UK Hotel Complains Air India Staff Taking Away Food Stuffed In Boxes

[jhungary]

Nope , here Individual does not represent the company off duty. Front desk does not need to physically confront the ppl, they can leave a note in their room. Customers will be more appreciative of hotels which make rules clear than douche bags who complain behind their backs. Backbiting does no good for any of them.

Damage has already been done, do you think you will go to a hotel where they talk behind your back or politely inform you upfront?

"some small stuff and potentially scare off eventual customer?"

Then why should they even bother about it. As I said hotel is not doing any favor. They know there are other hotels which will gladly accommodate such things if a request is made. Actually it will save them more money to give fixed amount of food as break fast and also free up tables for other customers.

Service industry has set standards but companies which go beyond that are the one which attract customers.

You are confused about something, they are Airline Employee, probably a group booking (Much like travel agency and large convention organiser) How exactly you will know which room they are in?

Even if you are talking about paying customer like you and me, how do you remember who's in which room so you can leave a note on their door? There are about hundred of rooms in a hotel, and you won't possibly remember which guest staying in which room to be able to leave a note in their room. Beside, today hotel business usually outsource the restaurant outside the hotel management, it's impossible for the M'D to look up the room number for the customer and send them a note....

From the article, the rules is clearly stated, and this is not an individual one off incident. And you cannot say this way is better or that way is better as this is not your hotel and they have their rules, and when their rules are repeatedly broken, who should they turn to?

You need to know, they are doing this for business, the buffet service is a courtesy, and if they start giving food to Air India Crew away, then they would have to do it for everybody. The hotel have the right to do this, and you cannot say "Why we shoud do this and that" because this is their hotel, they have the right to do anything they see fits to enforce their rules. Letting them break it is up to the hotel discretion, not letting them get away is also up to the hotel, and in this case, they are sending a letter to Air India, I don't honestly see what's wrong in there, the letter is supposed to be private, it is the inflight manager of Air India that publicise this letter, not the hotel management.

 

[wiseone2]

Why should Air India take care of the problems of the hotel ?

If the hotel wants, they should ask their guests to not take away food.

Reputation of Air India is hardly affected by such matters, it is affected by their tardy service, delayed flights and rotten attitude to customers.

OTOH the reputation of the hotel is affected if it prevents hungry and tired customers from taking food back to their rooms.

There is etiquette for buffet
The hotel should deny air India employees the right to stay

 

[livingdead]

i apologize.
my bad.
actually u know what, its neither hunger nor greed. its the great indian "jugaad" in play here.

taking buffet away discreetly is not Indian only thing.. what is possible, almost all of the crew members doing it, brazenly to a point that alarmed the said hotel admin.
In India they will rarely do it, the hotel(depending on the class though) wont be this forgiving, some might confront you then and there...
Indians defending it here because they feel ashamed and putting up a brave face and its just a reaction... I doubt many of these people will actually do it themselves.

 

[baajey]

taking buffet away discreetly is not Indian only thing.. what is possible, almost all of them doing it, brazenly to a point that alarmed the said hotel admin.
In India they will rarely do it, the hotel(depending on the class though) wont be this forgiving, some might confront you then and there...
Indians defending it here because they feel ashamed and putting up a brave face and its just a reaction... I doubt many of these people will actually do it themselves.

yes, I think so too. I agree on the first part.
However Indians defending this anomaly because they are ashamed is beyond me. just because the perpetrators are indian, it shouldn't ensure us to defend them, esp when they bring a bad name to us.

 

[livingdead]

yes, I think so too. I agree on the first part.
However Indians defending this anomaly because they are ashamed is beyond me. just because the perpetrators are indian, it shouldn't ensure us to defend them, esp when they bring a bad name to us.

we are argumentative bunch... and we choose which side to support based on our feelings, our identity... its not a stretch that many identify/sympathize with air india staff and feel that accusatory finger has been pointed towards them... and for many people, first reaction to an accusation many times is disbelief, counter accusation, throwing tantrums etc.
did I just overintellectualized the behavior of dumb people?

 

[baajey]

we are argumentative bunch... and we choose which side to support based on our feelings, our identity... its not a stretch that many identify/sympathize with air india staff and feel that accusatory finger has been pointed towards them... and for many people, first reaction to an accusation many times is disbelief, counter accusation, throwing tantrums etc.
did I just overintellectualized the behavior of dumb people?

lol. u nailed it quite right sir.

 

[Indika]

Even if you are talking about paying customer like you and me, how do you remember who's in which room so you can leave a note on their door?

If it is bed & break fast , then most of hotels ask for room number to distinguish between guests staying in hotel and visitors coming from outside. If it is guest they are not charged. This is the standard procedure in most of the hotels as they have restaurants attached and as they cannot make out who comes from where. If not this hotel must have some other mechanism to do the same

From the article, the rules is clearly stated, and this is not an individual one off incident.

You need to know, they are doing this for business, the buffet service is a courtesy, and if they start giving food to Air India Crew away, then they would have to do it for everybody.

I am not against hotel complaining, they are right to complain if the rules are broken.

"who should they turn to?"
This is where they are wrong, even though Air India books the hotel it is employees who stay there. It is the individual who needs to held accountable not the company who booked it. If today they ate the buffet , tomorrow they will steal the bath tub. Will hotel ask the company to replace the tub? Either they have to put up with nuisance or act against.

My company does not reimburse for alcoholic drinks , the hotel staff quite clearly inform us that during check in about that fact. If a employee consumes alcohol they are required to pay up on their own. The hotel staff clearly ask for card when ordering drinks. They dont go back to company bitching about it after ppl are drunk. That would look pretty stupid on both on part of guest and the hotel staff as well.

The hotel should deny air India employees the right to stay

Exactly , what is preventing the hotel from doing so?

 

[jhungary]

If it is bed & break fast , then most of hotels ask for room number to distinguish between guests staying in hotel and visitors coming from outside. If it is guest they are not charged. This is the standard procedure in most of the hotels as they have restaurants attached and as they cannot make out who comes from where. If not this hotel must have some other mechanism to do the same

I don't know about B&B, never stay in B&B, as I said, unless the charge is build into the room, you will not be asked your room number when you dine at hotel facilities. Most hotel allow non-hotel staying costumer to dine in their restaurant, thus not always you need to write the room number down. And if this is a pre-paid service, (which most hotel operate nowsaday) You pay before you get in the buffet.

I am not against hotel complaining, they are right to complain if the rules are broken.

"who should they turn to?"
This is where they are wrong, even though Air India books the hotel it is employees who stay there. It is the individual who needs to held accountable not the company who booked it. If today they ate the buffet , tomorrow they will steal the bath tub. Will hotel ask the company to replace the tub? Either they have to put up with nuisance or act against.

My company does not reimburse for alcoholic drinks , the hotel staff quite clearly inform us that during check in about that fact. If a employee consumes alcohol they are required to pay up on their own. The hotel staff clearly ask for card when ordering drinks. They dont go back to company bitching about it after ppl are drunk. That would look pretty stupid on both on part of guest and the hotel staff as well.

lol, it does not work that way. You stay as a part of a group, then the Group, not yourselves have to be accountable for your action, because you are not paying for the service yourselves. Your company do.

It's easier to count who drink what or ordered what movie in their room, as you have a room number to account for, you can pre-warn people this or that does not included in your package as you have a face to face contact point.

Getting into a hotel restaurant is different, you can get in a restaurant, either dining or not, either staying in the hotel or not, and not always they can be caught who is doing what in the restaurant, and that is assuming the Hotel operate the restaurant themselves. What if the restaurant is a franchise? Or is not managed by the hotel group?

Again, stealing drinks in your own room is different than publicly shoving down buffet food in your container. As I said, I don't see why is that wrong to notify Air India that their crew did that, when they are staying in my hotel, they represent your company, you seriously think if you stay in a hotel on behalf of your company and stole a TV, the hotel will not notify your company?

For the rest, again I reliterate, it's up to the Hotel Management to do whatever they need to which seen fit for the sitaution, and you are arguing something that is within the full right of the hotel management, in this case, sending a letter to Air India is within their right to do, you can say they are bitching about to the company, but think about it like this, what would Air India think? Would Air India like you are thinking this is "individual employee action" and does not reflect on the company image one bit? Judging by the way they handle the situation. Or would you think Air India would much rather for the Hotel Manager to call the Police on the spot and arrest the person in Air India Uniform?

As I said, the hotel is letting this go easy by sending a letter to Air India privately.

 

[wiseone2]

Exactly , what is preventing the hotel from doing so?

they have to balance incourteous guests with business needs
good luck to them

 

[Tehari_Haleem]

Lets not insult hungry people. There is a very big difference between HUNGER, and GREED.

Case in point : South Asia's Venerated Politicians

You vote some successful rich guy into office thinking that 'hey this guy has got a billion bux at the bank he'll surely be less hungry and more honest'..... couple years down the line you'v got the rude awakening that he only entered politics so that his billion on the bank could give birth to 5 more billions