Key Aspects:
- Carnival Cruise Line’s brand ambassador John Heald has once again attempted to explain that, in fact, crew members receive all tips offered to them, with no impact to their base salary.
- The controversy has gained attention recently due to “influencers” spreading incorrect information without real knowledge of the cruise line’s employee payment policies.
- Many different gratuity controversies continue to circulate online covering a wide range of topics about how, when, and who to tip.
Gratuities are a controversial topic among cruisers, whether it is a discussion of who should receive them, how they are paid, what the current rate may be, or if they should be mandatory or discretionary.
One issue that frequently resurfaces through social media groups and so-called “influencers” is exactly how cruise lines calculate crew members’ salaries in comparison to tips.
A concerned guest reached out to Carnival Cruise Line’s brand ambassador, John Heald, for clarification about the sometimes confusing connection between a crew member’s base salary and any gratuities they receive.
“[This person] is a cruise influencer with over 100,000 followers! She states that the money we tip the crew is used to pay them in addition to their normal pay as part of their base pay. Can you come clean on this?” the guest asks.
What this influencer seems to be claiming is that any gratuities a crew member receives are actually deducted from their “base pay” to keep the overall pay at a “normal” rate. For example, say a crew member’s salary is $400 per week, but they receive $150 per week in gratuities.
The claim is that Carnival would actually only pay the crew member $250, and the $150 in gratuities is added to reach that $400 salary. This would mean that the tips guests so generously offer are not actually over-and-above for excellent service, but are just being used as part of crew members’ base pay.
Heald left no question that this is not the case.
“As you are the 50th plus person to ask me this in the last few days I thought it was time for me to post the answer to save anyone else wasted time in asking me,” he noted. “THIS IS NOT CORRECT. IT IS FALSE INFORMATION.”
Read Also: How Much Should You Tip Crew Members?
Heald goes on to note that some “influencers” can be very good a what they do, but others are not so good. It’s always best for guests to go straight to the source for information, whether that is browsing the official website or speaking to a cruise line representative.
“Let me categorically deny that we do as they suggest,” he responded to further comments on the tipping confusion. “Gratuities that are given to the crew are kept by the crew and not by the company to support any salaries. That may happen on other cruise lines, but not with us.”
Cash Tipping on Carnival Cruise Line
To be clear, Heald is not confirming how any other lines may manage gratuities, service charges, or tips. Payment and payroll operations are confidential for all cruise lines, and policies may be adapted as times change or when tax laws, or payment options shift.
“All I can say is that we are very grateful to every single guest who takes the time to give a gratuity to our crew,” he said. “Tipping is a very personal subject and at the end of the day people have to do what they think is best.”
At the moment, Carnival Cruise Line service gratuities are assessed at $16 per person, per day for most stateroom types. Guests staying in suites, which are larger rooms with more customized service, are assessed at $18 per person, per day. Carnival has not increased gratuity rates since April 2023.
More Tipping Controversies
Carnival Cruise Line has addressed a wide range of tipping controversies in the past.
Just days ago, the ever-touchy subject of whether guests should continue to have the discretion to adjust or remove automatic gratuities sparked heated debate and even a poll.
Another hot topic is how different guests might actually offer extra gratuities to staff members, and whether or not “cutesy” trends of how to display the cash one gives are appropriate or just tasteless.
Who receives tips, tipping porters at the cruise terminal, and whether to offer cash or increase the auto-gratuities on one’s shipboard account are all questions that are regularly discussed, with strong opinions on both sides.
Appeared first on: Cruisehive.com
