LETTER: Sandals fired me for accepting tips

My recommendation to the tipping debate

Sandals fired me for accepting tips. Resulting in me getting an opportunity to move to the US. I will not say the achievements I have made, to convey my humility. 

To this day that firing have affected me in severe ways. It was my first job, on the job for 3 weeks, as a bellman, and was offered tip because I was and is a hard worker. 

It was mentally, emotionally, and financially hard for me hearing I am being fired for working hard which caused a tip to be offered to me and I accepted. In the firing report, it was stated I accepted $5usd tip (mystery guest). 

When sandals fired me, it was a Jamaican General Manager, they use to say he was gay (being said only to identify which GM). His name was Ethan or something like that. When he fired me in front of the other managers in his office, he said, if I needed $5 so badly, I should have asked him.

Why on earth would I feel okay asking the GM of sandals Antigua, as I am just employee and have no relationship or interaction with him, for $5usd? To this day, I am confused by this comment from this GM in front of all the managers that included at the time, front desk manager, Ruth (I think her name was), a short light-skinned Jamaican, he was second in charge, etcetera. 

However, I am in agreement with the government to outlaw (making it in violation of law and against public policy) hotels from banning employees accepting tips or in the alternate, only allowing such agreements between employees and hotels for substantial consideration (to employees). Substantial considerations mean high renumeration. 

I wanted to go to sandals while in Antigua, but I felt like my money should never be given to them, ever. So, I decided to make substantial tips to the other hotels I was at, tipping about $19,000.00 a few months ago. 

Sandals, I will be fair to you, even when you have not been fair to me. So, my solution will be to allow hotels to be able to market to guest that tipping is not necessary or encourage, but no hotel is allowed to ban the giving and accepting of tips. This is fair. 

This is just my way of being fair to all sides. The hotel, the workers, the guest, the government, etcetera. 

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