Standard DM gratuity?

[matts1w]

What personal service do you feel the DM is giving you that you feel they deserve a tip?

Granted I feel pretty confident so there is little I ask of a DM on a boat. However, here is what a DM does for me on a usual day (2 tank dive):

1. Fill my tanks
2. Lug and load my tanks in the boat
3. Clean and maintain the boat
4. Lug in ice, water, fruit drinks, etc...
5. Set the lines for descent and ascent
6. Brief me on the site and point out how to dive and what to look for
7. Help me walk from my rack to the entry site in a swell
8. Supervise all divers from the boat and eliminate potential problems (hopefully) so I can complete the entire dive
9. Help me from the water back to my rack
10. Haul in the ascent/descent lines
11. Brief on the next site
13. Ste the lines again
14. Help me back to the water
15. Supervise other divers and eliminate potential problems (hopefully) so I can complete the entire dive
16. Help me from the water to my rack
17. Haul in the lines I used to descend and ascend
18. Probably some other items I didnt consider

A good DM makes everythinbg easy and the trip smooth. By preventing problems I may never see all the hard work. If all went well from the experienced divers to the newbies then the crew did a great job and deserves at least a mere ten bucks from me.

 

[The Horn]

Call me ignorant but I would have just left a dive charter without tipping and thought nothing of it until I read this forum. Being in the marine industry (actually typing this from my cabin on a ship) I would have asumed all crew were working for salary (can't see the logic of sailing for free on a working ship).

I would have asumed the fee for the charter included all wages. If this is not the case (as has been described) then it should be. It seems to be like tipping the gas attendant for pumping the gas nicely or tipping the mechanic for installing brakes that work well. I don't quite see tipping a DM for doing his job? Now if he is not getting paid (seems weird) then increase the cost of the charter from $50 to $60 to include this "expected" $10 tip and the DM gets paid out of that extra $10. the final cost is still $60 and the DM is paid.

 

[HowardE]

And... "The Horn" where are you from?

 

[Diesel298]

I see there are some people on here who think of boat capt's and DM as nothing more than taxi drivers.
before the people even start to arive ay 6 im in the engine room.
checking and adding fluids, and giving the engineroom a once over for the compressor, the gennerator, both engines. and all the related cables, linkages, and systems.
on our boat we will help load and upload the boat.. actually i perfer it that way the boat dont get beat and i can keep thinks neat and orginized.
if someone need a air fill or some kinda mix. i do that but thats a additionl charge.
then theres helping to whatever extent the diver wants getting gear on. getting in and out of the water.
dive site breafings for everyone as a whole is given during the saftey breefing before leaving the dock,
when we arrive to the site we need to hook the wreck, tie in, set the granny and tag line, and then when all is done pull in those lines, and go "pull the hook"
and if we are doin 2 different wrecks.. thats all done twice.
theres the snacks, and the keepin the boat clean and neat durning the trip, because most people are slobs and treat us more like servants rather than dive masters.
on our boat there not alot of in water dive master stuff to do with the customers, but once in a while when there is i do that as well.
then back at the dock. we help unlad the boat to the dock (you take your stuf in the supplied cart to your car or truck as we load it on the dock) and that system works great for us.
then clean the interior and wash the exterior of the boat...
on overnite trips the crew also prepares the meals.
often the tie in or pulling the hook is my dive. so its not like im splashing in and diving leaving everyone to fend for themselves...
and i love every minnute of the trip...
im not even concerned when i get crappy tips..
what i hate is rude, and ungratefull divers. who no matter what nothing is good enough.
but those are few and far between thankfully

 

[The Horn]

Not belittling a job or all the work the guys do on the charter. I just find it odd to be giving a gratuity to a person who would be doing thier job as an expected thing. Should the person do something or assist in a special way that you perceived to be above and beyond, then hey, here's a few bucks.

What i find stranger is working on a vessel where the "gratuity" is your only wage, wow!

I can also say that seeing this Tip thread has been an eye opener and I will be sure to not look like a cheap dink on a chartered outing.

 

[Diesel298]

there are alot of professions that work on tips.
watresses make very little wages. except for tips
when you go to a bar do u tip the bartender.
but im glad that you understand now..

for me its not about the tips. dont get me wrong. money is nice.
the boat bapt is a IT for everything except full cave
so im workin the boat for the experence and the training... plus the free trips...
for example next spring we are booked for 3 trips to the doria already....

 

[AndyNZ]

Which is fine. Just realize that for an employer to attract a decent staff (on the dive platform, behind the bar, whatever) he/she will have to start paying a living wage. This means the $65.00 two tank dive will now cost $75.00 to $80.00 and the $3.00 beer will now cost something like $3.75. I would also bet the same people who complain about tipping would be the same people crying about the new high cost of diving.

Totally agree! Which is the situation here in NZ, so bar staff, boat crew all get paid a good wage (and hence a two dive day can cost between $80 and $130). In resturants, the tip then becomes something special when you do get exceptional service.

Took this turn in the thread as I mentioned I'm slowly convincing my partner to not tip for crappy service - forgot to mention that is when we are here where tips are not expected. If you don't leave a tip in a resturant, the staff don't all line up by the door and eyeball like you've got leprosy as you leave!

So, as I understand it... when I go to europe, most restaurants have gratuity included, so there's no need to tip for service... Unless you want to give a little extra.

Pretty much. Like I say, the tip is for exceptional service.

Is this common knowledge here in the US? Do most people know this?

I doubt it. Which is why people from the US can be easy targets for screwing for huge tips when they are overseas!

If so... then do europeans and other non-american tourists coming to the US know that the tip is NOT included in the US, unless it's stated so on the menu??? OR are they just bad tippers, compared to americans?

Again, probably not. It took me spending a lot of time in Canada with my partner to get to the point that I realise that you have to leave a tip, minimum 10% even for bad service, lousy food and cold coffee. 20% more usual for adequate service.

 

[garyfotodiver]

What personal service do you feel the DM is giving you that you feel they deserve a tip?

Last trip, 30 August, out of Deerfield Beach, FL. Turns out my “buddy” was a disaster-in-training. This is the risk of going stag to a boat. First dive was a wreck at 70fsw. Everyone else was in the water; I am fully suited, overheating, and frustrated because this guy still hasn’t assembled his gear. The Captain looked down, saw the situation, and told the DM to take me down, make sure I was OK, and return.

The DM, who is the person who ties onto the wreck, didn’t have to get into the water again. The boats I dive do not have an in-water DM.

The second dive with this guy was no better. After we were finished, the DM spoke to this guy about lack of courtesy and skills.

On this particular boat, the DM works for tips, so I gave him $20 instead of $10. He had given me extra attention when I needed it, so I reciprocated.

And I agree with everything Matts1w wrote above.

 

[The Horn]

Just ask my dive buddy (from Canada) if he would tip a DM or captain of a dive boat and he laughed and said "NO, why?" I expained the thread and he just shrugged and said it would depend on the charter. If it was just a routine 2 dive in and out then NO!If it was a live aboard with more attention and gear checks etc then sure.

Unless the DM on the charter had a sign that said "I Work for Tips" I would think most people outside of the US would not bother to tip as they would see the DM as a paid employee whether he was or not.

 

[Diesel298]

well. sounds like he has a crappy attitude tword everything that the boat crew does...... like i said tips are nice but i dont count on it to survive, but if i get a attitude, now i have a problem....
nothing gets the capt of the boat im on more mad than somonme giving his crew a hard time... there have been more than one person who have been told to seek other charter services