Tipping Delivery Captain

dwhatty said:

Should have said inconsequential damage. The damage was to a cheap storage ottoman that had a leg fold up.

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That's even better....something just not designed for seas.

Gmarr said:

I wonder if it's an "industry practice", a lot of these guys afterall are self employed. I'd rather think that they may be preferred to be paid in cash....... That would be a nice tip 20-30% based on their tax rates ;-)

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Tax evasion. Your going to jail. ??

I will be paying a guy today in cash who has been compounding and waxing my boat. I assume of course that he will be declaring the income, but it is none of my business. He requested cash. I think it will be tip enough.

dhays said:

I will be paying a guy today in cash who has been compounding and waxing my boat. I assume of course that he will be declaring the income, but it is none of my business. He requested cash. I think it will be tip enough.

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Actually depending on how much you pay him in a year it may very well be your business. If you paid him over $600 for the year. And while the chances of it coming back on you are slim, it does happen sometimes.

Just erased a long post that was turning into a rant about how tipping is getting way out of control. Basically if someone goes above and beyond what is expected or agreed to then tipping might be warranted. All in all though if you think your salary needs to be augmented with tips to be a fair wage then chose another line of work. Sorry if that sounds a little harsh.

I've kinda loosely followed this thread a tad bit and have a serious question for the most vehement anti-tip crowd. Where in this thread, please quote a single post, where someone who's received a tip said it was expected? Aside from the odd food service employee out I cannot find one.

B&B spoke regarding the expectations of tipping in the large yacht charter crowd(quite truthfully too) which includes those charters originating in Australia btw. Rant on if it makes you feel better but nobody's changing mindsets or cultures here.

I always pay by check or credit card, unless paying cash at a cash register or as a tip.

kwmeyer13 said:

Just erased a long post that was turning into a rant about how tipping is getting way out of control. Basically if someone goes above and beyond what is expected or agreed to then tipping might be warranted. All in all though if you think your salary needs to be augmented with tips to be a fair wage then chose another line of work. Sorry if that sounds a little harsh.

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+1

To thine own self, be true.

This is hysterical.....

I probably say "please, no" to more than 50% of the tips that are offered me...even by long term acquaintances...

They are hugely pushy about it, wont take no for an answer and get irritated after the second or third please no. So I take them with a smile, stick them in my pocket without even looking, blush and say thank you.


I don't expect them, can live without them, enjoys them when I get them and am happy to see the smile on the persons face when I say a sincere thank you.


Not trying to change anyone's mind...but once I started getting tips...I started giving more and bigger tips than ever before...and sometimes...it makes a real difference to a person....and that feeling is great when they look at you and you know.

Tipping Delivery Captains

I completely detail my 22ft boat every year and it's incredibly hard work if it's done correctly. If your guy does a good job then give him a little something. I view these types of jobs as more of a service industry job than I do for a home electrician or plumber. Just my view.

psneeld said:

Not trying to change anyone's mind...but once I started getting tips...I started giving more and bigger tips than ever before...and sometimes...it makes a real difference to a person....and that feeling is great when they look at you and you know.

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I'm sure seeing you fight and then finally accept a tip makes the person giving feel better. Tipping is like gift giving at holidays in some ways. Both the giver and the receiver are rewarded. I've had people say no to tips, but never had anyone offended or their feelings hurt by them.

Two sturdy teenagers helped me wrestle an amazingly heavy ISOBoost transformer into my engine room and hang it on the bulkhead today. It was close to 100 degrees in my shrink-wrapped boat. They are employees of the marina and make summer wages. They were exceptionally careful and conscientious and worked their asses off on one of the toughest jobs I've attempted on this boat--maneuvering a 235-lb "basketball" onto six 3/8" studs protruding out of the bulkhead while working around an engine and other confinements. Incredibly hard work, but the end result was terrific.

I didn't have cash with me today, but you bet that tomorrow they're each getting a generous tip. Even if it wasn't the right thing to do, I might need their help again and I prefer they don't think of me as a cheapskate.

even though I am all but an employee at my marina....


Every year in December just before I leave for 4-5 months, I buy about a $125 worth of pizza and soda for the crew. Just my way of saying thanks for all the little things that go back and forth. It is usually a hit.


Another boater that used to keep his boat here, would grill dogs or sausages and burgers a couple times a year for the marina gang and anyone else who was around. His status was elevated to god-like and whatever he needed or wanted....he was usually #1, even ahead of the big money tippers.


My first winter in Savannah when we stayed nearly a total of 3 weeks at Isle Of Hope Marina I did the same with the pizza party before I left. I was the one embarrassed by how little they ordered because they never had anyone do it before. Told them next time I'll do the ordering. Four years later and it is still remembered even though we have only been back a couple days.


So tipping isn't about money, it's about giving a rats rear end about people and how the relationship goes....that's one of the first things I learned about leadership and it was driven home many a time in my USCG career.


So making people feel special can come from words, favors, money, special items, etc.....it's only what you make out of it and its rare that it doesnt come back to you if its sincere.

psneeld said:

So tipping isn't about money, it's about giving a rats rear end about people and how the relationship goes....that's one of the first things I learned about leadership and it was driven home many a time in my USCG career.


So making people feel special can come from words, favors, money, special items, etc.....it's only what you make out of it and its rare that it doesnt come back to you if its sincere.

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Nicely said.

Still brings dividends after four years:

psneeld said:

Every year in December just before I leave for 4-5 months, I buy about a $125 worth of pizza and soda for the crew. Just my way of saying thanks for all the little things that go back and forth. It is usually a hit.

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We did something very similar when we were on the hard over the winter. On a Friday, when all the employees were there, about 12, we provided a pizza and beer party for them (with the manager's permission, of course). TBH, I wanted to get a food truck there for them, but there were obstacles (minimum purchase and all). Still, they all loved it and will remember us fondly I hope... However, that isn't why we did it. We still gave most of them $20, $50, or $100 tips at the end of all the work. So if some of you want to say that we are part of the problem of an out of control tipping society... Guilty as charged and I won't lose a minute's sleep over it

Tom.B said:

We did something very similar when we were on the hard over the winter. On a Friday, when all the employees were there, about 12, we provided a pizza and beer party for them (with the manager's permission, of course). TBH, I wanted to get a food truck there for them, but there were obstacles (minimum purchase and all). Still, they all loved it and will remember us fondly I hope... However, that isn't why we did it. We still gave most of them $20, $50, or $100 tips at the end of all the work. So if some of you want to say that we are part of the problem of an out of control tipping society... Guilty as charged and I won't lose a minute's sleep over it

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We grilled out one afternoon for all the employees at the factory where our boat was built. And, yes, we donned aprons and did a lot of the grilling and serving ourselves with those accompanying us helping. Now this builder rewards all employees of the company with bonuses with the delivery of every boat so they got that, but to get the appreciation from the buyers is something they really loved. Then we did the same thing at their carpentry plant a few days later.

At boatyards you often just deal with the managers. Just, with their permission of course, walking through and shaking hands and thanking all those there who did the work is much appreciated.

I learned long ago that employee rewards of the smallest kind can often be so appreciated. Years ago the company I worked for had facilities in Jamaica. The most appreciated present we ever gave employees there was umbrellas. These were umbrellas we paid about $2 for. However, once you understand that most there did not own umbrellas. They also rode buses to and from work. Standing at bus stops and getting soaked on rainy days is miserable. Also explains why attendance was bad on those days, so an unforseen benefit. There was even another benefit. As they stood there all those without umbrellas would find out their employer gave them theirs and think well of us. So, it became an annual thing to give umbrellas.

Sometimes it's just knowing the people you're dealing with well enough to now what would be meaningful to them. Money is still well appreciated but more when accompanied by sincere acknowledgement. We try to tell all the people at the marinas we go to how much we appreciate all they did. My wife is great at names. She helps me cheat when I can't remember by speaking to them by name first and then I do as well. Show interest in people too, without prying. A simple thing such as asking about family. It goes a long ways when you return and ask how their sons or daughters or wife are doing. We show up at one Bahama location with cake for the customs and marina persons. Pass cake up to a lockmaster occasionally. We were in a lock grilling hamburgers one day and the lockmaster said they smelled good. We asked him if he wanted a couple. Passed two up to him. He said his sandwich from home would save fine for another day.

As a boat owner you face an assumptive negative. It is that because you own a boat, a sign of wealth, and they work on boats, then you feel you're better than them. It doesn't matter if yours is a $10,000 boat. No different than employer/employee relationships. You must convey with your actions and words that that is not true, that you respect them and their talents and efforts.

And with all of that, we're still tipping.

BandB said:

As a boat owner you face an assumptive negative. It is that because you own a boat, a sign of wealth, and they work on boats, then you feel you're better than them. It doesn't matter if yours is a $10,000 boat. No different than employer/employee relationships. You must convey with your actions and words that that is not true, that you respect them and their talents and efforts.

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Very well said.

The shipwright who replaced 12 planks on my hull this spring then varnished the cabin house and painted the topsides and bottom worked seven days a week to complete the work by my scheduled launch date. After launch he worked around my use of the boat to strip, stain and varnish all the interior wood. He also built a beautiful new solid maple counter top for the galley, varnished it and installed it and new ceiling in the galley. He finally finished yesterday and the work is beautiful. I would never consider tipping him though.

I'd love to see pics sometime, TDunn!