Hotel Tariff

Press, Volume XCVIII, Issue 28792, 13 January 1959, Page 3

Hotel Tariff

Sir,—lt was with some dismay I read in an article in “The Press,” that an M.P. had paid 7s 6d in tips for one night’s hotel expenses. Surely a Socialist

country, where the Government prides itself on giving its citizens a fair, living wage, this is nothing short of insulting. Part of the charm of travelling in New Zealand has been the absence of tipping, which so spoils foreign travel. I was under the impression that New Zealanders were independent individuals, who believed in the dignity of labour and who did not approve of patronage. Tipping, the black mark of social distinction and bribery to service, is hardly in accord with the welfare State. Surely this is a bad example to travellers and local residents alike, and it seems a pity that such a slur on the public moral standard should come from a Minister of the Crown.—Yours, etc..

HONEST WORKER. January 12, 1959.

Sir,—Mr Connolly complains about hotel charges. It cost him £3 17s plus 7s 6d in tips. His expense allowance is £3 3s so he had a cheap trip: £1 Is 6d, it cost him. Do the hotel workers get any wages? I thought that they got paid and did not have to rely on tips for a living.— Yours, etc., BY THE WAYSIDE.

January 9, 1959. [Mr Connolly did not visit Christchurch for his own pleasure but on official business; and is entitled to have his expenses paid.—Ed., “The Press.”]