Why don't the attendants want to bring the meal to my room?
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boxcarsyix
Service Attendant
Appalling attitude, and I am usually very forgiving!
Devil's Advocate
⠀⠀⠀
Actually that attitude would seem to fit one of the SCAs in question PERFECTLY.
TVRM610
Conductor
I'm trying to see this from both sides of the coin...
Now first of all.. a Customer should never be treated rudely. Ever. I want that to be clear.
However... I wonder if the OP really did ask at completely the wrong time on both ocassions. For instance.. was the diner completely full and the servers were in the process of filling orders when the OP came in to ask for a to go order? And honestly if I was a SCA and someone asked me right before a major stop if they could get lunch I might not be thrilled either...
If you want a meal brought to your room, the proper protocol is indeed to ask your attendant well in advance. That way he can get your order and plan to deliver your meal around his schedule (train stops, his own meal break, other passengers needing meals etc.). Now that's easy for me to say... I've ridden more trains than I can count! Things like that are not intuitive... and a good sleeping car attendant will realize this and explain to the passengers the situation.
I think many people feel like Amtrak owes them first class service because they are paying "xxx" amount of dollars. Amtrak does not advertise "first class service" they are advertising "Sleeping Class Service" and you are paying for the room and bed. Amtrak does not advertise a "First Class Attendant always on call for your every need." The fact that Amtrak charges "xxx" amount does not mean they owe you anything more than they advertised. In New York City there are very standard hotel rooms, such as the Holiday Inn Express by Penn Station, that charge $300-$400 a night. You don't get anything more than if you stay at a Holiday Inn Express in Seacaucus NJ for $120 a night. Same beds, Same free continental breakfast, etc. It would be silly for me to say "I'm paying $400 a night I expect a first class hotel with a mini bar, robes, and luxury down filled pillows" - just because the bill is $400 a night doesn't mean you get something different.. you get exactly what was advertised.. A standard Holiday Inn Express.
Now first of all.. a Customer should never be treated rudely. Ever. I want that to be clear.
However... I wonder if the OP really did ask at completely the wrong time on both ocassions. For instance.. was the diner completely full and the servers were in the process of filling orders when the OP came in to ask for a to go order? And honestly if I was a SCA and someone asked me right before a major stop if they could get lunch I might not be thrilled either...
If you want a meal brought to your room, the proper protocol is indeed to ask your attendant well in advance. That way he can get your order and plan to deliver your meal around his schedule (train stops, his own meal break, other passengers needing meals etc.). Now that's easy for me to say... I've ridden more trains than I can count! Things like that are not intuitive... and a good sleeping car attendant will realize this and explain to the passengers the situation.
I think many people feel like Amtrak owes them first class service because they are paying "xxx" amount of dollars. Amtrak does not advertise "first class service" they are advertising "Sleeping Class Service" and you are paying for the room and bed. Amtrak does not advertise a "First Class Attendant always on call for your every need." The fact that Amtrak charges "xxx" amount does not mean they owe you anything more than they advertised. In New York City there are very standard hotel rooms, such as the Holiday Inn Express by Penn Station, that charge $300-$400 a night. You don't get anything more than if you stay at a Holiday Inn Express in Seacaucus NJ for $120 a night. Same beds, Same free continental breakfast, etc. It would be silly for me to say "I'm paying $400 a night I expect a first class hotel with a mini bar, robes, and luxury down filled pillows" - just because the bill is $400 a night doesn't mean you get something different.. you get exactly what was advertised.. A standard Holiday Inn Express.
VentureForth
Engineer
You are accurate in stating that Amtrak doesn't advertise "First Class Service" for sleeping car passengers. However, again back to the job posting:
Now, the interpretation of what "amenities" mean is up for grabs. Perhaps the bottled water?
iggy
Service Attendant
It's been a few years since I asked for an in-room meal. I had done breakfast that morning very sick and my seat mate wasn't very pleased - rightfully so. I asked for lunch in my roomette. I don't recall getting any attitude in return and I did at the end of the trip try to tip accordingly. I know I was very appreciative - even apologetic about asking - but I was really ill on the way home.
This was on the Southwest Chief heading to Chicago.
I can see where many people would prefer the privacy of eating in their room. May riders aren't comfortable with community seating.
Many of the comments above have shown how such situations should properly be handled.
Some of the more negative replies do not surprise me. Because I have personally seen those type of employees on my various rides.
I'm not sure if it is overworked, stressed out workers or just their usual personality - but some replies show downright anger and nastiness. It's not hard to see why there is such a variety of customer service experiences.
This was on the Southwest Chief heading to Chicago.
I can see where many people would prefer the privacy of eating in their room. May riders aren't comfortable with community seating.
Many of the comments above have shown how such situations should properly be handled.
Some of the more negative replies do not surprise me. Because I have personally seen those type of employees on my various rides.
I'm not sure if it is overworked, stressed out workers or just their usual personality - but some replies show downright anger and nastiness. It's not hard to see why there is such a variety of customer service experiences.
Devil's Advocate
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If the dining car wasn't open then I could see how it might be the wrong moment. But that doesn’t appear to be the case.
Based on my experience the “proper protocol” is for the SCA to ask if you want anything brought to your room when it’s the “right moment” for them. I have no idea how the customer is supposed to know when the SCA will be able to perform their job. The difference between SCA’s can be night and day, but apparently they all get paid about the same relative to seniority and some of them have long since given up on trying to earn a tip with good service (overheard coming from more than one SCA on my travels).
I think this is the weakest part of your position and it seems to be based on nothing more than simple semantics. If all you’re getting is a room and a bed then maybe Amtrak should call it “Help Yourself Class” and stop pretending it’s anything more. That goes for the forum as well. We sometimes wax poetic about what a sleeper ticket buys you, but when those claims don’t pan out because we’ve overpromised we claim it’s the customer’s fault for expecting too much.
The real problem is that Amtrak has created a real catch-22 when it comes to in-room dining. If your SCA is too lazy or confused or indifferent to get your meals it can be hard to work around that. If you take it upon yourself to go and get the food and bring it back to your room the dining car folks will complain that you should have had your SCA do it. I know because this has happened to me as well. But if your SCA isn’t willing to get it for you then what exactly are you supposed to do?
This is more like staying at the New York City Holiday Inn Express for $400 and then when you ask for the included breakfast during breakfast hours they roll their eyes and say it’s the wrong time to ask because they have to check people out of the hotel.
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Lunch on the eastbound Capitol Limited is generally an abbreviated early lunch. If that was one of the meals in question, the issue may have been with dining car protocol on not the Sleeping Car attendant. I have been on the eastbound CL many times where "lunch" was never announced. Although I was able to get early lunch served to me in the dining car, I think "lunch" was discouraged and "brunch" was encouraged.
That isn't always the case.
Sometimes, people can walk, but they have asthma or COPD and can't walk farther than the length of one car before getting short of breath.
Sometimes people are sick and don't want to infect others.
Sometimes, they have a psychological issue, like social anxiety, and don't want to sit and converse with strangers for an hour.
Sometimes, they have a kid who's in tantrum mode, and they don't want to subject the other diners to shrieking and wailing.
Just because someone can walk doesn't mean they don't have a host of other issues going on; who are you to interrogate and/or judge them?
fairviewroad
Engineer
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Asking for anything well in advance [meals/bed service/wake-up call/etc] is setting yourself up for disappointment. I mean, I can see asking for a meal
30-45 minutes before you want it...that should take into account an intermediate stop and/or other pending SCA duties. But IME if you ask for something
more than an hour ahead of time, they will simply [7 times out of 10] forget about it.
Bingo.
FormerOBS
Conductor
........except that the person who checks you out at the hotel is not the same person who provides your meal. The food service person does his/her job. The person who checks you out does his/her job. Everything gets done properly, and by the right staff member, at the hotel. On the train, it's the same person who, unfortunately, can't be two places at once.
The consensus here seems to be that it's OK to ask with a reasonable lead time, and the attendant and passenger should be able to arrive at a time schedule that works for both. That makes sense. It is NOT a good idea to inform the attendant on short notice. A good attendant always keeps his/her cheat sheet handy, with notes to remind him/her what needs to be done, and when. There is no reason the meal should be forgotten just because it was ordered a long time ago. In fact, advance notification is the BEST way to be sure you get the service you want.
I have a friend who worked as a waitress at Waffle House. They would provide takeout meals on request, but she said it was frustrating to do this during busy periods because packing up the meal always took her away from her seated customers. It was particularly bothersome because carryout customers rarely tipped, even though it took just as much effort to put that carryout meal together as it would take to serve it at a table. On a dining car, the wait staff member generally has to leave the floor and go into the kitchen to put together a carryout meal. They just aren't set up for that kind of service, and today's minimal staffing means the floor is short-staffed while the server is in the kitchen. If you have the attendant do it, the attendant goes to the kitchen and accomplishes the task without short-staffing the floor. So it's not a good idea to go to the dining car expecting carryout service. When it comes to a hot full meal, the staff is particularly concerned about the safety implications of having a passenger carry it, because they don't really know whether the passenger is able to do it safely.
As for the attitude, I won't try to justify it.
The consensus here seems to be that it's OK to ask with a reasonable lead time, and the attendant and passenger should be able to arrive at a time schedule that works for both. That makes sense. It is NOT a good idea to inform the attendant on short notice. A good attendant always keeps his/her cheat sheet handy, with notes to remind him/her what needs to be done, and when. There is no reason the meal should be forgotten just because it was ordered a long time ago. In fact, advance notification is the BEST way to be sure you get the service you want.
I have a friend who worked as a waitress at Waffle House. They would provide takeout meals on request, but she said it was frustrating to do this during busy periods because packing up the meal always took her away from her seated customers. It was particularly bothersome because carryout customers rarely tipped, even though it took just as much effort to put that carryout meal together as it would take to serve it at a table. On a dining car, the wait staff member generally has to leave the floor and go into the kitchen to put together a carryout meal. They just aren't set up for that kind of service, and today's minimal staffing means the floor is short-staffed while the server is in the kitchen. If you have the attendant do it, the attendant goes to the kitchen and accomplishes the task without short-staffing the floor. So it's not a good idea to go to the dining car expecting carryout service. When it comes to a hot full meal, the staff is particularly concerned about the safety implications of having a passenger carry it, because they don't really know whether the passenger is able to do it safely.
As for the attitude, I won't try to justify it.
G
guest
Guest
I'm a tolerant person who doesn't like conflict or confrontation, and by nature give people the benefit of the doubt. The last time I flew, one of the flight attendants was rude and actually disrespectful. I still regret not reporting him to customer service. Ignoring such poor behavior encourages it to continue. Employers can't address an issue if they are unaware of it.
I agree with Green Mane, rrdude, and others, and find the behavior of the Amtrak employee totally unacceptable. I also can't understand anyone defending such behavior here. I'm wondering if traveler is always so kind and forgiving of others in other areas of life? From the OP's posts, he did nothing wrong or unreasonable. Granted, the employee might have had more pressing duties at the moment, but the way it was handled is inexcusable. Others have already posted appropriate responses. This doesn't require one to be a genius, just to exhibit some common courtesy and a rudimentary level of customer service.
OP, please report the incident to Customer Relations. Such attitudes and actions by Amtrak employees do a disservice to Amtrak as well as to passengers. It is not unreasonable to expect to be treated courteously by employees.
Almost without exception, I've always experienced very helpful and polite service on Amtrak, granted that has been in the east.
As for can't-handle-the-truth's post, it is so utterly ridiculous that I too am suspecting a troll.
I agree with Green Mane, rrdude, and others, and find the behavior of the Amtrak employee totally unacceptable. I also can't understand anyone defending such behavior here. I'm wondering if traveler is always so kind and forgiving of others in other areas of life? From the OP's posts, he did nothing wrong or unreasonable. Granted, the employee might have had more pressing duties at the moment, but the way it was handled is inexcusable. Others have already posted appropriate responses. This doesn't require one to be a genius, just to exhibit some common courtesy and a rudimentary level of customer service.
OP, please report the incident to Customer Relations. Such attitudes and actions by Amtrak employees do a disservice to Amtrak as well as to passengers. It is not unreasonable to expect to be treated courteously by employees.
Almost without exception, I've always experienced very helpful and polite service on Amtrak, granted that has been in the east.
As for can't-handle-the-truth's post, it is so utterly ridiculous that I too am suspecting a troll.
fairviewroad
Engineer
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True, but the analogy was like staying at a Holiday Inn Express for $400. The key detail is that HIE's are usually in the $90-$120 range. The point being that Amtrak sleeping car customers ARE frequently paying $400 to upgrade to sleeping class. Yet they are still greeted with a list of excuses. I don't think anyone here expects SCA's to be in two places at once. Politely offering a reasonable game plan for when they can serve you is the expectation here. On that, I think we're on the same page.
And FWIW, at some mid-range hotels, the front desk clerk IS the one who maintains the breakfast service. Probably not at a typical Holiday Inn Express, which tend to be on the slightly higher end of the mid-range bracket.
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FriskyFL
OBS Chief
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Way too many Amtrak apologists in this thread. The attitude from the SCA and dining car staff was UNACCEPTABLE, regardless of the circumstances. Too many Amtrak employees seem to write their own job description; if they want to work for themselves, let 'em buy their own railroad and then they can make their own rules.
rusty spike
OBS Chief
Maybe Amtrak should have this posted in every OBS's on-board accommodation. I used it in my company as did many corporate Human Resource and Customer Service Depts. I'm not sure of the original source.
A customer is the most important visitor on our premises.
He is not dependent on us. We are dependent on him.
He is not an interruption in our work. He is the purpose of it.
He is not an outsider in our business. He is part of it.
We are not doing him a favor by serving him. He is doing us a favor by giving us an opportunity to do so.
A customer is the most important visitor on our premises.
He is not dependent on us. We are dependent on him.
He is not an interruption in our work. He is the purpose of it.
He is not an outsider in our business. He is part of it.
We are not doing him a favor by serving him. He is doing us a favor by giving us an opportunity to do so.
TVRM610
Conductor
My example was that a Holiday Inn Express advertises a certain standard... weather you stay in NYC for $300-$400, or you stay in New Jersey for $120. You don't expect more from the Holiday Inn Express in NYC just because it costs more. You are paying for the fact that it is in NYC.
The argument that "Amtrak charges alot for sleepers and should therefore provide first class service" is what I was referring to. Just because it costs alot doesn't mean you should get something that is not advertised.
I'm not excusing rude behavior... that simply should not exist.
C
CoachSlumber
Guest
I was on the Eagle and was ill in the morning, which is miserable. The SCA (a woman) was a lifesaver, bringing me whatever I needed.
D.P. Roberts
Conductor
I may be wrong, but I can't find anywhere on the Amtrak site where it says that meals are offered in the sleepers to all passengers. From what I can find, Amtrak only offers this "officially" to passengers with a disability.
"Meal Service For Passengers With a Disability
On all trains with meal service, passengers with a disability can request that meals be brought to their room or seat. Meals are provided as part of the cost of travel for passengers who are traveling in a sleeping accommodation."
http://www.amtrak.com/meal-services-for-passengers-with-a-disability
So yes, I can see dining car attendants and SCAs getting upset when apparently "able bodied" people ask for meals in their seats - regardless of whether there's a tip in it for them or not. Now, as others have mentioned, it's not always apparent when someone has a disability. But if someone asks for a meal in their room out of the blue when he/she has been to the dining car before, or walks down to the dining car to ask for a meal to go, I can why they would have difficulty with this.
"Meal Service For Passengers With a Disability
On all trains with meal service, passengers with a disability can request that meals be brought to their room or seat. Meals are provided as part of the cost of travel for passengers who are traveling in a sleeping accommodation."
http://www.amtrak.com/meal-services-for-passengers-with-a-disability
So yes, I can see dining car attendants and SCAs getting upset when apparently "able bodied" people ask for meals in their seats - regardless of whether there's a tip in it for them or not. Now, as others have mentioned, it's not always apparent when someone has a disability. But if someone asks for a meal in their room out of the blue when he/she has been to the dining car before, or walks down to the dining car to ask for a meal to go, I can why they would have difficulty with this.
FriskyFL
OBS Chief
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Which should be the norm, not the exception. Which very well may be the case, we can only hope. People tend to complain far more often than praise.
G
guest
Guest
"First class" or not is irrelevant here. ANY customer service employee anywhere should have handled a customer's request in a much better way.
The same goes for whether it's a stated policy. A customer asked a question, never mind that it was after trying to handle it himself. Give a reasonable but courteous answer with the right attitude.
The same goes for whether it's a stated policy. A customer asked a question, never mind that it was after trying to handle it himself. Give a reasonable but courteous answer with the right attitude.
rusty spike
OBS Chief
They shouldn't have difficulty with this:
f) In Room Meal Service
• “In Room Meal Service” is available to every
passenger.
• Any passenger who has a disability must be
offered “In Room Meal Service”. If the disabled
passenger requests to eat in the Food Service
Car, every attempt must be made to fulfill
this request.
It's right out of the Amtrak Service Standards Manual
rusty spike
OBS Chief
Which should not be the case. But I'm as guilty of that as anyone. It doesn't require that much effort to email or call Amtrak and commend an employee for extraordinary service.
VentureForth
Engineer
Waffle House charges a service fee for to go orders. When I get something to go, I don't need my table bussed, and I don't need to keep getting my drinks refilled. To go orders should be encouraged on Amtrak. It's order, cook, plate and that's it. Nothing else. No bussing, no cleaning up, no refills, no anxiety over how long someone is occupying a table....
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D.P. Roberts
Conductor
Well, if the OP's question was "Should I be asking for this stuff?", from her perspective, the answer appears to be no - non-disabled passengers shouldn't be asking for this. From the Service Manual, it appears that they should offer in-room meal service if passengers ask for it, but abled-bodied passengers shouldn't ask for it if it's not something that Amtrak only offers to disabled people.
Green Maned Lion
Engineer
I think most businesses should post that for their employees. Hell, small businesses who don't have employees should post it for themselves. Too many develop an anti-customer attitude that sometimes goes way up to central management. Federated Department Stores (i.e. Macy's) is an example I experienced as an employee. I quit after getting into a fight with the store manager about servicing customers. I thought we had an obligation to serve them. He thought customers standing in line for an hour before closing and not being served yet should drop their purchases and come back the next day. As I said, I quit. And its a major reason I went into the garment retail business on my own. I can and do run my business better.
First of all, as posted elsewhere, that is not actually the policy. Second of all, it does not excuse the attendants behavior. "I'm really sorry, sir. Amtrak has a policy that stops us from serving meals to able bodied passengers. I am also very very busy right now, or I would actually do it anyway. But at this time, given how little time we have left on the train and how many things I have to do before we reach our final destination, I am very sorry but I can't help you."
Now I want to explain my somewhat cold position earlier about having emotions on their own time. When I hire employees, before I even start considering their credentials, I go over the list of job requirements with them. I explain to them that I pay well, that I reward excellent job performance generously, that I believe in the concept of internal promotion (if I ever get big enough to have a chain of command besides GML->Mrs. GML->Employees, I would certainly promote somebody from within- I even have a feeling for who) and that I offer benefits. I also explain to them very explicitly that from the time they report until the time they go home they are on my time. Yes I offer breaks, but when it works for my business, not whenever they want. I expect them to work hard. I expect them to put up with abusive customers unless they think that the customer is excessive, at which time they are to report the problem to me or my wife. If they are sick, there is a reason I offer paid sick days. I am actually a lot more laid back then I make it seem in the interview.
I find it removes candidates who aren't actually willing to work. But the other thing is, if they have problems with the nature of the job they are doing, I want to be able to fire them with the clear conscience of knowing that they were supposed to be aware of what they were signing on for.
I do appreciate the unique nature of being a long distance on-board service personnel. I do appreciate that they are away from their homes for days at a time. I do appreciate the stress it can put on their family. I don't think they are overpaid, nor over benefitted. I certainly do not think they should be treated as if they were my slave.
However, and this is the key point, when you sign up for that job, you better know what you are getting in to. A TAS is the rough descendant of the Pullman Porter. You are working a job when you are on-call to some extent or other from the time the train boards until the time the last passenger disembarks. You are expected for that job to provide polite and courteous interaction with the customer, including when you are stressed and busy. You are working in a customer service position and you can expect to have (not justifying the customers actions, by the way) abusive customers. Among your skill sets are managing to dispatch an abusive or irrational customer effectively so that you can perform time-sensitive jobs. I don't justify the actions of obnoxious and abusive customers who expect their TAS to be their personal slave, but the TAS is responsible to know how to deal with (which does not mean cater to the every whim of) such a customer in a manner that maintains decorum on the train.
When you sign up to work as a TAS or TAC on a long distance train, this is the kind of thing you should be expecting to encounter as part of what you are paid for. These are the skills and duties you are being paid to use and perform. I'm sure most of the former OBS people on this forum know exactly what I am talking about. If you are unable to put on a polite face for customers, even when having a bad day, you are in the wrong line of work. Trust me, there are times when my wife, my employees, or myself are standing their being polite to a total jackass, courteously serving them while imagining in the back of our mind smashing them into little pieces with a large sledgehammer. That is the nature of working in a customer service job.
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