Money Do you tip your hotel maid? - Page 11

Deberg_1990 · 09-16-2014, 09:10 PM

http://www.foxnews.com/travel/2014/0...ips-for-maids/

HOTELS
Hotel chain's program encourages tips for maids

NEW YORK – Do you leave a tip in your hotel room for the maid? Marriott is launching a program with Maria Shriver to put envelopes in hotel rooms to encourage tipping.

The campaign, called "The Envelope Please," begins this week. Envelopes will be placed in 160,000 rooms in the U.S. and Canada. Some 750 to 1,000 hotels will participate from Marriott brands like Courtyard, Residence Inn, J.W. Marriott, Ritz-Carlton and Renaissance hotels.

The name of the person who cleans the room will be written on the envelope along with a message: "Our caring room attendants enjoyed making your stay warm and comfortable. Please feel free to leave a gratuity to express your appreciation for their efforts."

Shriver, who founded an organization called A Woman's Nation that aims to empower women, says many travelers don't realize tipping hotel room attendants is customary. "There's a huge education of the traveler that needs to occur," she said. "If you tell them, they ask, 'How do I do that?'" She said envelopes make it easy for guests to leave cash for the right person in a secure way.

So how much should you leave? Marriott International CEO Arne Sorenson says $1 to $5 per night, depending on room rate, with more for a high-priced suite.

Michael Lynn, a professor at Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration, says his research shows that "30 percent of people stiff the maid," while 70 percent said they usually leave a tip.

Sorenson noted that housekeepers "are less frequently tipped" than other hotel workers because they do an "invisible task." In contrast, workers who carry bags, hail cabs and park cars tend to get tipped because they "make a personal connection" with guests, he said.

Rosario Rodriguez, who works as a housekeeper at Marriott's Times Square hotel, says many guests don't tip and welcomes the envelope campaign as "a good idea."

Jessica Lynn Strosky of DuBois, Pennsylvania, who earns $7.75 an hour cleaning rooms at a hotel that's not a Marriott, says only 1 in 15 or 20 guests leaves a tip. When they do, it's a dollar or two; she's lucky to get $20 a week in tips. "I've talked to lots of people who say they don't know they are supposed to tip," she said.

Unlike waitresses who earn less than minimum wage because tips are expected to raise their earnings, hotel housekeepers are paid minimum wage, and in expensive markets, substantially more. In Washington D.C., Sorenson said, Marriott housekeepers start in the mid-teens per hour.

Not everyone applauds the envelope concept. "It is not Marriott's responsibility to remind customers to tip; it's their responsibility to pay their workers enough so that tips aren't necessary," said author Barbara Ehrenreich, who tried working as a hotel maid for her 2001 book "Nickel and Dimed," which chronicled her experiences in low-wage jobs.

But Scott Lazerson, 42, who lives in Sundance, Utah, said he "had no idea" tipping was customary until his wife told him on a recent trip to Orlando. He said he "feels stupid" for not knowing all these years, and added: "Yes, the hotel industry needs to do a campaign about it."

Kaepernick · 09-17-2014, 07:52 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rain Man

My first job was $2.10 an hour at my dad's A&W. I took some steps backwards after that because I was under 16 so for some bizarre reason I didn't fall under minimum wage standards. My next two jobs were $2.00 an hour at a steak house and $1.80 or $1.90 at a Dairy Queen. Minimum wage at this time ranged from about $2.35 to $2.70.

I finally turned 16 and got up to minimum wage at a different steak house and I think I worked my way up to about $3.70 or $3.90. After a few temporary college jobs, I got my engineering degree at a starting salary of $28,860 per year in 1986, and I was pretty sure that I was rich.

You were rich my man!

My starting civil engineering salary in 1984 was $17,700.

You know what really chaps my hide?

When I was making $17,700, I thought if I only I made $30,000, I would be on easy street. When I hit $30,000, I couldn't tell you where it all went but it wasn't easy street. I thought, if only I made $50,000, I would be on easy street. Rinse. Repeat.

Nearing 6 figures now and still wondering what you have to earn to be on easy street. I mean, 1500 SQFT house, $30,000 cars. I am not in a McMansion driving a 911 and wondering where all the money went, you know? It is modest living.

OK, some of it was excessive. Owning a $27,000 Harley Davidson and spending about $20,000 for 2 trips around the USA was a chunk I could have put in the 401k, but I don't regret it either.

Still, nearing 6 figures and no where near easy street. I don't see how people making $30,000 a year survive today.

Sweet Daddy Hate · 09-17-2014, 07:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kaepernick

You were rich my man!

My starting civil engineering salary in 1984 was $17,700.

You know what really chaps my hide?

When I was making $17,700, I thought if I only I made $30,000, I would be on easy street. When I hit $30,000, I couldn't tell you where it all went but it wasn't easy street. I thought, if only I made $50,000, I would be on easy street. Rinse. Repeat.

Nearing 6 figures now and still wondering what you have to earn to be on easy street. I mean, 1500 SQFT house, $30,000 cars. I am not in a McMansion driving a 911 and wondering where all the money went, you know? It is modest living.

OK, some of it was excessive. Owning a $27,000 Harley Davidson and spending about $20,000 for 2 trips around the USA was a chunk I could have put in the 401k, but I don't regret it either.

Still, nearing 6 figures and no where near easy street. I don't see how people making $30,000 a year survive today.

The more you make, the more you spend. There's really no mystery.

Pasta Little Brioni · 09-17-2014, 10:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 505 Chief

The more you make, the more you spend. There's really no mystery.

This. I know people that make more money that struggle and some that make less and make it look easy. Living within your means is a lost art.

**Rain Man** · 09-17-2014, 10:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kaepernick

You were rich my man!

My starting civil engineering salary in 1984 was $17,700.

You know what really chaps my hide?

When I was making $17,700, I thought if I only I made $30,000, I would be on easy street. When I hit $30,000, I couldn't tell you where it all went but it wasn't easy street. I thought, if only I made $50,000, I would be on easy street. Rinse. Repeat.

Nearing 6 figures now and still wondering what you have to earn to be on easy street. I mean, 1500 SQFT house, $30,000 cars. I am not in a McMansion driving a 911 and wondering where all the money went, you know? It is modest living.

OK, some of it was excessive. Owning a $27,000 Harley Davidson and spending about $20,000 for 2 trips around the USA was a chunk I could have put in the 401k, but I don't regret it either.

Still, nearing 6 figures and no where near easy street. I don't see how people making $30,000 a year survive today.

I was rich, I guess. No debt, no obligations, just a paycheck every Friday and the energy of youth.

I'm still saving like heck for retirement, and still worry about it. I don't want to be a hunchbacked hobo when I'm 90, but my goodness. I've saved money consistently ever since the age of 22 and I'm still not sure that I'm on pace.

And by the way, retirement calculators are terrible. I'll go into one and it'll tell me that I'm ahead of schedule and I'll go into the next one and it'll say I'm a million dollars short. There's no reliability at all in those things.

09-16-2014, 09:10 PM
Deberg_1990 In Search of a Life Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: San Antonio Tx. Casino cash: $3914454	Do you tip your hotel maid? http://www.foxnews.com/travel/2014/0...ips-for-maids/ HOTELS Hotel chain's program encourages tips for maids NEW YORK – Do you leave a tip in your hotel room for the maid? Marriott is launching a program with Maria Shriver to put envelopes in hotel rooms to encourage tipping. The campaign, called "The Envelope Please," begins this week. Envelopes will be placed in 160,000 rooms in the U.S. and Canada. Some 750 to 1,000 hotels will participate from Marriott brands like Courtyard, Residence Inn, J.W. Marriott, Ritz-Carlton and Renaissance hotels. The name of the person who cleans the room will be written on the envelope along with a message: "Our caring room attendants enjoyed making your stay warm and comfortable. Please feel free to leave a gratuity to express your appreciation for their efforts." Shriver, who founded an organization called A Woman's Nation that aims to empower women, says many travelers don't realize tipping hotel room attendants is customary. "There's a huge education of the traveler that needs to occur," she said. "If you tell them, they ask, 'How do I do that?'" She said envelopes make it easy for guests to leave cash for the right person in a secure way. So how much should you leave? Marriott International CEO Arne Sorenson says $1 to $5 per night, depending on room rate, with more for a high-priced suite. Michael Lynn, a professor at Cornell University's School of Hotel Administration, says his research shows that "30 percent of people stiff the maid," while 70 percent said they usually leave a tip. Sorenson noted that housekeepers "are less frequently tipped" than other hotel workers because they do an "invisible task." In contrast, workers who carry bags, hail cabs and park cars tend to get tipped because they "make a personal connection" with guests, he said. Rosario Rodriguez, who works as a housekeeper at Marriott's Times Square hotel, says many guests don't tip and welcomes the envelope campaign as "a good idea." Jessica Lynn Strosky of DuBois, Pennsylvania, who earns $7.75 an hour cleaning rooms at a hotel that's not a Marriott, says only 1 in 15 or 20 guests leaves a tip. When they do, it's a dollar or two; she's lucky to get $20 a week in tips. "I've talked to lots of people who say they don't know they are supposed to tip," she said. Unlike waitresses who earn less than minimum wage because tips are expected to raise their earnings, hotel housekeepers are paid minimum wage, and in expensive markets, substantially more. In Washington D.C., Sorenson said, Marriott housekeepers start in the mid-teens per hour. Not everyone applauds the envelope concept. "It is not Marriott's responsibility to remind customers to tip; it's their responsibility to pay their workers enough so that tips aren't necessary," said author Barbara Ehrenreich, who tried working as a hotel maid for her 2001 book "Nickel and Dimed," which chronicled her experiences in low-wage jobs. But Scott Lazerson, 42, who lives in Sundance, Utah, said he "had no idea" tipping was customary until his wife told him on a recent trip to Orlando. He said he "feels stupid" for not knowing all these years, and added: "Yes, the hotel industry needs to do a campaign about it."
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