Small world xmas & stroller detail

[cathoswolf]

I thought it was funny working on stroller gc for small world xmas, me and 1 other person had the area looking like a parking lot and we were the vallets. This one guy tipped me 5 bucks and I followed the 3 time rule. He kept insisting that I take it, so after the third time I took it and a manager saw me. I was happy I did not get into trouble and I got to keep my tip.

[Buggy]

Hi! I'm a stupid but generous guest. Might I ask what the 3 time rule is or am I not supposed to know?

[Dante101]

It's a rule mostly only followed by new-hires. If you are offered a tip, you're supposed to politely refuse it. If the guest insists you take it, you're supposed to politely refuse it a second time. If the guest insists a third time, then you can take it, so as not to offend certain cultures.

In short, Disney doesn't want its CMs taking tips, but it also doesn't want them to offend people by refusing.

As with a lot of silly Disney rules, this is followed at first, but then as time goes by, the CM will learn which rules are important and which are stupid.

Certain areas might temporarily have some idiot supervisor that's a stickler for this rule - but otherwise I'd say most CMs don't follow it (or modify it so they refuse only once).

Some cast members think they get around it by saying, "Oh no, no, no - you don't have to do that" when being offered a tip, and taking it when the guest usually replies, "no really, I want you to have this." This way, if talked to, they can honestly say they said "no" three times.

Also, this silly rule doesn't apply with waiter/waitress service, or bellmen at the hotels, where tipping is part of the business.

[cathoswolf]

after a couple of months I did the no no no and then took the the tip. I followed the 3 no rule. most of the time we kept the tips coz some of the managers did not want to deal with paper work on giving it to a charity.

[Dante101]

That's a new one on me - I've never heard of the "giving it to charity." If you're saying they make you give your tip money away, just because you didn't deny it 3 times - I think that's illegal.

Just because it's a policy they have doesn't make it okay. For a while, when they used to pass out paychecks rather than mail them, they would not give you your paycheck if you hadn't filled out certain forms, such as a form which was used to contribute money to a charity organization. Even if you didn't want to contribute, you had to sign the form and mark the selections saying you were not contributing.

They didn't realize that they could not withhold paychecks like that; and it makes you wonder which policies are Disney policies, and which ones are based on some numbskull manager who doesn't know any better...

I'd talk it over with my union shop steward and get their opinion...

[goose]

I hate that damn rule. I accept tips when I know I won't get caught. I don't feel bad at all. It's not Disney's money! Most of the time the guys walk away. What am I supposed to do? Flee my glow cart yelling "Sir, thank you, but I can't accept tips!" I think not.

[tourbunny]

see, here is the real fun part. it is absolutely illegal for disney to make you a) refuse a tip and b) make you surrender it. it is considered YOUR income as soon as you hold it in your hands and the employer cannot touch it or tell you what to do with it or deduct it from you paycheck or anything, yet for some reason disney thinks they can make us give it back. and yes, the rule is that they give it to a charity of your choice, but what proof do we have that it actually got there??? disney is getting a tax writeoff for beeing such a generous company for donating money WE have made. mean, isn't it?
we in guest relations have been fighting this for ages now. there is an actual labor law that states all of that.
we get anywhere from $50 to $1000 tip for every single vip tour and frankly - we deserve it beeing with those people 12, 13, 14 hrs mostly with no break, water or food and a big old headache. yes you always see us eating on stage but those are exeptions. most guests see us as their servant for the time beeing and don't think that we have food-and waterneeds too.
anyways, ... so we asked management how disney justifies that rule and it sayed that if we all got to keep our tip, people would be fighting over cool shift where they know the chances for a little extra money are greater. besides we are supposed to be all over guest service not beeing reembursed for our smile or things that are in our jobdescribtion.
i can understand that we would fight over vip tours and that there would be a lot of favoritism and the leads would always put themselfs on tours if they need extra rentmoney but i don't see what the big deal in attractions is. if someones slips you a five for putting them in the first row of pirates for heavens sake , take it i say.
so ya, there is that topic brought up with tom (labor relations) but he is taking his sweet time with an answer. so all that's left is the usual disney motto, sit, wait and pray for improvement...

[Dante101]

Forgive my ignorance, but are you guys (tourguides) union? If so, we not bring it up to them?

That is a BS excuse they gave for not taking tips ("people would be fighting over cool shifts"). While it might be true, there are a number of ways to distribute the shifts in a fair manner to prevent such fighting. The "no tip" policy is not in place to prevent squabbling among the tour guides. They insult our intelligence when they vomit explanations like that in our face...

[VonSeegs]

Tour Guides aren't supposed to get tips? I don't see a problem with getting tipped at all. Asain tour guides do so why shouldn't you, you're doing the same job. Keep on Tom for that one. You'll probably have to claim whatever tips you do get but hey, it's better than nothing.

I didn't get tipped a lot, maybe because I'm not the cheerleader type of CM (which is really odd because I was cheerleader) but I was compensated by rocket change. I also had the pleasure of finding sled change and the $21 I found in buggy change one day. I tried to get the guest's attention, honestly, but they didn't turn around. That was good because I needed gas money like really bad that day.

[tabacco]

Forgive my ignorance, but are you guys (tourguides) union? If so, we not bring it up to them?

Guest Relations is non-union.

[Polar33]

About "fighting over the cool shifts"...how much different would it be then the CMs working at Club 33? I've known people who have worked their way into there just for the tips. The CMs there have a ton of seniorty and once they get in they don't usually leave. Prehaps being it's own business unit helps, but I'm sure they could do something similar with the VIP tours.

[Dante101]

Forgive my ignorance, but are you guys (tourguides) union? If so, we not bring it up to them?

Guest Relations is non-union.
Okay, then perhaps you can get one of the other unions to fight it in their next round of contract negotiations. If it gets knocked down in the next Attractions or Foods contract, then they'd have a hard time keeping it for the rest of the Park. Try to get the Foods and Attractions Shop Stewards talking about this.

That course of action might work, and you won't have to get your hands dirty!

[tourbunny]

well, dante, it's not about getting our hands dirty or not, it's the simple fact that we are not union so we are the most at-will-employees there are in the park. for us it's the simple fact of it not beeing worth it to lose our job over. and beleive me they would fire us for making mutany here. one of our people like i sayed has already talked to tom but got the standard "i'll look into it..." anwer, so basicaly waiting for us to drop it. intimidation is the companies best weapon.
i like the idea of bringing it up at the next contract nagotiations. but then again it's not gonna be important enough to be an issue for attractions for example where tips are one in a million. what do you think vonseegs?

[Dante101]

well, dante, it's not about getting our hands dirty or not, it's the simple fact that we are not union so we are the most at-will-employees there are in the park. for us it's the simple fact of it not beeing worth it to lose our job over. and beleive me they would fire us for making mutany here.
It is about "getting your hands dirty." When I use that phrase, I mean you can work to get the policy changed without it looking like you are even involved. You can get others to "do your dirty work."
If you go to some guy in Labor Relations about this - your hands are dirty; meaning the company knows it is you trying to push them to drop this policy. If you get someone else to get the policy changed - your hands are clean; meaning the company thinks it's the other person (the other departments' unions) trying to get the policy changed...

If it is like you say, where there are laws on the books against this kind of tip-taking behavior by Disney, then it will be a simple little matter for either the Attractions or Foods unions to defeat in their next contract negotiations. They shouldn't have a big fight on their hands if Disney is going against state labor laws or the like.
And when I say "Attractions negotiations," I mean the Master Services contract - which includes Attractions, custodial, main gate, etc... There are certain segments there that would be very interested in getting this policy changed.
And you don't even have to get to the shop stewards. Just try to talk about it to the regular cast members in the other departments. Try to get the dialogue going around the Park, and the word will get around to the shop stewards and the union. You guys make more in tips then people in Attractions and Custodial, but that doesn't mean you're the only ones who want this policy changed...

[tourbunny]

dante,
i probably frazed myself wrong. i totally understood how you ment the things you sayed and my reply did not mean to have an angry undertone.
there is already one shopsteward aware of the policy and following up closely on the progress with tom.
maybe also this website will spread the word a bit. i will certainly not give up and keep everyone informed.
it would actualy be a good point to bring up in the next nagotiations so disney can be made aware of one more illegal thing they are doing to us here.

[Thatguy]

the first time I was offered a tip it was at Jungle... a little girl was absolutely loving the ride so I offered to let them ride again, no wait. at the end of the second tour (different jokes) the mother tried to tip me $5, this is the only time I sincerely refused a tip. that little girl made my day and I didn't want money to taint it at all.

turns out that the mother gave the money to my lead who forced it on me at the end of my next trip.