Service charge/tip

[Rob]

Craig123,

Exactly. Jamaica decided years ago to implement a small policy that the government felt would allow more of its citizens to benefit from the tourism industry. They did it in such a way that all employees benefit and still leaves room for individual effort to be rewarded. The government felt it was a win-win situation.

NegrilJail feels that the policy is unjust because it has socialist/communistic effect. I was just pointing out that even in his country, there are socialism/communism policies at work, and to maybe not judge the Jamaican policies so harshly...

[NEGRILJAIL]

Thanks Craig ... nuff said ..Rob ..where do you think the government gets the money ? we pay them instead of insurance companies is all ..
furthermore ..in principle ..so i pay 500 ja on my bill so that the gardener will garden ..the janitor will clean ..the waiter/ess will serve ..and the chef will cook ??? ..reminds me of the former USSR where the people pretended to work ..and the government pretended to pay them ...
okay enough political jargon ..sorry i always end up rolling that way ..it's in my genes ..poly-sci major ..lol ..go figure
So Rob ... do you know the going rate for lobster direct from the fishermen ? have a bbq at my rental .. fish ?
Thanks ..and definitely no disrespect ..

[Craig123]

I'm with you Rob. Unfortunately, sometimes people are more interested in right vs. left than they are with right vs. wrong.

[Rob]

NegrilJail,

The gardener is already paid to garden, the bartender to tend bar, the waitstaff to serve, the janitor paid to clean, the chef paid to cook, etc... The business already pays them for those services. The government does not pay them, the business does. The government does not pretend to pay them, the business pays them. Jamaicans dont pretend to work, they work. If they dont, they are fired and replaced. I really cannot see the logic in your statement. At best it is comparing apples and oranges.

Your service charge does not pay their wages. They already receive a wage. The service charge is a fee the business collects that is shared and is above and beyond the hourly employee wages. The government does not touch the service charge. If the business adds a service charge, the government allows the business to do so as long as it is implemented in accordance to the law.

The service charge was implemented so that all the employees from the business get to share in a partial tip since they are all responsible for making that experience happen. This can actually be an incentive for all the employees since they can all feel that their work is appreciated above and beyond their normal wage. The individual tip that you give your bartender, waiter or housekeeper is theirs to keep without sharing.

I do not see how that is in any way, shape or form like the former Soviet Union.

[Prism]

I for one like the system. I think it is great that the groundskeepers and front desk etc who all work hard too, get a little of compensation. We can't tip everyone individually and they all work to make the places we go beautiful. Then I can also tip the waitstaff and housekeeping extra for their services. There are lots of behind the scene or not right there people who work at hotels, restaurants etc.

[Crusher]

You know we are all guests in their country and if this is a way for everyone to share in the profits of my visiting paradise then I am fine with that. The locals welcome us with open arms and a warm smile. I for one think that is worth something. As I stated previously we do that at the theatre here as the servers aren't the only one's responsible for the experince that we have. Same thing with the hotel, I tip waitresses, bartenders and the ladies who clean our room. I have a local who drives me around and he is like family. For the weeks that we are there I ensure he and his wife live like royalty and do everything that we do. Its the least that I can do for the love and caring they show us while we are there. I love Jamaica, calculate how much I want to spend, and darn well make sure all of its spent while we are there!

[Bnewb]

Nice post, Crusher!!

[captaind]

Big up Crusher!

[Blake]

You know we are all guests in their country and if this is a way for everyone to share in the profits of my visiting paradise then I am fine with that. The locals welcome us with open arms and a warm smile.

A lot of it is so that you'll be more likely to be willing to separate with some of your money...

Don't kid yourself, a service charge doesn't create an incentive to provide great service, because at the end of the day they're charging it regardless of the service performed.

Can customers dispute the service charge if the service sucks? If not, then it's a mandatory tax that should be factored in by everyone that decides whether to eat out or not.

At the end of the day:

The business pays the employees and charges accordingly for the food.

I see it more as a tourist tax/trap to get more money from people that want to visit a country and support the local economy. I would rather see higher prices on the menu rather than have to calculate another tax into the meal cost, but maybe I'm alone on that line of thinking.

Call it what you want, sugar coat it as much as you want, but a service tax is just another way for the business owner to not have to provide transparent pricing.

It's already bad enough in the US and we don't have service charges in ADDITION to tipping the servers.

I have no problem saying I love Jamaica, I love the people in Jamaica, and I love the food in Jamaica but also saying I hate the tipping culture both in Jamaica and in the US and I've worked in and run restaurants.

I've been around the tipping culture in the US for a long time and can't stand it anymore.

[captaind]

I've been around the tipping culture in the US for a long time and can't stand it anymore.

OK ...in Jamaica it's not a tip it's charity.

"And now abideth the three..Faith, Hope and Charity. And the greatest of these is Charity"