Why do we tip skycaps?

[SandrA9810]

For a while, I never flew with checked luggage, and got by with my little carry on. But how can I resist when Southwest allows it for free?

I just don't seem to get their job very well. The hard part to me would be the guys loading up the trams and then loading up planes, not to mention the guys in the middle that do all the sorting. So why do we tip a person standing behind a counter that simply takes the bag off the scale and sets it behind him?

I've never had a person help me get luggage to or from the car, help me with getting my bags to the counter, or anything else that seemed to be going beyond their basic duty of sticking a sticker on my bag.

Do they rotate with loading bags or other manual labor? That would make it seem more fair to tip them?

Yesterday on my flight, I was ready to hand my money to the guy that was actually working with loading up the bags and such. The guy at the counter, had a completely different attitude with the lady in front of me, as she was fumbling around with her purse getting money out. After taking my bags off the scale, his attitude seemed to go extremely flat when he didn't see me start to take money out. He was waiting for the stickers to print up and hand me my claim tickets.

I just don't understand the way people act when they see a few bills rolled up, knowing it's their tip. I would except to see the same service and happy attitude whether there was money visible or not.

Why are some jobs privileged enough to get tips while other jobs (that are just as hard working, and probably lower paid) are treated as "that's the their job and they should just do it"? Valet is another one I don't understand tipping for, $5-$10 bucks for a few minutes of their time.... I can understand if it's free or if it's validated by a business (like if you eat at a restaurant in the mall), they might not be making a whole lot from that.

 

[marie1203]

I have never tip skycaps and never seen anyone else do it. Valet is usually like waitressing the hour salary is very low because is consider a tipped position.

 

[cornflake]

To me, a skycap is the person at the curb who fetches your bags from a car and takes them to the counter and all for you. They get tipped because, well, above, like a bell hop in a hotel. They carry stuff for you, escort you, for the purposes of earning tips by providing that particular service, which you engage them in by choice.

I have never, nor have I ever seen anyone else, tip someone standing behind the counter just tagging bags. That's... bizarre.

Valets are tipped because that's a tip job - they get paid very little and work for the tips. They drive your car, park it nicely, fetch it for you, etc. Yes, it's a service provided by the whatever place but you don't have to use it, you can park the thing yourself.

I agree with some tip stuff getting out of hand, like Starbucks employees (who, unlike waitstaff, are paid at least actual minimum wage), but I don't have a problem with skycaps. I don't think of someone who stands behind a counter as a skycap, that's just airline counter personnel to me.

 

[SandrA9810]

Skycaps, for the most part, are not part of airline employees. They work for the airport or even some other company, not an airline.

I know there were days, when they'd be standing there ready to take your bags out of your car and deal with the hassle of it. I've got it down pretty good on how to haul everything around with the straps on the bags, it just looks complicated. And not once has there been some one standing by to help with my bags out of the car.

My flight the other day, was about the easiest flight possible. Besides missing the immediate right turn into the airport off the highway exit... I got there about 90 minutes early. There were 3 people in line at the curb, don't think there was any one inside, and I got from that line to the gate within 10 minutes. Again, there were maybe 5 people at the security line, and my gate was right there on the other side. How often does that really ever happen?

If I'm dealing with tipping like that, I always keep the bills in my front pocket, and folded individually, so I can grab it out of my pocket the amount I want without showing it or counting it out. I was always shown for it to be discrete and at the very end of the interaction, as a way of saying thank you. Who says thank you have way through a service that has yet to be completed? Which to me is like pulling out some bills and letting the other person see it before they've completed their job.

 

[powellrj]

I have always tipped the skycap because its a tipped position. Just like a valet. Sure I can take my own bags to the counter and have them weighted, but if I can just pull up and have them take my bags out at the door and be on my way, its worth the few extra dollars it will cost me.

Just like a valet, I can park my own car and go and get it, but if they will take my car and bring it back to me no matter what the weather is, its worth the few extra dollars its going to cost me, so I am willing to pay for it.

 

[akcire]

Sky caps don't make very much and rely on their tips to survive.

Now there are two different people that could be considered sky caps.

The people who take you luggage at curbside check in are usually airline employees.

They guys who wait in baggage claim are typically contract employees.

The reason I will continue to tip both when using their services is so they continue to do their jobs. I can't imagine traveling and going back to the days where we all stood in line before our flight inside to check our bags.
Also I have found the skycaps outside often go out of their ways to assist me in getting things arranged and ready, or move me to a better seat on the plane.

As for the guys who hang out in baggage claim, I had never used their services until this past trip to Orlando. Normally, I don't have many bags. This trip I flew with my husband, mother, and infant daughter. We had so much stuff it was like we were moving! Upon landing, my husband and mother went for the rental car. I took my daughter (in her carrier) down to baggage claim. My plan was to just get all the bags off the belt and wait for my husband.

Thanks to a skycap, my plans changed. He grabbed all my bags (5) and threw them on his cart. I told him in advance I was waiting for my husband to get our rental car. He got all our luggage, took the elevator with me downstairs and walked accross half the airport and accross the street to where Alamo parks their rental cars. My husband had just finished getting the car, when we showed up with all the bags. I tipped the guy $20, it was the best $20 I spent on the trip. He loaded the bags, Joe secured my daughters car seat, and we drove away. It was an excellent seamless start to our vacation.

 

[RitaE]

We tip skycaps because they are a "tipped" position and they carry our bags for us. They make very little as an actual wage and instead depend on the people they serve to do the right thing. If you prefer not to tip them, then just take your own bags into the check-in counter and do it yourself. There is nothing wrong with saying "No thank-you, I'll handle these myself."

 

[mjkacmom]

We tip skycaps because they are a "tipped" position and they carry our bags for us. They make very little as an actual wage and instead depend on the people they serve to do the right thing. If you prefer not to tip them, then just take your own bags into the check-in counter and do it yourself. There is nothing wrong with saying "No thank-you, I'll handle these myself."

It sounds like the OP felt she was expected to tip the guy behind the counter, after she brought her own baggage to it, to check in. We always check in curbside, and tip $1 - $2 per bag.

 

[BBandDisney]

 

[lizabu]

I think if someone came and got your bag and escorted you to the check in desk you tip that person but the person behind the counter that just weighs the bag and puts a tag on it you don't tip them.

 

[MineMail]

I've never seen anyone tip the airline counter clerks. Frankly, they shouldn't accept tips (per my cousin who worked for an airline) and the OP should complain that she got poor service because the clerk was expecting a tip. There must be more to this story since tips come AFTER service, not before.


Skycaps are the people who help you get your bags from your vehicle to the counter clerk or from the baggage carousel to your vehicle. When I travel alone for a week or more, they're very useful. I usually tip $1 for a regular suitcase and $2 for my really big/heavy bags.

 

[Fly4free]

We tip skycaps because they are a "tipped" position and they carry our bags for us. They make very little as an actual wage and instead depend on the people they serve to do the right thing. If you prefer not to tip them, then just take your own bags into the check-in counter and do it yourself. There is nothing wrong with saying "No thank-you, I'll handle these myself."

Not much different than a waiter or a valet. Skycaps are not employed by the airline & make well below min. wage, since their jobs depend on tips. It's payment for a service.

 

[kaytieeldr]

I've never seen anyone tip the airline counter clerks. Frankly, they shouldn't accept tips (per my cousin who worked for an airline) and the OP should complain that she got poor service because the clerk was expecting a tip. There must be more to this story since tips come AFTER service, not before.


Skycaps are the people who help you get your bags from your vehicle to the counter clerk or from the baggage carousel to your vehicle. When I travel alone for a week or more, they're very useful. I usually tip $1 for a regular suitcase and $2 for my really big/heavy bags.

The OP wasn't dealing with an airline-employed counter clerk (who can't and won't accept a tip). She was dealing with airport-employed curbside check-in personnel who are, as described above, generally paid below minimum wage and rely on tips for the bulk of their income.

Curbside check-in is provided as a convenience. Some airlines (e.g. jetBlue in Boston) charge for it and that money goes to the airline, not the workers - so tipping is normal. And you're tipping for the service while it's being provided. This is one of those situations where you absolutely can't tip after the fact. What are you going to do? Get the name and address of the person who assisted you and mail him a check?

The best economy luggage experience I ever had resulted from tipping for a single checked bag. My one suitcase came onto the carousel first; the only other time that ever happened was the once I flew First (using miles).

No, the OP didn't have to tip. She could have walked inside to the counter and checked her luggage there, as can any airline passenger checking bags.

 

[Sandy321]

You people are not from Chicago!

and airlines are now starting to take their cut from the skycaps too -

They provide a service, I dont have to stand in line - they take my bag at the curb, they check me in - give me my boarding pass - send my bags on their way, I pay for that service, however you are right it is called a "tipped position"

 

[MineMail]

The OP wasn't dealing with an airline-employed counter clerk (who can't and won't accept a tip). She was dealing with airport-employed curbside check-in personnel who are, as described above, generally paid below minimum wage and rely on tips for the bulk of their income.

The OP said the guy looking for a tip was behind the counter and his function was to label the bags and put them on the conveyer. That's the airline counter clerk, not the curbside check in staffer or a skycap. (Curbside check in uses carts, not conveyers.)

Curbside check-in is provided as a convenience. Some airlines (e.g. jetBlue in Boston) charge for it and that money goes to the airline, not the workers - so tipping is normal. And you're tipping for the service while it's being provided. This is one of those situations where you absolutely can't tip after the fact. What are you going to do? Get the name and address of the person who assisted you and mail him a check?

I don't have a clue as to what you're carrying on about with tip timing. I do know people who tip first because they intentionally overtip to get a little extra courtesy and service, like bringing the dog carrier, helping with handicaps, etc.

However, like most business travelers, I tip the skycap when they put the bags down and we're ready to part company. (That's when their hands are free, right?) Why would I want to mail a tip to them? If you were trying to belittle me, it backfired, mainly because the OP wasn't talking about curbside check-in in the first place.

If the skycap slammed my bags onto the cart and then tried to ditch me as soon as possible on the check-in line, I'd tip him a lot less than the sky cap that carefully loads my bags and waits with me, chatting, until I get to the counter, then putting my bags on the scale for me. He provides the service, then I give a tip accordingly.

I like the individual, folded singles in the front pocket tip - thanks to that poster. I always stick a few folded singles in my pocket, but then I have to fumble for the right amount at the last minute.

 

[sparklynails23]

People still use skycaps??

They're a throwback to the day when bags were big and bulky and didn't have a built-in handle and wheels. Back in the day, I used to tip them well, but I haven't used one in years, what with electronic check-in and all. I'm not sure our airport even has them.

 

[Sweettears]

To help improve the chances that my bags will arrive to the correct airport and on time?

 

[NotUrsula]

Different airports pay Skycaps differently, so the advice is not universal.

At my home airport, the people minding the curbside check in counters ARE Skycaps, and at our airport, they are not paid at all; they are independent contractors who have to buy into the position, and the only money that they make is in tips. The spots here are hugely valuable, and are often passed down in families, because someone who is motivated and hustles can easily take home six figures each year. I remember that a news report a few years ago said that the most senior Skycap at our airport was averaging over $300K/yr., but for that he was working 12 hr. days 7 days a week, including holidays.

So do I tip Skycaps? Yep, if I use their service I tip, normally $2/bag. I also tip any parking shuttle drivers who handle my bags, but usually only $3 for the load.

 

[bumbershoot]

The OP said the guy looking for a tip was behind the counter and his function was to label the bags and put them on the conveyer. That's the airline counter clerk, not the curbside check in staffer or a skycap. (Curbside check in uses carts, not conveyers.)

I got the impression that she was talking about the people outside, the curbside people.

Different airlines have different set-ups. I mean, at LAX, until recently, if you were using Alaska, you did the counter thing then took your bags away from the counter and over to the TSA people who put it through the xray machine *right there*. The Alaska people didn't put it on a conveyor belt for you at all.

This is what she said about her recent flight.

Yesterday on my flight, I was ready to hand my money to the guy that was actually working with loading up the bags and such. The guy at the counter, had a completely different attitude with the lady in front of me, as she was fumbling around with her purse getting money out. After taking my bags off the scale, his attitude seemed to go extremely flat when he didn't see me start to take money out. He was waiting for the stickers to print up and hand me my claim tickets.

Curbside people do stand behind counters. And she didn't mention a conveyor belt.


Sandra, the people that actually haul your bags around and load/offload them almost certainly make FAR more than the curbside people. I know that *in the past* (b/c my dad was friends with a guy who worked for decades doing that job at SFO) they made a very nice living, and got free travel on top of it. Not sure about it now, but I still guess they make more than the curbside people.

 

[SandrA9810]

The OP said the guy looking for a tip was behind the counter and his function was to label the bags and put them on the conveyer. That's the airline counter clerk, not the curbside check in staffer or a skycap. (Curbside check in uses carts, not conveyers.)

I flew out of San Jose, it was curbside check in, and they do have a carousel behind the counter. It was outside, and no one assisted me with my bags out of the car. There were three of us, my bf ran inside to go use the restroom, the other friend with us hopped in the driver seat so we wouldn't get in trouble, and I was left getting all my luggage out. Not a big deal, and it doesn't bother me. But it was exceptionally slow since there were only a handful of people unloading, and several skycaps working behind the counter.

It was Southwest, so there's no seat assignment, I already had my boarding pass in hand. So no real perk there.

The guy (#1) literally just took my bag off the scale and sat it behind him. When the stickers printed he put them on the handle and it was the other guy (#2) to load it up on the carousel. The guy #2 that I mentioned as the working one, was behind the counter keeping up with luggage, keeping the area clean with the carts, and so forth. Why would I pay his buddy $2 bucks when he was just standing there at a desk?

My aunt uses skycaps as full service. From getting her bags out of the car, getting a wheelchair for my grandmother, and getting it all checked in. Of course in reverse at landing. She does tip exceptionally well, even when the service is poor.

I would just think that a skycap working for tips would seek out customers rather than waiting for the customers to come to them standing behind a desk. Isn't that what service is about?