Tip $ crazy...

[cuches]

Hey, where is MY tip...I am a critical care nurse for 20 years and basically save lives for a living (at least try to) I deserve a tip more then the starbucks kids !!! JK, I have no problem tipping the mousekeepers, they work hard and anyone who can clean up after my DH and DD needs to get a tip from me! I get really mad when I hear people complain that they tip mousekeeping but didn't get a towel animal.....these people have a lot to do in one day and can't make EVERYONE a swan from a towel!

On a side note, I remember there is a site that you can print up mousekeeping tip envelopes...anyone have the link to that site?

Tina

 

[summerlady]

Hey, where is MY tip...I am a critical care nurse for 20 years and basically save lives for a living (at least try to) I deserve a tip more then the starbucks kids !!! JK, I have no problem tipping the mousekeepers, they work hard and anyone who can clean up after my DH and DD needs to get a tip from me! I get really mad when I hear people complain that they tip mousekeeping but didn't get a towel animal.....these people have a lot to do in one day and can't make EVERYONE a swan from a towel!

On a side note, I remember there is a site that you can print up mousekeeping tip envelopes...anyone have the link to that site?

Tina

http://www.themouseforless.com/downloads/trip/mousekeeping.shtml

 

[Jessica14]

I'm in my 40's and have traveled both with my family and with with my parents as a kid. Now matter where we were, we tipped the housekeeping staff. I think the envelope is fairly new, within the last ten years maybe? My thoughts are that housekeepers and waitstaff often have thankless, low paying jobs and if they do a good job and I am lucky enough to be able to have the money to dine in the restaurants or take a nice vacation, I certainly can give someone who probably depends on this tip a few dollars.

My Dad actually brings a box of pastries to his mechanic every couple of months just to say thanks to the staff. Guess what? He always gets in last minute and everything is fixed super quickly. He finds that sometimes tipping in advance has helped encourage the person to do better work (I know there is the opposite argument).

That being said, I read this book last year:Steve Dublanica-Waiter Rant: Thanks for the Tip — Confessions of a Cynical Waiter. He has bullied people into giving higher tips and called the police on those who stiffed him (just got that info from a NY Times interview). He was incredilbly unlikeable and would blog about celebrities being drunk at his restaurant. So his tipping "guidelines" as in 25% or more is what you should give for really oustanding service was a real turnoff.

 

[patsal]

I've stayed a lot of places, but very few leave tipping envelopes in the room. Disney does not do this, honestly from my experiences the lower the level of the hotel the more frequently I saw tipping envelopes. DH travel like 2 weeks out of every month and he shared that as well.

 

[Shih-Tzu]

I tip in all the "regular" circumstances.
I have seen many a hotel room with a small envelope (much like you would put your offering in at church) with the housekeeping staff name on it (pre-made by the actual hotel company.
Unless things go really, really wrong I leave a tip at restaurants (and sometimes even IF things go wrong, it's not always the wait staff fault). I really think that tipping has go too far now though with a jar beside cash registers in coffee shops, when picking up a pizza and the debit automatially asks "tip amount".
I don't like it when tips are being blatently asked for...and I especially hate the line from servers "Will you be requiring change back?" when you hand them $40.00 and the meal is $28.00.....I find that quite rude.

 

[jlewisinsyr]

Things we tip for while on vacation (Disney or otherwise):

• Restaurant Servers - 15% - 25% - unless really bad service
• Valet - $5 In and $5 Out
• Skycap - $5 on average - varies with number of bags, but at minimum
• Bellhop - $10 on average - varies with number of bags, but at minimum
• Housekeeping - $5/person per day (for DVC usually $10 on T&T and $10 on Full Clean)

Other things we tip for day to day:

• Hair Dresser - I won't even say how much my partner tips our stylist, it's obscene, but she is great and he loves her
• Semi-Valet Parking Lot Attendant - (you leave your keys with them when you park and they'll pull your car out when you return - often requiring other cars to be moved - possibly including your own for others) - $5 minimum, but in higher price cities like NYC, $10 if not more.
• Pizza Delivery - 10% - 20%

There are more I'm sure I'm missing, but these were the ones that come off the top of my head.

Right, wrong or indifferent, people recognize those who tip them for their services, often they will go out of their way to make sure you are happy, especially for repeat service. People wonder why when we walk into a local semi-fast food place we don't wait in line, they know what we want and will start making it as soon as we walk in the door, even if there is a line and we just go to the register and pay, but we tip them. Another situation was last year at SSR (DVC stay) my partner was there for 2 weeks (I flew down on the 2nd week), on the first T&T day he tipped as usual and from then on he/we received above and beyond service by the "mouse"keeper, she really went above and beyond, could have it been just she was just like that, sure, but I tend to believe it was because of the tip more so.

I understand it's a job and people should do their job, but if I can make someones day for giving them a tip to go buy a coffee or lunch, so be it.

On a side note, there was a discussion I think in the general discussion forum and it was about service in general. Service costs money, there is a reason why in general you get less service at Walmart then you do at Nieman Marcus. To me, I'm happy to pay for service and have no issues rewarding for excellent service.

 

[stitchywoman]

I have heard people say that servers make less than minimum wage. This is true in some places, but I live in Los Angeles and we have to pay minimum wage atleast to servers...I remember being appalled when I lived in North Carolina and the girl at the waffle house told us they take 2 dollars an hour out from minimum wage assuming for tips....We gave her an extra 20 because she was a single mom... and no she wasn't fishing I read the we are hiring info and asked what the heck it meant. I honestly didn't know it was legal to pay below minimum wage period. I know servers that make more than I do and I am a registered nurse. So saying they don't make money isn't always true. There are days I wish someone tipped us for the work we do or atleast said thank you. I think the value of a note or a pat on the back has been lost with our drive for money being more of a neccessity these days.

 

[PlanningNextTrip]

I think that you would really be surprised at the amount of money that some people in tipped positions are making. I worked in luxury suites at a major arena as a server here in Canada, and I was paid $12/hour and on top of that received tips. If you have ever been to an arena, you know that beer is ridiculously priced, so three beer would cost $21, so tips were increased due to inflated prices. On an average night, I would make anywhere from $150 - $400 in tips alone.

Do you feel that a server at Whispering Canyon (with their crazy antics and big personalities) should be tipped less than a server at Narcosse's?

Don't be fooled by what you think people are being paid or making per night!

 

[cm8]

I too agree that the "tip Jar" has gotten out of hand. I dislike it very much when I am placing an order and there is a tip jar sitting there. Why should I tip you for taking my order? That is your job requirement and you should not expect to be compensated for anything but what you are being paid. Pretty soon, I think we can expect to see a tip jar at the gas pumps just for making fuel available. Talking about being nickel and dime to death, we are getting hit from both ends. Tip jars make me feel like I'm being taxed just because they can and I am not benefiting from it one bit

 

[Jey12]

As someone who worked their way through college delivering pizzas in a very busy suburb at all hours, to all kinds of people. And as someone who has seen her friends work 2 jobs and come home to their child that runs up to them to take all of the "tips' out of their pocket and puts it into their vacation or b-day bank I am always someone who tips well if the service earned it. Nothing would ruffle my feathers more when I was delivering pizzas to a $300 plus order from a business, where I drove in my own vehicle during lunch rush hour in 100 plus degrees, toted 15 large pizzas up a flight of stairs, returned for their 20 salads and then again for the eight 2 litre bottles of soda to find a company check for the EXACT amount. I made $2 less than minimum wage, earned $1 on every delivery and the rest was tips. This paid for wear and tear on my vehicle and gas. It's amazing how many people I encountered who never thought that tipping a pizza delivery driver was part of the job. Assuming your pizza doesn't show up an hour late, the driver drunk and your pizza on the top of the box or half eaten. Also important to mention I got to know the non tippers and I would go out of my way, run an errand or take every other pizza to where it needed to go before I even entertained the idea of stopping at their house.

The general list of professions I do tip and always have are servers, housekeeping, hairstylists, delivery drivers (adjusted amount depends on what the company charges me upfront for the delivery), dog groomer, taxi drivers, bell hops, valets, the person who takes your bags at the airport or hotel, and yes even the sonic car hop (change usually). Professions I do not regularly tip are my dr (because please), mechanic, home repair person, any person I have prepaid a delivery charge to or that uses a company vehicle to deliver my product, and government workers. I have been known from time to time depending on how often I go to my veterinarian or doctor to bring cookies or a treat for the staff if I have been a regular for whatever reason and the service has been outstanding.

My general rule of thumb is if you are providing me a service simply because I do not want to or am too lazy to do myself then I am going to tip you for doing something I probably could myself. No this doesn't apply to my hairstylist, but again she has a pretty important job and I like to keep her happy. I could eat at home and prepare a meal myself, if I don't want to I will tip you for helping me out with that. I could groom my dog myself but she'd probably run away from home. I could park my car, take my own bags to my room, go get my own pizza, etc... so this is the standard I use. My normal scale is 15-20% and if the service is awful I am not afraid in the least to toss a penny on the table.

As for the tip jars in my local BBQ joint and drive through coffee shop, I too look at them and think about adding one to my own workspace.

 

[DOOM1001]

I have heard people say that servers make less than minimum wage. This is true in some places, but I live in Los Angeles and we have to pay minimum wage atleast to servers..

California is one of the exceptions where servers do get minimum wage,it cancels itself out due to the higher cost of living though.

 

[ratlenhum]

Up here where I live we don't tip like I've read on here. Seriously, I was shocked at all the tip talk since I've been lurking.

10% is what servers get IF they did their job. If they were great, they get 15-20%. If they "suck", they get nothing.

We don't tip in hotels for people doing their jobs. There are no tip envelopes laying anywhere... I am still so lost


This is my first real trip to the US, so is this primarily an American thing? Or a Disney thing? Or a "big city" thing? I am originally from Winnipeg, and never saw this there either. Sure, someone carries 13 pieces of *your* luggage up the stairs and still can smile at you and be nice - that is a little different. But tipping housekeeping, special CM presents... is that expected now? If I don't leave mousekeeping a tip will I still get clean towels?

It's an American thing.

Here in NY minimum wage is $7.25 for everyone except food service workers. Their minimum is $4.65 an hour because it is expected they will have tips to add to their income. They also base their payroll deductions on what they think you should have made in tips. So if your restaurant has a computerized system and it you served $1000 in meals on your shift, they are assuming you made $150 in tips and deducting from your pay based on that.

My mom is a waitress, always has been (raised 3 kids alone then couldn't get a job doing anything else). Her paycheck is less than $50 a week after all the deductions. They deduct for meals, uniforms all sorts of crap. Her income is mostly her tips.

A 10% is an insult, it means you were dissatisfied. 15% is what should be given for satisfactory service, not exceptional but not poor. If it was bad service then you go lower, if it was great go higher.

And please don't hold kitchen issues against your waitstaff. It's not their fault the kitchen fell behind, burned your meal or the dishwasher has no clean glasses. If the server comes over and apologizes and explains why there is a delay or an issue they are doing the best they can do.

I grew up in the restaurant/bar business. The roof over my head and the clothes on my back were all paid for with tips, because server pay sucks.

I just looked up FL and think I got the recent numbers, not sure if Disney pays more but minimum wage for servers is $4.23 an hour!! So people will tip Mousekeeping $5 a day when they're getting $8 + an hour hoping to get extra towels or a towel animal but hold back on the waiter running around probably working too many tables (as I noticed a lot of last week) and getting $4 an hour! With the economy bad, one way to save some quick money is to pull one or two servers per shift from each restaurant.

Last year when we were at The Plaza I remember there being atleast 4 servers. They were buzzing around the place. We were there last week and service was a bit slow, then I realized there were only 2 servers working the floor. They were not able to give us extra attention but they did their job and checked on us often, and refilled drinks without us asking.

For us, on most checks the difference between 15 and 20% was only a few dollars. An extra $5-6 a day in tips isn't going to kill us but an extra buck or two from each table during the day can be the difference between someone paying their bills and feeding their kids, putting clothes on their kids back or buying them school supplies.

 

[aubriee]

The general list of professions I do tip and always have are servers, housekeeping, hairstylists, delivery drivers (adjusted amount depends on what the company charges me upfront for the delivery), dog groomer, taxi drivers, bell hops, valets, the person who takes your bags at the airport or hotel, and yes even the sonic car hop (change usually).

I thought about this thread yesterday. I ran by our local Sonic just to get a soda. When the car hop skated out, I handed her a $5.00 bill and she just skated off with it, without even a thank you. I waited a few minutes, then pushed the buzzer and asked where my change was. She came back and said, "Sorry, I thought the change was my tip.". If she'd even said thank you I might have tipped her, but I didn't get anything except a "here you go" when she delivered my soda. Her attitude cost her a tip, plus she just took off without even asking if I wanted my change back.

 

[Disneyadore]

It's an American thing.

So what?
Coming from Europe I took time to search the Internet and LEARNED about tipping.
If you are in Rome .......
We know the tipping rules in the US and have no problem with them. Waiters,housekeeping, valet parking,bell hop they all get there tip. This year we spend almost $$ 2000 on tipping. We love it when we return at a restaurant like Narcoossees, the waiters remembers you and brings you the drinks you like without asking.
I'm always surprised that foreigners are called cheap as.. but in real life Americans are the ones that stiff the waiters. I saw people putting a dollar on the table after a dinner with an EXCELLENT waiter. We witnessed people yelling and screaming to the manager when they had a fixed tip on the bill, it was horrifying.

 

[smidgy]

I am a waitress, and , if anything, hubby tells me I over tip.

but, as far as bellhop service goes...
I want to tip someone who helps me bring my stuff(and we have a lot) to the room.
the problem is.. we have to do it twice.

the person who takes it OUT of the car, To the luggage rack.
THEN, the person who pulls said luggage rack to the room.

now, most of the time , we are doing a "split stay". either 2 or more resorts at disney, or a stay at Universal first.. so, there are some things that are going in the room, and some that are not.
so, I am standing there, telling the bellhop guy at check in (who seems to keep grabbing stuff) no, not that. yes.. that. jeesh, just let me put the stuff I want on the cart! and STOP grabbing stuff!. now, I tip him. but he's not the same guy who will bring said cart up to the room!
who wants to take stuff off the cart and put it in various places. and I feel like "just get out of my way, and let me put the stuff where I want it." really, all I want is USE of the luggage cart. and I am very willing to pay for that, and slit it amongst them.
check out is hilarious. they want to "help" me put the things in my car. get out of my way!!! I know where everything needs to go. just give me the cart,let me give you a tip to share, and let me pack my own car.

 

[TheBig2na]

I don't think there is anything i hate more than a forced tip on my bill. Disney charges a mandatory tip for groups of 6 or more. They counted my 1 year old son to make our group a group of six. we brought food for him and his drinks, and the wait staff didn't have any demands placed on them by him because he can barely talk. But we had to pay the 18% regardless of service. I don't like that. I was at another restaurant just my wife and I, not on Disney Property and I noticed and 18% tip. When I questioned it I was told it was suggested. I asked why it was automatically added to my bill so they removed it and the waiter got a bigger tip because the service was great.

I don't think someone should automatically get 18% regardless of whether they are good or not. Tips are earned in my opinion, not a right and forced tips can make some wait staff lazy and have a bad attitude. When someone goes above and beyond they get a fat tip. Average staff get an average tip, and bad ones should get nothing, not a guarantee.

 

[gr8mommy]

I don't think there is anything i hate more than a forced tip on my bill. Disney charges a mandatory tip for groups of 6 or more. They counted my 1 year old son to make our group a group of six. we brought food for him and his drinks, and the wait staff didn't have any demands placed on them by him because he can barely talk. But we had to pay the 18% regardless of service. I don't like that. I was at another restaurant just my wife and I, not on Disney Property and I noticed and 18% tip. When I questioned it I was told it was suggested. I asked why it was automatically added to my bill so they removed it and the waiter got a bigger tip because the service was great.

I don't think someone should automatically get 18% regardless of whether they are good or not. Tips are earned in my opinion, not a right and forced tips can make some wait staff lazy and have a bad attitude. When someone goes above and beyond they get a fat tip. Average staff get an average tip, and bad ones should get nothing, not a guarantee.

The do this for groups because groups have a tendency for under/not tipping. Have you ever been in a group when individuals toss in $15 to cover their $10 burger and $4 shake, never thinking about adding in tax or tip? I once ended up paying $24 for a cup of tea and a bagel, because more than half the group I was with tossed their 'share' on the table and took off. There was no way I was going to leave the waitress stiffed.

 

[leebee]

A tipped employee engages in an occupation in which he or she customarily and regularly receives more than $30 per month in tips. An employer of a tipped employee is only required to pay $2.13 per hour in direct wages if that amount combined with the tips received at least equals the federal minimum wage. If the employee’s tips combined with the employer’s direct wages of at least $2.13 per hour do not equal the federal minimum hourly wage, the employer must make up the difference. Many states, however, require higher direct wage amounts for tipped employees.

http://www.dol.gov/dol/topic/wages/wagestips.htm

A Server BY LAW will always make at least minimum wage. If they are not they need to contact the proper agency.

It might be the law but I have NEVER worked as waitstaff anywhere that subsidized our tip money to make sure we made minimum wage! Jeez, that would have been sweet! I tip 10% at buffets, 15% at sit-down restaurants, but I also have a "tip meter" in my brain. It starts running as soon as we sit down, and as long as there are no major issues, the waitperson gets the percentage. If there's a problem that is the waitstaff's responsibility/in their control, then the % meter clicks downward. It will also click upward for outstanding service. If it's really, really bad, I will leave 2%-5%, so that the waitperson knows the service was bad. I figure, if I don't leave a tip at all, they will just think I'm a cheapwad!

I also don't agree that a patron should have to worry about their waitperson having to tip out other staff members. Maybe if they leave with WAY less in their pockets, after tipping out the busboy, bartender, etc., they will get the message and the attitude/service will improve!

My grandfather always left 2 cents for bad service; "Just putting in my two cents!" he'd always say!

 

[disneypolybride2008]

i base it off service. we've had terrible service and have given nearly nothing. we've had excellent service and gave a ton. We tipped a ton to the Carolyn Allen's delivery girls who brought my steamed gown and fitted my husbands tux. they were so grateful and surprised by the large tip and that's what makes me feel good about tipping. if i think they just expect it then they'd better earn it. i hated how the driver of the ME says ' thank you in advance for your generosity.'

 

[Jey12]

I thought about this thread yesterday. I ran by our local Sonic just to get a soda. When the car hop skated out, I handed her a $5.00 bill and she just skated off with it, without even a thank you. I waited a few minutes, then pushed the buzzer and asked where my change was. She came back and said, "Sorry, I thought the change was my tip.". If she'd even said thank you I might have tipped her, but I didn't get anything except a "here you go" when she delivered my soda. Her attitude cost her a tip, plus she just took off without even asking if I wanted my change back.

Oh that would have fired me up! I have had this happen and I did the same thing as you did. Plus I face to face told the girl you would have gotten the change and maybe more if you would have been polite enough to ask. Then I will leave telling them to take it as a life lesson.

I also agree/disagree with the automatic gratuity on large parties. I know how easily under tipping happens with a large group. I also am offended by the automatic charge, and this is because unless it is warrented I don't under tip. When asked they will take it off or at least this is my experience. I also usually pay with a debit card for dinner and cash for the tip. I can't do this when it is automatically added or a mass confusion usually occurs. It works out better for the server if you tip this way because they are not automatically taxed on the tip amount with cash like they are a credit or debit card. I'm not the tax police and I figure it's up to them and their company on what they claim. So I leave cash.