More On Maid-Tipping
15th June 2008
I just had a conversation with one of the maids on the laundry room floor as I was waiting for the elevator. The maid explained to me (in Spanish, of course, the situation has to meet the stereotype) that all the girls that were leaving on the elevator had left her no tip. I looked into the room that she was currently cleaning next to the elevator and it was trashed. I asked if all the rooms were like that and she said some were worse, some were better, but not a one of them had even one dollar left in it.
The girls that were leaving were in an FFA group that has been here all week - some type of leadership conference, from what I gather. They were staying in rooms alone or at least separate from their parents. I think the boys were hoteled (it’s a verb if I want it to be a verb!) on a different floor, so I’m not really sure if teen boys trash their rooms or not.
Anyway, I just want to know your opinions. Should the parents have given their daughters money to tip their maids? Are the daughters responsible for their own room tips? Do you think their parents probably didn’t teach their daughters to tip? Are teens not generally tippers?
Another note - these kids are the top FFA (Future Farmers of America) performers. They have come from all different corners of America. We had FFA in our high school and these kids weren’t necessarily the best students or the most popular kids; they just usually had rural interests and wanted to enhance their leadership skills. But this particular conference was for the FFA leaders, so that should give you a better idea as to what kinds of kids were here. I’m not even calling out FFA’ers. I’m just saying they’re typical high school kids - and that not one of the females housed on the third floor left even a dollar tip.
June 15th, 2008 at 11:41 am
Most teenagers are pretty egocentric, so unless (or even if) they’ve worked minimum wage, the thought wouldn’t transfer.
I bet the guys’ rooms were worse.
I would also bet this was the first or one of very few trips these kids have ever taken, so inexperience counts for something.
June 15th, 2008 at 12:09 pm
@Jay - you’re right about the egocentrism. These girls were totally PO’ed when I took what they thought was “their” elevator. It was going up and they wanted to go down.
I don’t know about the guys’ rooms. I think that high schoolers are just happy to be able to hang out with their friends without a parent standing over them. The freedom to have his own hotel room was probably a nice rush for these kids. And you’re totally right, the inexperience is huge for these kids. This just shows me what to teach my son. I know he sees me leave the maid tip money, I guess I just have to make sure I tell him he has to do that too.
I just wonder if the girls were given tip money by their folks and if they spent it on themselves instead or if they would even remember.
June 15th, 2008 at 1:24 pm
Good point about articulating to your son what and why you are doing [something]. My kids are adults now, but I always did this –not lecture, but said out loud my who, what, & why’s. Now, of course, they roll their eyes and go “I know, I know”. It paid off, though.
Couldn’t guess about those girls’ parents! Possible $ was “reallocated”, also possible their parents have little experience themselves. Lots of folks rarely, if ever, stay in hotels.
June 19th, 2008 at 3:31 pm
I guess I had no idea that you left a tip in the hotel rooms for the maids. I thought it was their job to do the work, and I guess if it was a particular mess maybe so.
Do you leave cash sitting on a table for them? Sometimes I would leave money out if it disapeared I would think it was stolen. I guess I just had no idea this was a social norm.
I have not stayed in tons of hotels and usually they are ‘value’ places, was this at an expensive hotel? I have never had to worry about a bell hop carrying my luggage if you know what I mean.
June 19th, 2008 at 6:00 pm
As a 20 year old teen, and having stayed in countless hotel rooms, I must sheepishly admit that I didn’t learn to tip until I came to college. It was there that my friends were the ones cleaning the rooms, waiting the tables, and delivering the pizzas. I didn’t realize that it was necessary to leave tips to anyone but waiters and waitresses. I’d never seen my parents do it, nor my friends’ parents, so the thought never crossed my mind. I feel horrible for all those years. haha.
And the boys rooms were probably worse? Psh. You don’t know enough teenage girls. I’ve been in my fair share of dorm rooms, and I have to say, the ladies rooms are just as cluttered, if not more so, as their male counterparts.
June 20th, 2008 at 6:08 am
@Philip - yes, the predominant thought is that you always leave a tip for the maid. It can be some spare change. It doesn’t have to be an expensive hotel.
@Daniel - yeah, this is normal. That’s why we had to discuss it. I agree with you now, thinking about being a teenage girl!
June 24th, 2008 at 6:54 pm
Who is “financially” responsible seems to be slightly irrelevant, in my opinion — that’s an individual family decision; some families provide allowances and take care of such expenses (especially school-related ones like FFA), whereas other families would expect older kids to take care of such things. To each their own.
I think the bigger problem is people not really knowing that it is appropriate to tip for maid service when you’re staying at a hotel. I don’t think kids are out to screw people out of tips — when I was a teenager, I wouldn’t ever think of not tipping a cab driver. Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that tipping hotel trips can be much rarer for kids, and even during hotel tips, it can be such an easy detail for a kid to not notice.
I do think, regardless of who pays the tip, that its a parent’s responsibility to teach their kid about whats appropriate. Regardless, an interesting topic!
July 29th, 2008 at 12:50 pm
We stayed in hotels a lot when I was little and my parents never tipped. I know this because one time there was an envelope on the counter specifically to leave your tip for the maid and my mom was offended that she was expected to tip.
My boss told me to tip when I first get someplace so they know I’m cool and to give me good service. I say that I am tipping you for the service you already gave me and that I shouldn’t have to bribe you to be treated well.
So now I tip. But only after you serviced me. And only if you performed above and beyond your hourly wage.