Hostile Dining Car Attendants

[railiner]

"Corporate culture", especially on a railroad, is an extremely difficult thing to change, no matter how hard each succeeding generation of top management tries....the executive's come and go, while the culture lives on.

Probably nothing short of "firing everyone", and then rehiring only those committed to service excellence can change things.

 

[crescent-zephyr]

It's been so many years since there were Crew Chiefs on the trains that I can't remember how the crew was. It must have been ok because nothing stands out. In fact, I know a person who was a Crew Chief. He wrote up his entire crew for "bad attitude". True story, he's a relative.

I don't see them bringing back Crew Chiefs, but it worked a lot better than what's been going on.

Nothing has changed. I remember riding the Empire Builder with my mom in like 99 2000 and she just wanted a salad and baked potato for dinner (we were sleeping car passengers). The waiter pretty much scolded her and said something like "if you just want a snack you can get it in the lounge, we serve meals in the dining car." After that my mom refused to eat in the dining car. Our sleeper attendant asked why we weren't going to the diner for the next meal and he got the Chief of Onboard Services who arranged for us to get comp meals in the lounge car for the rest of the trip.

So the dining car staff have always had serious issues.. but the Chief of On board services was at least there to help make things right.

 

[tricia]

I called Customer Relations and reported the Dining Car attendants. They said they had no control over personnel. You would think when paying about $1,000.00 for 2 seniors for about 30 hours in a bedroom, dining would be a pleasant experience, instead of a dreaded one.

Sorry to hear this--thanks for following up and posting it here.

Surely Customer Relations ought to at least be able to forward specific complaints about specific personnel to their supervisors, as well as to someone in the personnel department responsible for keeping track of employee records. Also to someone responsible for overall quality control, if Amtrak has such a person. They clearly ought to--but given the inconsistency of Amtrak services, probably don't, or at least don't have anyone empowered to actually implement improvements.

 

[jis]

Amtrak apparently is somewhat unique among LD passenger railroads with Sleeper and Food service (Diner or at seat delivery), in the world, in not having a Chief-of-Onboard-Service role in its OBS. I understand it has to do with some obscure screwup between the Management and the relevant Union(s), which I don't fully understand.

 

[cpotisch]

I called Customer Relations and reported the Dining Car attendants. They said they had no control over personnel. You would think when paying about $1,000.00 for 2 seniors for about 30 hours in a bedroom, dining would be a pleasant experience, instead of a dreaded one.

That's frustrating. Doesn't seem too hard to have some system in place for reporting bad employees, but I guess making sure passengers have a pleasant onboard experience isn't really Amtrak's strong suit of late.

 

[AutoTrDvr]

I called Customer Relations and reported the Dining Car attendants. They said they had no control over personnel. You would think when paying about $1,000.00 for 2 seniors for about 30 hours in a bedroom, dining would be a pleasant experience, instead of a dreaded one.

That's frustrating. Doesn't seem too hard to have some system in place for reporting bad employees, but I guess making sure passengers have a pleasant onboard experience isn't really Amtrak's strong suit of late.

Well.... when you're the only game in town.....

 

[Maglev]

I agree with Railiner that there is a corporate culture at Amtrak which allows or even encourages poor customer service. Recent cutbacks and changes to policies show that Amtrak's corporate goal is not to provide excellent customer service. Inevitably, this culture filters down to the front-line workers.

On my last LD trip on the Coast Starlight, the worst example of poor service was in the dining car. A woman at our table was served a pasta dish that was not heated thoroughly, and when she complained to the server there was no offer of reheating or replacing the cold food. The dining car was also plagued by supply shortages.

 

[Dakota 400]

Given the response margo received by calling Customer Relations, is it time to not to call Customer Relations about unpleasant experiences? Perhaps, a certified letter to Customer Relations might have more of a positive impact?

 

[TiBike]

From the Amtrak inspector general's report, re falling customer satisfaction:

However, company executives noted that implementing some planned efforts—such as empowering onboard staff to directly handle passenger problems—could be difficult given the historical resistance of customer-facing personnel to change existing operations. Our work has also identified this issue. For example, we reported in September 2016 that the quality of customer service during the boarding process at the company’s 20 busiest stations was inconsistent, and that some customer-facing employees resisted assuming different responsibilities or changing longstanding practices even if these actions would improve the customer experience.


Company executives told us that this resistance results in part from the fact that management has not consistently communicated the importance of providing high- quality customer service through the ranks of customer-facing personnel or held them accountable for providing this level of service. Executives noted that, as a result, the workforce historically has not maintained a strong spirit—or culture—of customer service, including a strong sense of personal responsibility for meeting or exceeding customers’ expectations.

 

[caravanman]

Ok, seems that if we just expect a normal c*** service every time we board Amtrak, at least we won't be disappointed.

Ed.

 

[JRR]

I can’t say that we have ever had really bad service in the dining car, however, there have been some who were outstanding. What was the difference? Mainly a friendly attitude and obvious desire that you enjoy your meal. They also gave the clear impression that they enjoy their job.

I don’t know if any of you noticed the gentleman at the Guest Services desk in NYP but he was so cheerful and went out of his way to help those who came with questions or needing help. He not only provided the needed assistance but also did so with a smile.

I went over to talk to him and let him know I appreciated the way he went about his job and what a great ambassador he made for Amtrak. We discussed the lack of his attitude among other employees. It was his take that this was the failure of management. He said that they sit in their offices and don’t get out and see what is going on. I told him that he needs to be in charge of training Amtrak employees so that they realize that the most important part of their job, whatever it might be, is to see to it that the customer has a good experience while riding on Amtrak so they will not only to ride again, but also encourage others to do so also.

I am sure that management in other companies of whatever type have the same problem.

It takes a very proactive management to promote a culture of service to the firms customers. Those who do, are generally the successful ones.

 

[ciship]

My last two across country trips have been really bad as far as the dining attendants. They are so pushy and rude. They treat the passengers like kindergartners. It didn't use to be that way in the past.

 

[crescent-zephyr]

My last two across country trips have been really bad as far as the dining attendants. They are so pushy and rude. They treat the passengers like kindergartners. It didn't use to be that way in the past.

Which trains were you on?

I've personally had overall good dining car service on the Zephyr, Sunset, and Empire Builder. But very hit or miss on the Chief and Starlight. I think the Starlight and Chief are both staffed from LAX.

 

[Dakota 400]

I can’t say that we have ever had really bad service in the dining car, however, there have been some who were outstanding. What was the difference? Mainly a friendly attitude and obvious desire that you enjoy your meal. They also gave the clear impression that they enjoy their job.

I don’t know if any of you noticed the gentleman at the Guest Services desk in NYP but he was so cheerful and went out of his way to help those who came with questions or needing help. He not only provided the needed assistance but also did so with a smile.

I went over to talk to him and let him know I appreciated the way he went about his job and what a great ambassador he made for Amtrak. We discussed the lack of his attitude among other employees. It was his take that this was the failure of management. He said that they sit in their offices and don’t get out and see what is going on. I told him that he needs to be in charge of training Amtrak employees so that they realize that the most important part of their job, whatever it might be, is to see to it that the customer has a good experience while riding on Amtrak so they will not only to ride again, but also encourage others to do so also.

I am sure that management in other companies of whatever type have the same problem.

It takes a very proactive management to promote a culture of service to the firms customers. Those who do, are generally the successful ones.

When management is out and about and actively engaged in whatever the company/firm/school is doing, the client's/student's experience will be much better.

 

[cpotisch]

Given the response margo received by calling Customer Relations, is it time to not to call Customer Relations about unpleasant experiences? Perhaps, a certified letter to Customer Relations might have more of a positive impact?

Customer Relations has always treated us well when we've had issues on Amtrak, so I don't think they are suddenly not worth calling because they weren't able to put down margo's complaint. JMO.

 

[Mystic River Dragon]

Given the response margo received by calling Customer Relations, is it time to not to call Customer Relations about unpleasant experiences? Perhaps, a certified letter to Customer Relations might have more of a positive impact?

Customer Relations has always treated us well when we've had issues on Amtrak, so I don't think they are suddenly not worth calling because they weren't able to put down margo's complaint. JMO.

It's also possible that the people who work in Customer Relations vary in how helpful and customer-oriented they are--some may be more helpful than others.

 

[cpotisch]

My last two across country trips have been really bad as far as the dining attendants. They are so pushy and rude. They treat the passengers like kindergartners. It didn't use to be that way in the past.

Which trains were you on?

I've personally had overall good dining car service on the Zephyr, Sunset, and Empire Builder. But very hit or miss on the Chief and Starlight. I think the Starlight and Chief are both staffed from LAX.

From what I've experienced and what other members have reported, the Texas Eagle, Sunset Limited, and Silvers seem to have consistently good diner crews. And then you have the Lake Shore, Starlight, and Chief, which seem to be criticized very frequently for having some pretty bad crews.

Beyond the fact that the Chief and Starlight are both staffed out of LAX, though, I can't really discern any pattern.

 

[Bob Dylan]

The Empire Builder usually has good Diner Crews( Used to have Enhanced Dining and Coach Travel) while the California Zephyr can be Hit or Miss.

Worst service ever was on the Lake Shore,Best was on the PPC many times, with Honorable Mention to the Crescent which has a New York Based Diner Crew.

Glad you mentioned my Home Train, the Lowly Texas Eagle.There are some Excellent Diner Crews on this Route, only One really poor Group with the Chicago Attitude! YMMV

 

[Skyline]

I can’t say that we have ever had really bad service in the dining car, however, there have been some who were outstanding. What was the difference? Mainly a friendly attitude and obvious desire that you enjoy your meal. They also gave the clear impression that they enjoy their job.

I don’t know if any of you noticed the gentleman at the Guest Services desk in NYP but he was so cheerful and went out of his way to help those who came with questions or needing help. He not only provided the needed assistance but also did so with a smile.

I went over to talk to him and let him know I appreciated the way he went about his job and what a great ambassador he made for Amtrak. We discussed the lack of his attitude among other employees. It was his take that this was the failure of management. He said that they sit in their offices and don’t get out and see what is going on. I told him that he needs to be in charge of training Amtrak employees so that they realize that the most important part of their job, whatever it might be, is to see to it that the customer has a good experience while riding on Amtrak so they will not only to ride again, but also encourage others to do so also.

I am sure that management in other companies of whatever type have the same problem.

It takes a very proactive management to promote a culture of service to the firms customers. Those who do, are generally the successful ones.

When management is out and about and actively engaged in whatever the company/firm/school is doing, the client's/student's experience will be much better.

Wouldn't it be great for there to be an episode of "Undercover Boss" with guest star Richard Anderson?

 

[lordsigma]

I had a phenomenal diner crew on the southbound Crescent recently. The SA was especially pleasant and the chef did a good job on the meals despite a lengthy 3 hour delay at Wilmington station due to a fire under the train from leaf debris that delayed the dinner service as they had to turn off HEP for safety.

 

[Dakota 400]

So, after the appreciated previous comments regarding my reaction to margo's experience with Customer Relations: maybe a call to Customer Relations is warranted (with the hope that one reaches a truly customer service oriented person) and a follow-up certified letter to the same Department?

 

[Seaboard92]

I can’t say that we have ever had really bad service in the dining car, however, there have been some who were outstanding. What was the difference? Mainly a friendly attitude and obvious desire that you enjoy your meal. They also gave the clear impression that they enjoy their job.

I don’t know if any of you noticed the gentleman at the Guest Services desk in NYP but he was so cheerful and went out of his way to help those who came with questions or needing help. He not only provided the needed assistance but also did so with a smile.

I went over to talk to him and let him know I appreciated the way he went about his job and what a great ambassador he made for Amtrak. We discussed the lack of his attitude among other employees. It was his take that this was the failure of management. He said that they sit in their offices and don’t get out and see what is going on. I told him that he needs to be in charge of training Amtrak employees so that they realize that the most important part of their job, whatever it might be, is to see to it that the customer has a good experience while riding on Amtrak so they will not only to ride again, but also encourage others to do so also.

I am sure that management in other companies of whatever type have the same problem.

It takes a very proactive management to promote a culture of service to the firms customers. Those who do, are generally the successful ones.

When management is out and about and actively engaged in whatever the company/firm/school is doing, the client's/student's experience will be much better.

Wouldn't it be great for there to be an episode of "Undercover Boss" with guest star Richard Anderson?

Please let that be true. I would definitely give him an earful. Him or Gardner I would love to just have two minutes with to give an opinion.

 

[OBS]

The Empire Builder usually has good Diner Crews( Used to have Enhanced Dining and Coach Travel) while the California Zephyr can be Hit or Miss.

Worst service ever was on the Lake Shore,Best was on the PPC many times, with Honorable Mention to the Crescent which has a New York Based Diner Crew.

Glad you mentioned my Home Train, the Lowly Texas Eagle.There are some Excellent Diner Crews on this Route, only One really poor Group with the Chicago Attitude! YMMV

Slight correction...the Crescent Dining Car Crew is now NOL based, as of a year ago...

 

[Bob Dylan]

The Empire Builder usually has good Diner Crews( Used to have Enhanced Dining and Coach Travel) while the California Zephyr can be Hit or Miss.

Worst service ever was on the Lake Shore,Best was on the PPC many times, with Honorable Mention to the Crescent which has a New York Based Diner Crew.

Glad you mentioned my Home Train, the Lowly Texas Eagle.There are some Excellent Diner Crews on this Route, only One really poor Group with the Chicago Attitude! YMMV

Slight correction...the Crescent Dining Car Crew is now NOL based, as of a year ago...

Thanks for the Update, it has been over a Year since I rode the Crescent.

 

[niemi24s]

If a call to Customer Relations can be a hit-or-miss proposition, then maybe it's time for a <gasp!> registered letter to the Chairman of the Board at Amtrak.

That is, if anyone ever hopes to make a change for the better. And just between you, me and the lamp-post - a phone call or email to Amtrak will have absolutely no impact on what appears to be a deteriorating situation.