Liveaboard Tip Policy - First Time I Have Seen This One

[GoorglinGeorge]

I was on a liveaboard in August that had a tip policy that is the first I have ever encountered on a liveaboard. The dive boat managers said that their were two tip boxes. One for the dive managers and the one Indonesian dive guide and another tip box for the other 25 members of the Indonesian crew. The dive manager also said that the "crew" wanted it that way!

I have never been on a boat in the last ten years where I have seen anything other an equal share - for everyone on the boat - tip pool. I have always felt that you could give something extra to a person but agree with the general statement that those crew that are often not seen are just as important as others.

Your thoughts or experiences?

 

[almitywife]

ughhhh - tipping!

im thinking about how you guys tip in a restaurant. a chef buys the food and prepares the food and cooks the food and presents the food and gives the food to a waiter who walks it to my table and the waiter gets the tip!

when im diving i spend more time with the DM and guides so tend to look after them more...maybe the above is a way to ensure that the boat crew get something also

personally i hate tipping and love countries that dont encourage this (vanuatu, solomons are offended by tipping).... hence why i always bring clothing, gear and school supplies for the crews and their family

cheers

 

[GoorglinGeorge]

Actually many restaurants also have tip pools. Tipping is a fact of life and in many places forms a significant percentage of the income for people. Liveaboards are a separate issue from general life in places like Solomons, etc. Boats like Bilikiki and Spirit look for tips as much as any other place in the world.

 

[Bratface]

Ugh, I agree. I think tipping is completely out of hand in the US. I recently ate dinner with my Samoan friend and he didn't want me to leave a tip for the waiter.

But back to the subject of tipping the crew, I've never heard of this one either. I also dive with the DM and leave most to him and the captain. I also bring medical supplies, small gifts, or make a cash donation to the local clinic.

It seems everyone has their hand out for more all the time.

 

[alcina]

ughhhh - tipping!

im thinking about how you guys tip in a restaurant. a chef buys the food and prepares the food and cooks the food and presents the food and gives the food to a waiter who walks it to my table and the waiter gets the tip!

The chef gets paid a real wage Wait staff work for a nomimal wage, usually, and rely on tips to make what they really want to be making. I don't tip if the waitstaff - not things out of their control like food quality etc - suck. I tip according to the service and having worked as a waitress for a while, I tip very well when the service is good. That's why I go out, so I can be taken care of a bit

For the boats, that does seem a bit odd really. I'm not a fan of the tip jar. I prefer to tip those who have actually made a difference to MY experience directly. I did a trip once where two of the crew were exceptional and four were surly, inattentive and pathetic - they had a tip jar. I gave my tip directly to the crew I felt did a great job. Did others who worked hard on board miss out their "share", maybe, I'll never know if these two chucked their cash into the jar or not. I really hope the hopeless four did miss out as I was very clear to management how I felt because I did take the time to let them know I did not feel that putting a tip in the jar was appropriate.

 

[Tigerman]

The chef gets paid a real wage Wait staff work for a nomimal wage, usually, and rely on tips to make what they really want to be making. I don't tip if the waitstaff - not things out of their control like food quality etc - suck. I tip according to the service and having worked as a waitress for a while, I tip very well when the service is good. That's why I go out, so I can be taken care of a bit

For the boats, that does seem a bit odd really. I'm not a fan of the tip jar. I prefer to tip those who have actually made a difference to MY experience directly. I did a trip once where two of the crew were exceptional and four were surly, inattentive and pathetic - they had a tip jar. I gave my tip directly to the crew I felt did a great job. Did others who worked hard on board miss out their "share", maybe, I'll never know if these two chucked their cash into the jar or not. I really hope the hopeless four did miss out as I was very clear to management how I felt because I did take the time to let them know I did not feel that putting a tip in the jar was appropriate.

While this might be true in the US, the starting salary for a untrained waiter here is ~$20 US per hour. Dont come tell me they have to be tipped to survive. Yes, I know this for a fact, working in the buisness (but not as a waiter). Dont automatically assume that because you got crappy paid waiting that every other waiter you see does and that goes for any profession...
Besides, is it really YOUR job to give an employee at a restaurant his paycheck? Last I checked you wherent the employer just because you pay to eat there...
My tip will come based on wether I liked the service I was given, not wether you have a lower hourly pay than me or not..

And Im also finding it totally horrible that the waiter takes the glory (tip) that in many cases wouldnt have been earned in the first place if the cook did a ****ty job. Then again, thanks to a lawsuit couple of years ago, the kitchen staff here can legally demand that the waiters share their tip with them..

 

[alcina]

Tiger - I was speaking specifically of the US, I should have be more specific on that point.

I think you missed the point I was making, but that's OK, this thread isn't about waiters.

 

[Wisnu]

I have no liveboard experience; my comment are based on onshore dive operators in Indonesia.
The local staff wage inc. the dive guides is relatively low - depend on this tipping policy typically vary from $150 - 400 / months.
There's no general tipping policy in Indonesia. Some operator does not encourage and or allow tipping to their staff as they worry their staff will treat differently to the divers who doesn't tip.
Other operator accept tips from happy guess and or centralize the tip and distribute to all their staff incl. the management. This policy seem good, if the distribution acceptable to all, which is hard as the local staff particularly dive guides feel not fair if the dive instructur or dive manager (ussualy expat with much higher wages) receive the tip in many case also much higher than them. Some operator simply distribute the tips to local staff only, and the management will receive annual/monthly bonus.
in case of OP topic, probably the tip distribution formula is not acceptable to the crew, dive guide and dive manager and or bonus is not applicable - so the tips must be segregated that way.

 

[tboxcar]

TigerMan, I like your philosophy on tipping, because it has a lot of truth to it. Everywhere is different, and being from the US, I would have to agree, 'it's way out of hand'. Being around the snow ski industry for all my life, I see many people around me making much less than waiters do, and working in 'extreme conditions' seldom do they receive a tip, (maybe a cold beer).
On a recent trip in Indo, we tipped the dive operator on the assumption that the tip was going to the whole crew later that is DM's, cooks, boat boys and the office people.
One thing I did notice in Indonesia (not on dive boats) is the 'service charge' added to my bill in 'nicer restaurants’; some places had a goverment tax, plus a service charge. When that adds up to over 20%-25% or more, I will leave nothing!!!
Tipping is an American custom, and IMHO it should stay there!

 

[DennisS]

I wish that it would be included in the bill, like a garage or an electrician charges. It's called labor. It's part of the cost of doing business. It's part of my purchase. Let the company pay them a fair wage and bill me for it, up front on the cost. I don't want to see it added to the bill in fine print at the bottom, I don't want to see a little jar. They don't work for me, they work for the company that hired them. Pay them a decent wage and get rid of the tip system. Employers use it as a method to avoid paying minimum wage.

To those that say it insures good service, if someone has a good paying job, they're not going to risk losing it, once they see a few slackers fired.