Be Proactive - Give Your Gate Agents a Gift Card
 

Given all the disruptions lately and pissy passengers, perhaps an act of kindness beforehand can prevent another incident where everyone is ultimately inconvenienced.

Thoughts....?

https://www.travelcodex.com/2017/04/...ou-to-do-this/

So, you want to extend the "tipping" scam in the US to airline staff too? If generalised that's just going to give airlines another reason to pay less wages and gate agents to treat you poorly until you coughed up a gift card. I don't mind you handing out gift cards, but that just treats the symptoms rather than the cause of the problem.

My advice

• To airlines: Treat your personnel like humans and have them treat customers like humans and you won't have angry customers.
• To customers: Let staff know if they did a great job. I had many very friendly F/As on US airlines and really appreciated their service. It won't cost you anything and may make someone else happy.

Sorry - this is a dreadful idea. Bribing gate agents? Are you kidding me? Agree with WorldLux on this.

A bit hyperbolic to extrapolate, "scam" from a simple act of kindness. No, airlines will not take it as far as to reduce wage rates for these employees if they get a $5 gift certificate every few weeks from a passenger.

Besides, if you are affluent enough to afford traveling and think that a $5 gift, even as often once a week, is over your budget, then something must be off-balance.

For my part, I normally hand out vouchers for deluxe Silversea cruises to every airline employee I meet. I'm careful to discreetly add enough cash to the envelope to pay for four-star hotels and fine dining as well. I do it because I love airline employees, not because I'm seeking any kind of upgrade!

When I'm in a generous mood, I offer to pay for weddings, college educations, automobiles, and even real estate. There's nothing I won't do for them! They work hard and they deserve it. Odd thing though, they don't like to travel by plane.

Only US gate agents and flight attendants have this type of reputation.

Ever wonder why?

This seems to be one of the more bizarre ideas I've encountered. If an employee doesn't earn a tipped wage, and hasn't performed extraordinary service, I'm puzzled as to why I should be giving them money.

One of the reason why I enjoy Japan is no tipping to the point that it is considered an insult to many service providers. Everyone prides themselves in providing the best service possible and making customers happy.

If someone can't do that in a service-oriented customer-facing job, then they should find another job. I hate tipping because there is already an expectation of good service when I purchase a product. If the company cannot pay their employees properly, then they should raise their prices accordingly to allow for fair wages. Airlines like AS have profit sharing schemes that gives employee a stake in their performance and success, which is one reason why I might be willing to pay a few extra bucks to fly with them over AA or UA on the same route.

Furthermore, I feel like many GAs might take this the wrong way, as others mentioned, a bribe and sense of superiority more than a gift of gratitude. They might even get in trouble for taking monetary gifts depending on company policy.

^ Exactly this.

If you are "affluent enough" to afford flying? Are you serious? Even poor people can afford a $59 ticket.

I don't think you're going to get many people to agree with you that bribing the gate agents is somehow a "solution". Nothing but problems can arise from this scheme. :td:

Should I offer the bribe before or after the GA calls the fake cops to drag me out of my assigned seat and off the aircraft? Or will the bribe cause the GA to decide to have a some other passenger assaulted and dragged, or perhaps to arrange for me to just be hit in the head and get an "Easter egg" instead?

Whatever happened to the concept that one tips (voluntarily and after the fact) for excellent or at least good service and that one does not tip people who consider themselves to be professionals?

Sorry for the rant.

+1 ^^^

Hard to come up with a worse idea. Keep your gift certificates.

LOL :D

^