Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

50 people at $75 each = $3750 20% of $3750 is $750--not $900. So each mate would make $375 in dollars in tips. A good days pay indeed. But you continue to miss the point of the original post which is all the work done by the mates besides the actual fishing time. Furthermore, if you think mates are $375 a day very often you ARE out of the loop. There are many days when boats sail with 10-12 people and the mates are hoping to make $50 to split.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

I would prefer to have a guy tip me 40 bucks on a 500 dollar pool than a 20 tip from a family of 5 or 6..

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

i heard yo like to tip while filleting.....

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

only way to do it son!!!! you know dat dere boy has a sign on his back to break his balls. hahaha that and if i waited around for fish i would be there another hour with all dem dere fish we catch.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

Split it 50/50....on much smaller pools, I'll take my contribution and the mates get the rest, but that's just me.....

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

If the mate is busy filleting just shove your tip right in his front pants pocket. Some guys won't even mind that you only gave them a buck and others will want you to push it in deeper.:eek:

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

Can we change the thread start post?? It would bring a lot less anger in from the get go if it read "why we Do!! tip mates" if the average angler got one, more power to em, but there is that unknown respect , percentage is up to them, if its the pool ,... One third at least , depending on pool, boat full of newbies, questionable...good day,, good tip!!!!!

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

We split tips and 15-20% is customary. Just because fishing is tough and you dont catch doesnt mean you should tip less as long as the mate was helpful and did his job. If not then yes full power to tip less but base it on service not fish caught. We work hard fish or no fish and trust me we want to catch em just as bad if not worse then the customers I like full coolers and bloody decks it gets the blood flowing:cool: . And if you have a problem with one of the mates take it up with the captain. And 20 bucks out of the pool is fine but when I net or gaff the pool winner for someone that I may have also rigged up and instructed and they dont give us a dime it hurts more then my wallet its happened more then once and it really does hurt. 1/4 to 1/3 of the pool is customary but 20 is fine. Trust me when fishing is slow this business is tough.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

just curious how much the mates get from the boat? $40? $50? or does it depend on the number of fares.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

On our boat the number of fares determines the number of Mates . Each boat is different . We sailed with 12 Saturday night which is only enough for one Mate so two of us shared everything .

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

I get that part, but i was wondering if the mates get any standard pay from the boat at all. Like $50 a day or something like that.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

They all get standard fee structures per day, say around 75 or so per trip, then they deduct taxes, there is not much money in their regular pay

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

Is The Fishing That Bad!!!lab Is Looking Down Just Shaking His Head.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

And I'm sure there are people on this Board that say even a lazy mate should be tipped too.

I've towed guys for hours, docked them perfectly. SInce they are memebrs they dont pay a nickle on what would have been a $1500 job. Most do not give you a cent.

The guys in the ragged a*sed POS boats are the ones who usually tip after spending 3-5 hours with them.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

hahahaahhahahha

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

Seems to be an unwritten law that boat owners are not allowed to pay mates anything but the absolute min wage that will keep the owner legal. Strange.. since the mates are the ones that keep customers coming back.

Hey go figure! This Thread started last August- it's almost its birthday. LOL

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

Tip the mates because its the proper thing to do...

I dont get why some folks dont get it!! A waitress takes yur order , brings you food . Maybe checks on you once. Maybe a lousy service or food but still gets a min tip. A mate good or bad fishing serves you all day, does whatever he can . Gets you out of some sticky messes and back in the water ASAP and sometimes don't get a tip...

read a few posts in this threads , dont want to get into the sticky- ness but want to add my 2 cents.
Well said Aj n Ol Pedro ( good points from other folks too ) . Im not a mate on any head boats but always did , always will on any private boat I been on.. One primary thing I like to do is see folks catch fish , always help them rig up and teach technique.... love to see them take home a bag of fillets of fresh fish too .. I also agree guys who dont sail on head boats , never gona get it nor read this type of forum . So they have a bad trip and take it out on the mates and is their own foolishness. I have to confess I was cheap and didn't get it either .. One reason,bc I always fished caught / cleaned my own fish for over 20 years having my own boat . Never understood being served . I guess Besides ignorance it was mostly , pride than I finally opened my eyes when I realized these guys want to help and are doing it for a living.

However some folks , even novices will realize Gratatuity is gratitude period !!! so they tip something . Bottom line is some folks dont get it and never will . The mates work on tips want to catch fish and want to serve you. They love what they do and love to see fish being caught. Than you have the regulars who have been around no matter what they understand and tip appropriately . Ill say one thing I am not well off ,could just about afford a trip . But I still tip what I can ...they understand and appreciate whatever is offered and help you out no matter what . However when I win a pool I'll give min 30-40% . Hec I have even given it all on days that its a small pool . One thing ill say its sad when someone wins a healthy pool $200-300 -$400. Perhaps 4 mates on the boat and they may give $ 30-40 bucks total now thats cheap!!!


.. I will say depending on the boat you go on and the day you have may make or break your experience . If ya only went once and had a bad day well that may be first impression. Our mates understand and put up with this stuff all the time... Good ones are seasoned work hard ., show up at the boat 5-5:30am everyday. Rain, sun , wind, snow.... weather they sail or not. Always helping customers aboard with gear,... cut bait and what have ya... some may work two looooong trips all day baking in the hot sun... , dont finish up cleaning the boat till 8-9 pm. Go Home , sleep only to do it all over again a few hours later.

Lastly must say all my years on head boats maybe I met but one or two bad apple mates from over 10-15 / boats in 1000 trips. Maybe One or two young, lazy ones but they learn real quick or dont last long. Of course the boats I have always sailed on have the best mates tho … guess thats why I sail on them... .;)

my 2 cents. So Tip your mates what ya can and don't be cheap

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

I always make sure to tip the mates well, but to be honest it's the mates and captains who are screwing themselves. You want the better money, then make the tip inclusive into the fare so that everyone is compensated fairly.

You guys are leaving it up to chance, that the customer will tip you, then when they don't, there's a lot of complaints. So.....seems to me the solution is to just include it into the fare.


The mates and captains chose this arrangement of payment....so don't really understand where the complaints are coming from. Nurses and doctors at the hospital are saving lives, and they don't get tipped. Doctors make a lot of money, but they also go through 12 years of education (8yrs school + 4 yrs residency). Nurse assistants make squat, but they don't get tipped. Life is hard, and whining about tipping in a payment scheme that you constructed seems kinda dumb.

Not saying mates don't deserve tips...just that the complaining about the situation is dumb.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

I normally tell the mates to lose weight or try a new hairstyle thats my tip

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

HEY JOE IS THAT A FAT JOKE!!!!{LOL} this is nuts:rolleyes:

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

Not sure what it is for mates and if it even applies to them, but the minimum wage in NJ for service industry employees in the restaurant business like waiters and bar tenders is $2.13. Not a heck of a lot of money and these people rely on tips to make up the difference.

In my mind there are a few sensible rules when it comes to tipping mates.
- If you catch fish or not the mates deserve a tip
- As a general rule it should be between 18 to 20% of the fare.
- If you get exceptional service and you can afford it than more
- If you are smart and require a lot of maintenance like me or you are fishing with a kid who will need a lot of assistance you might tip in advance to insure good service.
- If the mate has to clean a lot of my fish (usually not the case with me) I will tip them a buck or so a fish in addition to the tip.

If you can't afford to tip properly that's one thing, but being cheap is another. Tip with your conscious knowing what you can afford and the level of service you get. Most mates deserve it, if they don't they shouldn't be a mate and won't be around very long.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

Thanks very much for bringing up this topic. As a deckhand on a boat in AH, good tips are always highly appreciated. We work for tips. That's what our income is based on. As a deckhand, we do as much as we can to assure that we receive a good tip. Thanks very much for recognizing how important the deckhands are to the operation of the party boats.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

One more reminder to not forget all the work that gets done before and after the actual fishing. It makes a big difference.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

My son won the pool a few weeks back at $200. There were 3 mates that did a fine job all day long, besides taking a liking to my 10 year old. We or should I say I tipped the mates $25. each for a fine day of fishing & making us laugh a little. My son still went home with a nice little extra money & had a blast . A win win for all.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

Capt Frank.
Are you being serious when you state that you expect a tip when you tow someone in who is a paying member of your employer's organization?
If yes would you give a reason?

Confused.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

Just got home from my favorite 1/2 day pb. The $140 dollar pool was taken by a guy fishing with his 10 yr old daughter. A nice 5 1/2 lb. fish. The dad takes the bag of fillets and gives the kid $2 to tip the mates with. Just to be clear, that's $2, two dollars, a pair of ones, two 1$ bills. Now the mates an go buy the pencils they've been wanting.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

I know who this is and this is your googan who you have been teaching how to bucktail on a spinner rod - my new penn battle??? - you are worth every penny Kiddo and I just love fishing with you and on the boat . You work hard and deserve it . Now the other one - well thats a whole different story - must feed the tapeworm and bring you guys some big-stosh's. You guys on this boat I frequent are worth every penny - all 3 of you - even Mr. Rock-n-Roll- now you need to teach me how to fillet next .

Thanks to all the hard working mates out there especially this one and my favorite 3/4 day boat

GDubs-:cool:

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

This thread reminds me of all the reason's I am no longer a full time mate. :) I worked part time (3 days a week for my last 2 years of college) and then full time for about 4 years out of the Atlantic Highlands fleet. Happily I (for the past few years) now have another full time job, that although doesn't really pay as well as my best year on the boat, it has turned me back into the civil minded person I was before I started working deck. I still fill in a trip now and then just for a little extra cash or to help out a captain or mate that needs a hand for the day. Here are just a few random thoughts, points, and counter points to what I have read so far in this thread.

Over the course my best season Early April until Late December I made $9,800 from the captain. That was with me leaving my house at 5:00 am and getting home at 8:45 pm on a good night during half day sailings (april-mid October) late fall was better 4:45 am to about 5:00 pm. Days I didn't sail I still spent about $14 dollars in gas to and from the boat as well as $2 in tolls. If I didn't get out on the morning trip (During which I spent 6:00 am to 8:00 am on the dock without getting paid, I then had to wait around for the afternoon trip to see if I would get out then, another 1 1/2 unpaid hours at the dock.

Trip where we did sail, but with only for enough fares for one mate it depended on whether or not it was your day to know if you or the other mate was being sent home, or you could split your already low pay with the other mate and both work.

Anyone that thinks that the mates are splitting 15-20% of the fare money on a relatively crowded boat is out of there mind. Honestly I would always do best with about 15-18 guys if I was working by myself or about 30 guys if two mates were splitting the trip. It allowed us to give better service to all aboard.

95-98% of the best tippers out there require VERY LITTLE in the way of help from the mate over the course of a trip. Yes, they do get the best of the bait, and I would respond to their call for a net or gaff before someone that I didn't know, but that is about it. These men and women know how to tie their own rigs, bait their own hooks, stay out of tangles before they begin, cast their own lines, and swing shorts and marginal keepers without any help from me. Of course help was always offered, but normally I was told to go help someone else, or simply they got it.

Some people say tips stands for To Insure Prompt Service. The problem with that is you know some of your regular customers that will give you very little to nothing in the way of tips. In this day and age with fewer people coming to the harbor a mate cannot afford to give them any less in the way of service, otherwise the captain and crew might lose them to another boat. I worked a trip earlier this week where I was the only mate. I went out with somewhere between 12-15 fares. I knew 10 of the fares (that I can remember) from my past working in the harbor. I can honestly say that of the 10 I knew, I removed every single short and sea robin from every hook, netted every "close" fish that was asked to be netted, measured every fish that needed it, untangled every tangle in the group, and filleted every keeper that the 10 caught. I did this even knowing what i had coming. The group of 5 gave me $10, the two groups of 2 gave me $5 each, and the 1 guy gave me $10. I could have told you that that is what I was going to make from each of them before the boat left the dock, but I still gave the best service I was able. Assuming a $60 fare if 10 were all seniors (which most of them were not) that would mean for the 10 I knew I made $30 out of $600 (in fares) or exactly %5.

The sad reality of being a mate at this time is that most of your money will come from a select group of people you already know. Most new fares will tip well below 20% Fares are now expecting more and more from mates and are not willing to tip accordingly. If a mate wants to keep the boat in business and his job he better be able to take all the S#%T every day with a smile.

All that being said, I do fish whenever time allows on party boats that I both know and are new to me. I have met many great mates and I have met some not so great mates. I can honestly say I have never walked off a boat without tipping at least 20% OR letting the captain and mate know exactly why I didn't tip at all or up to my normal standards so that the everyone knew what I perceived as wrong or not up to snuff.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

Great post AVA ^^^^^^

Good to know the reality of things first hand from a mate. Hoping this will make some people see the light.

As I said above, if you get good service not being able to afford to tip properly is one thing, but being cheap is a choice. It's just another way for selfish people to get over. They name streets after people like these ... "One Way".

I used to just let it go and tollerate these sorts.... Now I bring it to their attention.. For me, it's not a matter of the money, it's the principle of it and I just want to let them know that I know exactly what they are up to and they are just retry to get over.

Nothing worse than a Cheapskate in my book.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

Thank you AVA67 (Braden) for your detailed, personal post - it certainly opened my eyes !! I miss seeing you at the Harbor & was hopeful that you landed a full-time teaching gig. Keep on pluggin' . . . good things happen to good peeps and you're better than good :) . . . Best always, Larry

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

Great post... the only thing I want to add that I know for sure...

The Blue Heron out of Jupiter Fl, you get in the pool, you spilt 50% of the pool with the mates..

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

I'm all for tipping but not sure I like the manditory/entitlement 50% tip if you win the pool. After all, tipping in my mind is based on the level of service you get and that's the way it should be. It gives service people motivation to do their best.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

I have fished on party boats for about 20yrs now. I have also worked on one of my favorite boats out of Point. When I get lucky enough to win the pool I usually give it all to the mates, not because I think its right or mandatory just after working the boat myself I know how tough a job it can be. I once was handed 2 dollars after a night of bluefishing tangled lines gaffing fish cleaning the boat I handed the 2 dollars back to the guy and told he must need it more than me. Not to sound like a jerk but after helping this guy all night I felt a little pissed. Anyway just like everyone says the tip should match the level of comfort, help, and everything else the mates try to do for you while your out there.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

I consider myself to be as self-sufficient a fare as they come. I tie my own rigs, untie my own tangles, unhook my own fish and fillet all my own fish. On my regular charters on which I know the crew and most fares, I generally fillet all the fish for the boat.

On head boats I always tip a minimum of $25. On Charters it ranges from $25 to $50, depending on the number of additional passengers. Any pool won (most recent was earlier this week) usually goes directly to the mate(s). If its an u usually large pool, I'll sometimes reimburse myself the cost of charter, but only seldom. I do my fishing for the fun of it, not to make money.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

There's been a lot of agreement on giving a reasonable tip to the mates. Several mates have expressed what it's like working on a party boat and have made good points regarding the actual fishing trip and all the prep and clean up work involved. Is there anybody who would like to make a case or offer an explanation as to why they believe otherwise? We'd love to hear from you.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

I went thru 4 pages of the 8 of this thread, so maybe what I'm going to say has been covered, but I chime in to give perspective on something that has always struck me and have never read on one of these threads.

I give minimum 20% all the time (and I only fish boats where service is good.) Here is what strikes me - sooo many times when I give the tip to the mate and he sees how much it is, I get a very profound thank you, as if it was a lot, i.e. people don't routinely tip that much. Perhaps I'm reading it wrong, and I hope I am, but I doubt it. It's sad, as no one in the service industry works as hard as mates.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

I can't begin to tell you how many times I have had a much better fishing day after getting advise from the mate. I think that $20.00 is the minimum that anyone should tip. I have won the pool a few times and I always leave the whole thing to them. They deserve every penny they get. I know for a fact that a lot of people don't tip at all or only leave a few dollars and that's wrong. Please tip the mates they deserve every penny and they treat everyone great.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

35%? What if you go two or three times a week, do you still do that?

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

Everybody deserves to earn a living, this includes the mates.

I look at it as the same as going to a restaurant, if you can't or don't want to pay for the meal & a tip, stay the hell home & eat a box of mac & cheese. Or fish in the local creek, that doesn't cost very much.:rolleyes:

I can't tell you how many charters I set up in the past, only to have my "buddies" argue & try to lowball the mate with a tip, I wound up digging into my own pocket to make up the difference. Same guys who drive a $40k pickup truck & spend $100/week on smokes & beer.

Re: Why do we tip the mates?
 

People are really missing some of the key points here.. Single passengers is not the real problem now a days and especially in the summer..

I worked deck in barnegat light, railed from front the back bluefishing in 100 degree heat with 90 people on the boat, 4 mates, and have walked off with 100 bucks.. that is 400 dollars between 90 people. thats is an average of 4.44 per person.. The singles are not the ISSUE, i will repeat it over and over again, IT IS THE GROUPS!!

I have waited hand and foot on a family of 6, and they give you 20 bucks, that is the real problem. if you have 40 people on a party boat, 15 singles and 25 are all groups of 5, you are looking to have a crappy day, it is just the way it is.

Vacationing families, and groupsof people today need to realize that each person is handled as an individual and not as a group, and if you have a party of 5 sitting there fishing, you are fishing with 5 separate fares, even though one dad might be paying, still need to throw these guys a 100 bucks atleast for that..