Marriott Rewards - How many Marriott workers have this attitude?

I saw the below on a forum for hotel workers, crazy ones. The original post is longer, and more profanity laced, so I am only posting bits and pieces. If you want to check out the whole thing, you should be able to find it with what I have given you so far. If not, PM and I will tell you where, I don't want to post the site itself.

We have often talked about how certain workers treat guests. I realize that not all workers have the attitude listed below, and I would even say that most do not. But if you are a loyal Marriott member, how many people like the one below would you have to meet before you switched to other brands, or at least away from the specific hotel employing someone like this. I would think at some point, hotel management would have to either see this attitude, or have enough complaints that they see they have a problem. And with this serious of an attitude, it would have to show at times.

And if you have this attitude, why do you continue with the job that obviously gives you so much pain?

Specific quotes from the OP (remember, I am cutting and pasting, this is not meant as a verbatim quote, but I am not changing any words, other then profanity, which has been replaced by &&&&&) -

Dear Platinum Marriott Rewards Member,

I am already quite aware of how many nights a year .....If anything it means that; (a) you will die alone because you have no time to be a real human being, (b) your wife is &&&&& your best friend behind your back while your hopping from business trip to business trip across the country, or (c) you drag your spouse along on every business venture, simultaneously screwing clients and coworkers out of their well-earned cash while you drag your cash-cow, &&&&&&-wife everywhere.

Let me make this abundantly clear; I would like nothing more then to take your precious Elite Benefits and jam them so far up your &&&& that I could wave back at myself from between your lips........I know what your status entitles you too, so please don't argue with me over trivial things such as complimentary upgrades & rate discounts "because I'm Platinum!" because I'll simply authorize your credit card for a few thousand dollars, suffificiently tying up your funds for the next few weeks.

Someone else made the following comments in response to the above -

Gag a maggot, I do hate loyalty programs. I can't say I've ever dealt with Marriot's program, but I have to imagine they are worse than Hilton Honors members. Luckily, I don't have to deal with those &&&&&&& anymore.

Honestly, I don't give two &&&&&& if you have a shiney little card in your wallet which makes you think you are GREATER THAN OR EQUAL TO GOD. You're still a &&&&&&, and putting "Well, I'm a __________ Member, and..." in any statement will make me like you that much less.

Not a big percentage. I have worked customer service and it is a very difficult job. It sounds to me like the employees were just using the website to vent, which is probably healthier than venting at a customer. It's obviously not a good attitude to have for a customer service employee, but my guess is that just about any business with a number of customer-facing employees is going to have a certain percentage like this.

Mike

From my personal experience, I would say not that many. Did you see similar statements from workers at other chains? I would think that there are always some employees who do not have a customer service attitude, but I don't think most of them would dare say that in front of their manager.

Not that many. Overall I've found Marriott employees to be good in terms of service & attitude. Of course I don't normally flash I'm a Plat in front of them either ;)

A friend of mine's daughter is going to college for hotel management (something like that; I'm sure there's a more formal program description), and has a part-time job at a local hotel. Part of this year's Xmas letter from my friend mentioned that his daughter is getting an 'awakening' that when a guest comes up to the front desk it's not always to say hello (instead, complaints).

Cheers.

I would venture for every hotel worker with this horrible attitude, there is an equally unpleasant elite member who wears his feelings of entitlement like a badge of honor.

Marriott got my business the night before last after a desk clerk at a Hampton Inn badly mistreated me then walked me (without officially walking me, which would require compensation).

I've always had good experiences at Marriott properties.

FWIW, the matter of my status never comes up when I'm a guest at the hotel (other than the times that the Platinum Gift is not provided).

Ahhhh-this explains so much!
Yeah dealing with the public can be less than a wonderful experience at times.

But if this is how you feel about the people you work for,trust me it shows.
And if a manager does not get that person to shape up or ship out then the manager owns the resposibilty of the poor staff members.

And g-d help us when it is a manager who feels this way towards his customers.

Unfortunately retaining staff with poor attitude and less than stellar customer relations seems to be a Marriott tradition.

A link to the website quoted aboveve would be welcome.

Duplicate-sorry

And if you have this attitude, why do you continue with the job that obviously gives you so much pain?


I couldn't agree more...such a same to hate ones job so much and what is so perplexing is that the person continues to do something they hate so much every day....definately not a fun way to go through life

I couldn't agree more...such a same to hate ones job so much and what is so perplexing is that the person continues to do something they hate so much every day....definately not a fun way to go through life

Good grief. I hate to tell you this, they don't hate their jobs, they just don't like difficult people. Dealing with the public can be very trying, especially when dealing with the self important. It would not surprise me in the least if the person with the best attitude at any hotel chain said those things.

Does anyone but me wonder if this is even REAL - or is it some kid who thinks it would be "funny" to post something like this on website???????

and

If it is real, how many GUESTS (plat or otherwise) contributed to the attitude?????

I'm sorry folks, I have to say that I have seen a far larger number of rude, (almost) profanity spewing frequent travelers than I have rude employees - Marriott or otherwise.

A link to the website quoted aboveve would be welcome.

http://community.livejournal.com/hotel_workers

I would venture for every hotel worker with this horrible attitude, there is an equally unpleasant elite member who wears his feelings of entitlement like a badge of honor.

How true! This was my first thought after reading the original post...and many of those unpleasant elite members seem to hang out here on FlyerTalk! :p

You wouldn't happen to be referring to anyone in particular now? :D

Good grief. I hate to tell you this, they don't hate their jobs, they just don't like difficult people. Dealing with the public can be very trying, especially when dealing with the self important. It would not surprise me in the least if the person with the best attitude at any hotel chain said those things.

When one uses such language to discuss their customers it's quite clear they are in the wrong industry (I have no way of knowing if it was a direct quote or not other than to take the OP's word for it) this was simply not a case of venting - I've been in this business long enough to be a good judge of character....yes there are days I've had elite members toss their card at me but so what - it comes with the territory, if I let it bother me as much as it appears to bother the person quoted below I'd have lived a very unhappy life

You wouldn't happen to be referring to anyone in particular now? :D
eh, too early in the morning to say what I was going to say :D

Thanks, sophiegirl for pointing out the lack of a source for the OP's cited article and thanks, imverge for providing the link.

I think that the key to understanding the OP's message is by walking around the site from which the comments came. Can't say that I fully understand this on-line community in which a "hotel workers" group exists . . . they appear to be a working subset of the Youtube crowd. At least I now have a crystal clear view of the context of many of the posts and posters on the site.

Can't say that all of the language is always appropriate, but they pretty much speak the lingo and walk the walk which is so typical of American culture these days. As to their remarks. Some rather funny/interesting stories told by hotel folks. I suspect that what they post and how they express themselves on the board is not a reflection of how they present themselves to customers or how they do their jobs. In other words, they're just thinking out loud about what they'd really like to say to a specific customer. Health care where I work, is the same way.

As to the specific message to which the OP refers . . . I try finding it and I can't locate it, so I give up as I've got to push on. I do doubt that Marriott would enjoy having an employee comment in the manner which the OP cites. But I suspect that the individual is speaking in the same voice/context as their peers on this board & that they do perform their job as required.

Hotel work can be boring or exciting, and ultimately it is the banal stupidity or outrageous demands of guests which spice things up. No doubt in my mind that there's a fair number of elite a**holes running around out there . . . I encounter them all the time when we travel. Now we have a Internet board which tells these stories.

Barry

Especially on the job. People have get a lot of false courage online, when there are no reprecussions for what they say or do. I believe if this person values their paycheck, they wouldn't carry that attitude into "the real world". Talk is very cheap. I have no doubt that if someone did any of the things listed on the OP, the GM would have zero problem firing that person.

Well, we'd probably never know how many of the people we deal with on a regular basis have this attitude. They certainly aren't going to lob an F-bomb at you across the front desk.

The attitude is probably far more driven by the general work culture at the given property than anything done at the Marriott (or Starwood, or Hilton...) corporate level. Or anything that cranky guests do. You can definitely tell the properties where the front desk employees are empowered to think and solve problems vs. the ones where a totally different culture is in place. There are good and bad within all of the brands.

As to the specific message to which the OP refers . . . I try finding it and I can't locate it, so I give up as I've got to push on.
They've made the entry "Friends-Only," so only members of their community can read it now.

You can definitely tell the properties where the front desk employees are empowered to think and solve problems vs. the ones where a totally different culture is in place. There are good and bad within all of the brands.

You make a very good point there.

I guess it's natural to equate the name on the sign outside (along with that painting so prominent in property lobbies) to Marriott.

How many franchisees actually make their ownership/management status public? ('Marriott' is instantly recognizable for obvious reasons. a 'Columbia-Suxxes' is not, at least, outside the industry.)

But with regards to Marriott-flagged properties, not all of them are MI-managed so it is natural that Marriott will be seen as the responsible party when things go awry.

That doesn't mean that Marriott shouldn't have their feet held to the fire for "improper oversight" of franchise-managed properties but by the same token it's impossible for them to be a 24/7 presence.

If a franchised/self-managed property's employee(s) are guilty of improper behavior and remedial action is not taken by their superiors, that's not Marriott's fault.

However, if they've been made aware of it, and don't. at the least. even make an inquiry, then they certainly share the to blame and should be held accountable in the event of future repetitions.

Personal experience is that the latter is not the case.

[QUOTE=jerseyfinn;9179415]Thanks, sophiegirl for pointing out the lack of a source for the OP's cited article and thanks, imverge for providing the link. .....

Sorry, I was not clear - my apologies to FLOIR. if appeared I was questioning their posting!

My doubt was never that the website existed, or even that this particular post exists on the website. My query is whether the post is written by a real hotel employee who actually feels the attitude expressed - or someone who thought it would be pretty funny to put it out there!

Unfortunately, there are many who love to post something along this line and then wait for responses.............which they obviously get, as we ourselves are up to 20 +/- comments!

Well, we'd probably never know how many of the people we deal with on a regular basis have this attitude. They certainly aren't going to lob an F-bomb at you across the front desk.True - and it's far more common for a guest to lob an F-bomb at an employee.

The Interweb gives people a voice to express themselves in ways they never would have before its advent. The person in this singular post probably doesn't even feel quite this anti-guest - it's just the context of the forum and the anonymity that allows him to "vent" in an over-the-top way.

In my own personal experience, the number of guests who exhibit crass behavior is far greater than the number of employees who exhibit poor customer service.

They've made the entry "Friends-Only," so only members of their community can read it now.

Interesting.. ever since I posted the website on FT yesterday...this message has now appeared:

Just a quick note:

*Please make sure you are setting posts to "friends" if it contains any material you'd rather not be public.

*Also, the MOD team is actively watching posts/approving new members, if we suspect a person is not a current or former hotel employee you may not be approved for membership, if you somehow slip past us, we will remove you if you cause any issues.

*Also, please keep the unnecessary drama to a minimum.

We don't want to seem like jerks, but we do want to keep this as a community where all elligible members can feel comfortable speaking their minds.

If you have any questions/comments/concerns, please feel free to contact me personally XXXXXXXXXXXXX
Thank you for your time!

~Jay and the entire CrazyHotelWorkers Management Team

I'm not surprised that it happened. I think they want to use their message board to vent and not get caught by Marriott supervisors who might be able to trace a handle to a specific person.

In my Marriott travels (am Gold this year, have reached Platinum in years past), I know of at least one Platinum member whose behavior towards the hotel staff literally got him banned from one or two hotels in the Philadelphia area.

Marriott has been mostly good to me as a frequent traveller. I have no serious complaints. They also have the right to protect their own employees from abusive customers (and face it, some hotel guests can be abusive. Combine that with "Platinum Entitlement" attitudes, and ... well ...) But that attitude is by far the minority. Just like the hotel worker quoted in the original post is also by far the minority of that group.

In my own personal experience, the number of guests who exhibit crass behavior is far greater than the number of employees who exhibit poor customer service.


Ditto....absolutely!

Well, we'd probably never know how many of the people we deal with on a regular basis have this attitude. They certainly aren't going to lob an F-bomb at you across the front desk.

The attitude is probably far more driven by the general work culture at the given property than anything done at the Marriott (or Starwood, or Hilton...) corporate level. Or anything that cranky guests do. You can definitely tell the properties where the front desk employees are empowered to think and solve problems vs. the ones where a totally different culture is in place. There are good and bad within all of the brands.

This has always been my feeling

I'm not surprised that it happened. I think they want to use their message board to vent and not get caught by Marriott supervisors who might be able to trace a handle to a specific person.

I dont think that's why they did it-as it seems they will approve anyone associated with the industry (I myself have no intention of applying for a membership) but instead it appears as though they are at least trying to keep their opinions within the industry

In my Marriott travels (am Gold this year, have reached Platinum in years past), I know of at least one Platinum member whose behavior towards the hotel staff literally got him banned from one or two hotels in the Philadelphia area.


Gosh - in my entire career I believe I've only banned 3 individuals (I might be forgetting one or two but it's certainly not more than 5)

They've made the entry "Friends-Only," so only members of their community can read it now.


I am the OP. This was one reason I was hesitant to post the other forum site address (another reason is I wasn't sure if posting another forum's address was acceptable on FT).

Sorry if anyone thought I made up the post, for what reason I can not fathom. Thanks sophiegirl, for your extra explaination. I thought I understood your original post, but then when I looked back at it I wasn't sure. To others, please note that I offered to send the address to anyone that PM'd me, and I did that for several people.

If the original post on the other site was real or not, I am not sure but I tend to believe it was. I have reviewed that particular site for several months and it is obvious that most people there work in the industry, just as most of us here travel. I also believe the attitude displayed is that person's attitude, although they may not show it at most times, I bet there are times it shows through.

Does a customers attitude make this type of attitude acceptable? I don't think it does. Most of us work in some type of a customer-client type relationship, and we have to learn to deal with difficult customers. The type of attitude shown will do some serious harm if customers see it.

I also believe the attitude displayed is that person's attitude, although they may not show it at most times, I bet there are times it shows through.

Does a customers attitude make this type of attitude acceptable? I don't think it does. Most of us work in some type of a customer-client type relationship, and we have to learn to deal with difficult customers. The type of attitude shown will do some serious harm if customers see it.

I couldn't agree with you more - if someone has those feelings it's extremely difficult to keep it to theirself