Tipping guidelines

[ggunn]

And I'm sad for the dive shop employee that has to lug all your crap around for a shi77y tip because "you can't afford" to tip reasonably..

Excuse me, but you have no idea what you are talking about. For starters, nobody but me lugs all my crap around. For another thing, unless you have somehow gotten access to my financial records you haven't a clue as to what I can or cannot afford.

There are two sides to every financial transaction, and you don't know anything about either side of the ones I engage in except that I freely admit that I do not tip as much as you do. 50% is "reasonable"? I don't think so but that's just my opinion. Don't get me wrong; I'd love to be so well off that I could sling money around as if it were water, but I'm not.

 

[DFDubb]

Excuse me, but you have no idea what you are talking about. For starters, nobody but me lugs all my crap around.

You’re right and I was being an a$$. Apologies. It seems that a lot of shops in Coz have gone the “valet” route and I feel like they deserve more than what I see people tip. I definitely don’t tip as much other places where the service isn’t as robust.

I feel bad for crew in Hawaii where everything is so expensive. A nice $20-$40 tip barely buys them a dinner out.

 

[ggunn]

You’re right and I was being an a$$. Apologies. It seems that a lot of shops in Coz have gone the “valet” route and I feel like they deserve more than what I see people tip. I definitely don’t tip as much other places where the service isn’t as robust.

I feel bad for crew in Hawaii where everything is so expensive. A nice $20-$40 tip barely buys them a dinner out.

Thanks. Apology accepted.

 

[Trailboss123]

I don’t know the answer to that question. I generally don’t concern myself with finding out what my DM/captain/other service provider makes for a living, before I tip them. While I think it’s a very philanthropic gesture, and much to be admired, I don’t think it’s necessary for me. I just follow the industry custom/guidelines, especially a guideline provided by a well-respected dive op on Cozumel. Now, if @Christi comes here and says, yup, the guideline is outdated, and the tipping should now be such and such, then I may adjust my tipping practices accordingly. I trust @Christi is not out to mislead anyone, while also looking out for her peeps.

I do want to provide one example of a well-intentioned action that backfired. In Ontario, Canada, our Premier raised the minimum wage from $11.60 to $14 effective Jan. 1, 2018. It will again be raised to $15 effective Jan. 1, 2019. The rationale was to support the worker and to increase their wages. Definitely well-intentioned but this strategy backfired. Businesses all across the board started letting people go because they either could not afford to keep those workers on or they wanted to maintain their previous levels of profit. Now, if you asked those workers that were let go, would they have preferred to be paid $11.60 or not at all, what do you think they would say? These are also the same workers that are less employable - less educated, older folks, immigrants. I’m not saying these workers should not be looked after, but potential consequences must be considered.

I brought this up because I want people to think about what might happen if all of a sudden, it was determined that the “appropriate” tip was a set-in-stone 20% or more of the dive trip? Are we really doing any favours for the DMs/captains/etc. if divers decided to go elsewhere?

As most of us know, Christi is usually quite quick to respond, but in this case, It might be a few days before we hear from her on this topic. She went into the hospital today for a surgery on her shoulder and may be out of commission for a while. Hoping for a speedy recovery for her.

 

[Lorenzoid]

I don’t know the answer to that question. I generally don’t concern myself with finding out what my DM/captain/other service provider makes for a living, before I tip them. . . .

I agree, with the exception that when I'm here in the US it matters to me whether the person providing the service is a so-called "tipped employee" under our weird labor rules. That makes all the difference. We customers really are expected to contribute a fairly well established percentage of that person's compensation. If we don't, we're shamed, and it messes up the employer's procedures by legally requiring the employer to make up the shortfall if the employee's compensation falls short of minimum wage. I have heard from restaurant servers that this causes a headache for them and their employers.

But in Mexico, I have no idea. I err on the side of generosity.

 

[cvchief]

I think a reasonable estimation of salary for a DM, might be:

Base salary amount: 2,720US paid regardless of working days. Of course they get some bennies paid on top of that.

Bonus paid per dive trip of maybe $45US or $14,040 US diving 6 days a week. (bonuses are common so 1. you don't get locked in when there is no work 2. if you fire them, the payout is less as it is based on salary)

For a total of about $16,760 a year before tips?

That might be in the neighborhood.

Now if they have a 5 diver average and they tip 15 a day for those 312 days and it is split 50/50 with the capitan, they would get 11,700US in tips for a total income of 28,460 US.

That would make tips along about 41%of their income with the assumption I made.

 

[ReefHound]

I would have guessed $50 per day. Is 312 an average number of working days? Doesn't seem to allow for trips missed due to weather, sickness, slow business, or personal issues.

 

[cvchief]

You are right. that well could be a high estimate, best case scenario.

 

[Dogbowl]

I agree, with the exception that when I'm here in the US it matters to me whether the person providing the service is a so-called "tipped employee" under our weird labor rules. That makes all the difference. We customers really are expected to contribute a fairly well established percentage of that person's compensation. If we don't, we're shamed, and it messes up the employer's procedures by legally requiring the employer to make up the shortfall if the employee's compensation falls short of minimum wage. I have heard from restaurant servers that this causes a headache for them and their employers.

But in Mexico, I have no idea. I err on the side of generosity.

I now understand why Americans are so “hung up” (for lack of better words) on tipping. We do not have such laws in Canada (Ontario), that I’m aware of.

 

[ggunn]

I now understand why Americans are so “hung up” (for lack of better words) on tipping. We do not have such laws in Canada (Ontario), that I’m aware of.

Here's one US resident who wishes (unrealistically, of course) that the whole tipping thing would just go away. I think it would be great if all the businesses whose employees now depend on tips to eke out a living would just outlaw the practice, raise their prices commensurately, and pay their employees a living wage. It's not gonna happen, of course.