at 10:31 PM, fsjosh said:

 

Gotcha.

 

Tipping staff extra for more service = Acid trip 
Complaining to the manager about something someone at least 4 pay grades above them decided = Kind and gentle

 

The fact that you think going straight to the manager instead of tipping the steward is the way to win friends and influence them is about as delusional as it gets. 

 

No need reporting back. I have no doubt that you are so sure of yourself that even when you don't get what you want, you'll twist it to suggest you did. 
 

 

Lastly, I will say that the conduct you suggest when used by a guest paints the picture of a guest that is abhorred by managers.  A guest that uses money to persuade an employee to do something against policy is disruptive and harmful.  I’m not talking about the guest who tips for an extra pillow, towels or blanket:  those are expected requests.  Even a guest who tips the steward and asked to be the first room cleaned every day are withing the realm of acceptable requests.  However, as an example, to tip the steward when telling them:  “Hey, I know you saw that iron we have plugged in, that we somehow managed to sneak past the security screening.  Please don’t tell or report us,” is unacceptable.  Hyperbole, perhaps, but when a line is implementing a major shift to “once-a-day service” and then a guest attempts to circumvent that policy by offering money to deviate from this new policy, it’s wrong.  In fact, I’d venture to say that it takes advantage of the cabin steward’s fear of upsetting a guest by saying “NO.” 

 

I don’t think there’s a housekeeping manager onboard that would be comfortable knowing some of their room steward’s are running their own side business, collecting money/tips to provide services that are in direct conflict with implementation of “once-a-day” service.

[Baron Barracuda]

On 4/25/2023 at 4:14 PM, JsMom2 said:

Nope.  Our daily service fees went up, but the amount given to the stateroom attendants went down.  Remember our fees go into a pool.  And the cruise line decides how to divvy it up.  Our tips aren't tied to our room attendant.

 

Theoretically share of tip pool allocated to cabin stewards should not have changed.  With stewards  roughly doubling the number of cabins they cover RCL now only requires half as many stewards.  Therefore remaining stewards should receive twice as much from pool.  Same issue arose a few years ago when they switched from cabin stewards working in teams to solo.

 

Separately, those considering reducing their auto grats in protest should recognize they're punishing waiters and everyone else in the pool not just stewards.