One of my clients has an office in a hotel in downtown Chicago. I went there Monday for a meeting. I was barely in front of the hotel, when a member of the staff approached me and started griping about tips. He had just helped a guest with her luggage and hailed a cab and the guest apparently gave him too small of a tip. This isn’t the first time he has mentioned tips to me.

I am not here to start the debate about tipping. However, I will state that he “carried” her luggage from the ground to the luggage cart and wheeled it about 10 feet. Then he signaled the (already waiting in line) cab. His minimal effort took about 3 minutes.

Anyway, my issue is that he actually openly complained about tipping. Yes, he recognizes me, but he doesn’t know me really. It’s not like he was sitting in the bar with his friends. If that is the case, complain all you want. Heck, I have some complaints I can toss in there, too. If he complains about tips to me, who else is he telling?

Guests don’t want to hear it. Businesspeople don’t want to hear it. The hotel’s management certainly would not tolerate hearing it.

It presents a bad image for the hotel to have this guy out there whining about tips. Much the same way a receptionist is the first face a person sees when going into an office and therefore should present a good image, so should the doormen.

As a distributor, I deal mostly with the doormen and Concierges. Almost all do a really good job, even the previously-mentioned griper. My distribution team does a great job, but I have never heard of them getting any tips and I better never hear them griping about that. I have drivers who make deliveries to that same hotel. I wonder if he complains that they don’t tip him for his help in pointing to the cart for them to use.

Fortunately, my day ended on a better note, as business took me to a few other hotels and their doormen/Concierge combos were all pleasant and positive. I even heard one trying to refuse a tip. Imagine that!

-John Wroblewski, distribution specialist