To Tip or Not to Tip???

[diveman7683]

Your instructor, in this case, is doing Divemaster work, and absolutely should be tipped. Actually, most working Divemasters are instructors.

So now that an instructor is acting like a DM, its ok to tip him??
Do you even know what you're talking about anymore?
You keep saying different things about tipping.

Like I said before, if someone wants to tip, let them tip. I don't expect a tip for doing my job, even with extra work for the divers. You don't tip, I don't care, and I won't hold it against you.

 

[Divmstr223]

I may not gain alot of positive feedback for this but that's okay. Once again I will state that I believe in tipping because most of the time is the right thing to do and yes it does help out someone who has put forth the effort and may not make alot of money. But ya know what, in all honesty, whether he/she makes alot of money or not is not my concern. Someone referenced a Bell hop, and I know Bell hops do whatever they can to get the customer to give them tips and I would too if I were a Bell Hop. But they are a paid employee by the hotel they work for to do what?? you guessed it, carry bags to and from your room, that is their job!!!! If people tip them, that's great and I do also, but at the end of the day they are still paid for by the company they work for to CARRY BAGS regardless of whether they are tipped or not.

And ya know what....the burden of low wages should never ever reflect on the customer.....If their employers pay them low wages I guess we should say that the employers are at fault, not the would be customers who tip them. And do you know why their wages are so low? Because it's customary to tip people in these jobs....it's an endless circle...

 

[Kagh't]

I think buying a drink for an instructor after a course is a perfectly fine way to tip without tipping, as it were, but for boat crew or divemasters who do the dogs body work on excursions do deserve a tip, as long as its good service.
Bad service means no tip, where ever you are or whatever you do.

 

[ItsBruce]

If I hire someone to perform a service, whether for a flat fee or for an hourly fee, I pay them for that service. I can see no good reason why I should then tip them for doing what I paid them to do. If they do something way beyond that, then, I'll tip them. For example, the guy who repaired my oven, not only repaired it, but he cleaned parts that were not normally accessible. That warrants a tip. Or the deckhand who carries the gear I would customarily carry, warrants a tip. However, I don't tip the pilot who flies the plane.

If I hire someone to perform a service and they sub that out to someone else, I'll pay the one I hired and I expect they will honor whatever deal they had with the person they hired. If I wouldn't tip the person I hired, why should I tip the one he subed the work to?

As to duckster3d, why would you pay a lawyer $1500 to go to court for you? I'll bet you could get any bellboy in the world to do it for $100. There are plenty of lawyers who would have done it for a couple of hundred dollars. Or you could do it yourself for free. I'd guess you paid the lawyer because you realized you needed some special expertise that others don't have and that without that expertise, you could find yourself in a very bad way. Its like when I have my regulator serviced, I could probably do it myself for free, but I know how important it is that it is done right, so I pay whatever it costs without complaint. We get paid what we do because we fix things when they go terribly wrong. And, its not like we got you into whatever trouble it was in the first place. (I never tell people to shoot other people, so when they do, they should not complain to me about the cost of keeping out of jail. And, I never people get married, so when they do and then want out, they should not complain to me about the cost of getting out.)

If it is a matter of tipping people because they have low paying jobs, that is something they should address with their employers. Let the employer charge me more up front -- assuming the cost does not deter me from going there in the first place. Subject to the foregoing, when I am on a boat dive, if I get anything more than a boat ride and air (if it is included), I tip and tip well. ... Especially where wages are particularly low. I guess my subconscious tells me that it is a way of ensuring that the crew will be available next time I want to dive.

 

[oly5050user]

I totally agree. I also hate the tip talk at the end of a dive. That's a great way to not get a tip from me.



Dan most boat crew are paid by the boat owner. Most bellboys also get a wage. Most waiters get a wage.

When I get a troublesome student over the hump, turn them into a diver after they've given up on themselves am I acting as a divemaster because that's usually when I get a tip, as an instructor.

I must really be a divemaster I guess.

up here in the NE boat crew are usually not paid..they are usually experienced divers who crew on the boat in exchange for the ride..many do not even have dm ratings..I encourage them to(did a dm class for some of them) do a dm class so they can get liability insurance.
Instructors should be tipped..an instr does not just teach class but gets classroom ready(cleaned up) sets up teaching aids,advises on equip purchases that fit the individuals dive goals,sets out equip and puts it away,completes student record files..etc..by the time all this is done what does he make? if the experience is a fun/positive one for student the gratuity is more than earned..

 

[daniel f aleman]

Good God!

Man, I can't believe that this is so hard to understand. One does not tip for services that demand payment, by anyone. If anyone does anything for you, as a service, without a demand for payment, you should tip.

You do not tip an instructor for instruction when the course has a specific payment due. If an instructor is working on a boat as a Divemaster, not offering instruction in this case, you tip him.

That's it.

 

[ItsBruce]

"If anyone does anything for you, as a service, without a demand for payment, you should tip." -- YOU BET. And if they do it because they want to do it and don't ask for a tip, the tip should be a big one.

BTW: That's why I have never expected nor gotten a tip. ... I do my job to the best of my ability because its my job to do it to the best of my ability.

 

[AquaHump]

If I wanted a DM or guide, the DMs or guide's service would be paid for in advance

When you hire a DM as a guide that’s not all your getting. You get some one that is going to make sure you are safe. you wont even know it but they will check out your gear they will have emergency contact info they will be ready for an emergency. not only that but I am sure they will try to make you day a very fun one and they will offer advice on any thin you ask them. Also DM and instructors get paid for some of what they do but they also have to bay for there memberships and insurance so I myself would tip a DM or an instructor.

 

[friscuba]

Good God!

Man, I can't believe that this is so hard to understand. One does not tip for services that demand payment, by anyone. If anyone does anything for you, as a service, without a demand for payment, you should tip.

You do not tip an instructor for instruction when the course has a specific payment due. If an instructor is working on a boat as a Divemaster, not offering instruction in this case, you tip him.

That's it.

Still confusing. I go to a dive company and they charge me for a course, you say I shouldn't tip the instructor. I am now certified, I go to the same dive company to take a boat dive, I pay for it. The dive had a specific payment due which I payed. Guess I don't have to tip.


You are doing a horrible job of differentiating between when an Instructor is acting as an Instructor or a DM. Most Instructors, by the very nature of their jobs, handle equimpent and lead dives, just as a DM does, yet according to you, sometimes you should tip them even though you should never tip them.

Maybe you meant to say that the classroom portion of your instruction does not deserve a tip? I don't know. You contradicted yourself completely when you said an Instructor taking students out on my boat is now acting as a DM.

 

[alcina]

When you hire a DM as a guide that’s not all your getting. You get some one that is going to make sure you are safe. you wont even know it but they will check out your gear they will have emergency contact info they will be ready for an emergency. not only that but I am sure they will try to make you day a very fun one and they will offer advice on any thin you ask them. Also DM and instructors get paid for some of what they do but they also have to bay for there memberships and insurance so I myself would tip a DM or an instructor.

Absolutely on the things DMs, guides and other crew provide, and if I benefit in any way from what the crew provides, that is above and beyond what I would expect from that operation (based on the location, the expectations set by the charter at booking etc) then tips are going to happen.

But, I guess I don't understand what each of us expects from our crew.

I personally expect a good dive briefing of the site. I would expect the crew to keep the boat tidy and any refreshments filled and ready. I would expect the crew to let me know what the procedures are on the day and where any and all safety items are located.

Absolutely not on the other things DMs etc have to pay for. I didn't force them to choose this course and that is beyond my responsibility. If they are working for less than optimum wages or for experience or for a million dollars a day, that isn't relevant to my tipping. My tips are based on service and service only.

YMMV I'm buring breakfast gotta run!!