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Are Negative Bajan Attitudes Playing A Role In The Declining Tourism Industry

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Submitted by Bajan Yankee

Last weekend I had diner with friends from Jamaica who explained what a horrible time they had while shopping in Bridgetown, to my surprise they explained how poor across the board service in stores was to them, as if their money had another value then that of other international patrons. I started off by dismissing the allegations but the very next day I read a nation news article, based on a study, which pointed to the same factor, “poor service”, as a key issue impacting the Barbados tourism industry.

With that said I have decided to get the BU perspective on this issue, more specifically is it ” fact or fiction “. I know that as a frequent visitor to other islands there is a completely different vibe given off by those in the service industries as compared to Barbados, “why” I’ve been forced to now ask myself.

The Bajan as a personality type is a proud individual with strong family and career values, however it is possible that they are now many in our society who are personally dissatisfied with having to serve others with such an educated mass of people. Noting the last election as an indication of this matter. Or are the daily struggles of Bajans making it’s way to the workplace and being negatively expressed to selective types of visitors, whether from the US, UK, Canada or the greater Caribbean region.

So BU, do we Bajans need to check our attitudes at the door before we go to work or what?  Things are hard enough in the tourism industry and if there is more we can do to service our guest better who help our national economy we should.

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94 responses to “Are Negative Bajan Attitudes Playing A Role In The Declining Tourism Industry”

  1. Avatar
    Anonymous

    As a proud bajan living overseas i find that the thing that most gets on my nerves when i come home is the low level of customer service. there is nothing degrading about a service oriented appraoch to doing one’s job. But i find that there is almost a despising attitude, a resentment to having to help someone else. I will continue to come to BIM for that is my home but i dread having to deal with anyone who provides a service. it just leaves a poor taste in one’s mouth

  2. David Avatar
    David

    There is increasing competition from neighbouring islands, more importantly BU believes there is a disconnect between the need to provide service to a sector which is our number one foreign exchange earner by Barbadians given our increasing standard of living and concomitant lifestyles. There is no doubt that service in many of the smaller islands is superior to Barbados although there is lesser infrastructure. They are where Barbados was 20 years ago. It makes no sense sinking millions into the sector and at the same time leaving the people out of the equation who have to be part of delivering the best service.

    Here is the Nation article which the author is probably referred to:

    Lack of execution in tourism – a national shame

    Published on: 5/3/2010.

    by Peter Boos

    MOST BARBADIANS will agree that tourism is the backbone of the Barbados economy. Its contributions to employment, tax revenues and foreign exchange earnings are enormous.

    Every business and individual in Barbados benefits from the tourism infrastructure and the contributions this industry makes to our quality of life and standard of living.

    Tourism is the reason Barbados has a world-famous brand.

    So why are we allowing it to flounder?

    Targets set in 2001 for tourism growth in room stock, cruise arrivals and long-stay arrivals have not been met at a time when there has been significant growth in many other Caribbean tourism destinations.

    Between 2001 and 2009 the quality of many of our hotels declined and several have closed. Many hotels are operating on marginal returns, and that was before the global recession of 2008! Several are now close to financial ruin.

    We must ask ourselves why.

    A recent study prepared for the Barbados Hotel and Tourism Association entitled The Competitive Tourism Environment Which Barbados Faces: Its Challenges And Solutions is required reading for anyone interested in securing our economic sustainability.

    Far too often quality research such as is contained in this study is not acted upon effectively. Why not?

    The study identifies four key areas in need of urgent attention:

    * The human factor

    * Attracting business

    * Financial performance

    * The enabling environment

    The issues identified in each category are:

    Human factor

    * Poor service ethic (recommendations for improvement include education of the public including school children on the importance of tourism to them individually, appropriate mandatory training, customer interface goal setting and performance measurement). * Inadequate training (recommendations for improvement include subsidised training with tertiary institutions, overseas staff secondments, attraction of international hotel brands). * Low productivity. The study identified the need for unions to work with industry stakeholders to improve the high levels of absenteeism in the accommodation sector especially and to implement formal productivity improvement agreements.

    Attracting business

    * Lack of product innovation and variety (recommendations include need for entrepreneurial seed and venture capital finance specific to tourism). * Dilapidated assets (recommendations include tax incentives, fast-track policies for tourism investment, acceleration of Barbados Tourism Investment programme to promote private-public partnerships for the redevelopment of dilapidated Government-owned tourism assets). * Inconsistent branding (recommendations include creating a “brand bible” and mandate compliance). * Ineffective marketing, including silo approach (recommendations include establishing a National Tourism Policy). * Poor use of ICTs (several recommendations offered).

    Financial performance

    * Access to suitable finance (recommendations include: commercial banks need to be encouraged to improve debt structures for hotels, provision of Government financial guarantees for key strategic tourism projects). * High operating costs (recommendations include: reduce bound rate of duty on food and beverage, reduce VAT on a basket of food items, access cheaper insurance, reduction of employers’ National Insurance costs).

    The enabling environment

    * Imposition of taxes (recommendations include land tax and VAT reforms for tourism sector). * Negative impact of bureaucracy (recommendations include: one-stop-shop for business facilitation, paradigm shift in public sector productivity). * Safety and security (recommendations include: improved policing of popular tourism areas, address the vagrancy issue, stamp out illegal vending, stop beach harassment and the drug culture). * Airlift and airport capacity (recommendations include: reduce travel taxes, match air lift to accommodation capacity). *Cruise and sea access, and port capacity (recommendations include more berthing capacity, creation of a department focused entirely on developing the cruise sector, encourage home porting and onshore provisioning). * Insufficient focus on villa sector (recommendations include greater collaboration between villa rental and management companies, new Government incentives for “condo hotels”, more research to facilitate growth and optimisation of this important segment of the accommodation inventory).

    The authors of the study recommend that focus be on the “easy wins” that require little investment and rely primarily on execution by marshalling the appropriate resources in the following key areas in the establishment of a clear strategic direction: the quality of service delivery; innovation by industry participants; and brand alignment and rigorous compliance.

    Anyone familiar with the last 20 years of private sector business concerns will immediately recognise that nearly all of the concerns and solutions in this excellent report have been “on the table” for years.

    Our inability to execute is a national shame and must be addressed as a priority.

    Barbadians need a wake-up call. We are in a bubble and in real danger of seeing our comfortable lifestyle fall significantly and quickly.

    It is indeed regrettable that we have failed miserably to address so many of these well-vented issues prior to having to cope with a very challenging recession and at a time when our national balance sheet is under great stress and in need of repair and we have little room for extravagance or error.

    We need to rally around our tourism sector at this critical time.

    Let’s for once use all the resources at our disposal to do what we all know we must.

    * Peter Boos is managing editor of BusinessBarbados.com

  3. Green Monkey Avatar
    Green Monkey

    I stopped by a certain “big” guys barbecue stand in the vicinity of Hastings Saturday evening around 8:00pm. The sourfaced cashier taking the orders on the drive through and from the walkup customers (tourists and locals) clearly indicated by her attitude that she would rather be anywhere else in the world than where she was that night. She sure gave me the impression that you should consider yourself damn lucky she deigned to actually take your order and if you did not like her attitude you were welcome to take your business elsewhere. .

    The thing was the customers I saw were trying to be pleasant and polite saying please and thank you etc., and this cashier might throw in a “you’re welcome” to a “thank you”, but her tone of voice and the expression on her face negated that completely. She might as well have just said, “You’re welcome. Now go f*** yourself and get out of my sight.”

  4. Anon Avatar
    Anon

    It’s ok to speak of bad service but we must get to the core of the issue. Most of these persons at the front end of customer service are young women.
    Let’s analyze the underlying cause of their bad attitude.
    Is it poor pay?
    Is it that the men left them with children to raise on their own?
    What is it really?
    If these women are barely making enough to pay bus fare and buy lunch, then there aint one fuck to smile about.

  5. dominoes Avatar
    dominoes

    No amount of money is enough,its just the attitude of bajans.

  6. Bonny Peppa Avatar
    Bonny Peppa

    Anon
    Welll they should left de fcuking job. There’s no excuse for piss-poor service at all so don’t even attempt to justify dese motha-fuckas behaviour. If I go anywhere and I get poor service, i am sure to let them know that I am not fcuking-well begging so doan come to me wid a stinkin attitude.
    Plain n simple.
    Welcome de mornin sun.

  7. Anon Avatar
    Anon

    Try going to work for $250 a week with two children at home and no father and tell me if you will be a happy camper.
    Complain about the lawyers who give bad service, de tiefing doctors dat tell ya to come back, come back come back and rob yuh c**t; de contractors dat ripping off people left right and center.
    Leave de blasted women on de front line and f**king well pay them better and stop using them as a scapegoat for all de social ills.
    The bad service is all over the f**king island.

  8. Bonny Peppa Avatar
    Bonny Peppa

    anon
    So wait, who fault um is dat she got two fatherless children and working fa $250? She didn’t know all dem tings befoe she tek de job? Man, gimma a break do. Stop looking fa excuses fa piss-poor service man. Leff de excess baggage outside de work place and gimme proppa service man. Or leff de place.Plain n simple. Wah you telling youself a’tall? stupseeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.
    We addressing de issue dat Bajan yankee experienced and you bringing in de fatha, son n holy ghost.
    All de otha entities that you made reference to would get deal wid in time ta come man. Doan condone ‘piss-poor’ service Anon.

    Who tell she ta go n get child #2 if she already struggling wid child #1? We responsible fa we own destiny man.

  9. X Avatar
    X

    Attitudes like Anon’s are the problem – service may be bad but I’ll identify other social problems and not address the critically poor level of service.

    Quite frankly, if the employees have personal problems they have to check these at the door before starting their shift. It’s unfortunate when people face problems but it should not be permitted to impact the execution of their job duties.

    In the case of the fast food outlets, Chefette seems to be a little better than KFC. Honestly, service from KFC in Barbados is the worst service I have ever received from any restaurant, anywhere in the world. And it is so consistently gruff, rude, poor, and all manner of other negative traits as to make me wonder whether the management does any training whatsoever.

  10. Peltdownman Avatar
    Peltdownman

    I know from first hand experience how valuable good attitude is at retail. Employees can be trained to be nice to customers, but what has to be instilled is the sense of satisfaction one gets from sending a customer away happy. Employees with a reasonable level of intelligence understand the value of good service, which can be enhanced with financial incentives. The nicer you are, the more you sell, and the more you sell, the more you earn. Of course, there are some who will never get it. Quick answer, send them off to be rude to each other on the block, and bring in someone who does get it.

  11. Christopher Halsall Avatar
    Christopher Halsall

    @X: “Quite frankly, if the employees have personal problems they have to check these at the door before starting their shift. It’s unfortunate when people face problems but it should not be permitted to impact the execution of their job duties.

    Indeed. But at the end of the day, this comes down to Management’s responsibility.

    How many managers of retail outlets here in Barbados observe their staff randomly to ensure proper service?

    How many managers employ “secret shoppers”?

    A few tips for the service industry:

    1. The “teller” should always look the customer in the eye when they’re interacting with them.

    2. The “teller” should *never* be holding a conversation with another employee (or a “friend”) during the transaction.

    3. The “teller” should count out the change to the customer to ensure it is correct. Rather than counting out the change to themselves and then hand over the change.

    4. Very importantly, the customer is the most important person in the world during a transaction. This is something the Asians and the Americans understand *very* clearly. It is not a matter of subordination — it is your job; and why you have one.

  12. David Avatar
    David

    The name KFC keeps raising its head when bad service is discussed in Barbados. The fact that it has been operating in Barbados for decades under the franchisee Davis and expanding to boot, what does it say about the Barbadian consumer?

    Many businesses in Barbados are quick to sacrifice training resources when trying to maintain profit margins, especially at this time, again who to blame, the employee only?

  13. raymond Avatar
    raymond

    You know without all the expletives and disrespect for women,the fact is that we are talking customer service.It is so that the tourism sector is of vast importance to our country Barbados but you can take a cow to the water but you cannot make it drink.Some people are just bad mannered.In the international arena its a different ball game.Companies need to continue to train and retrain and place the emphasis on service delivery. Its still better in Barbados

  14. Anon Avatar
    Anon

    Leave the attitude at the door. Turn of the switch. Work is different from your personal life. A line is supposed to be drawn between the two. Who tell she to go and get two fatherless children. Why cant she smile for $250.00 a week?
    The answer to all this is very simple.
    Try putting yourself in the shoes of these women and stop kicking down the ladder and criticizing them.
    Most of these people (mainly young women) work is less than comfortable conditions and work for no more than $250 per week.
    Lunch per week – $50.00
    Bus fare – $30.00
    Groceries – $150.00
    What’s left to feed the children, pay the light bill, pay rent?
    There’s nothing to smile about. Until the core of the problem is fixed we will not have better customer service.
    That’s soooooooooooooooooooo obvious.

  15. X Avatar
    X

    I doubt very much that a KFC worker takes home as little as 250 a week. Unless she is working part time. If she does, then she’s stupid. A domestic working 4 to 5 hours a day gets that.

  16. Anon Avatar
    Anon

    I don’t think the public at large is complaining about bad service from domestic workers.

  17. Christopher Halsall Avatar
    Christopher Halsall

    @X: “I doubt very much that a KFC worker takes home as little as 250 a week.

    As I doubt very much that a Super Centre worker takes that little amount home each week.

    @Anon: “Until the core of the problem is fixed we will not have better customer service.

    I don’t entirely agree.

    It seems, empirically, that even where some are making reasonable coin, bad service still exists here in Barbados.

    The civil service, for example….

  18. Technician Avatar
    Technician

    @ X…..

    Dont bet your pension on that.

  19. Christopher Halsall Avatar
    Christopher Halsall

    @Technician: “Dont bet your pension on that.

    Your message is incomplete.

    Please define “that” in your above.

  20. Negroman Avatar
    Negroman

    I worked in the hotel industry for nearly twenty years.Hotel work was the only work I did in my younger days and quite frankly,I could not wait for the day to leave that type of work.
    Everyone with the exception of Anon.is lambasting the attitude of the workers who are providing customer service,but would at no time try to empathize and see things from those workers perspective.
    They are many customers who viewed the work of hotel workers,sales clerks in store,gas attendants & other similar types of employment as work for the uneducated,misfits & social outcasts in the society.Many customers look down on those workers,thump up their noses,verbally insult those of workers & are generally very unfriendly towards those type of workers.I know because many hotel workers & I suffered that sort of abuse & treatment In addition to that sort of treatment many of those workers have to put up with poor working conditions,abuse from management & poor wages.Tell me how many of you all out there criticizing those workers would have put up with that type of treatment & would still be able to provide a quality service to the customers.I honestly want any of you all to answer truthfully.I endured hostile,abusive & degrading treatment during my years as a hotel worker.The saddest thing about the treatment many hotels workers and those I outlined above is,that many so-called middle class Black Barbadians who believed they have some level of social status are the chief culprits in the bad treatment meted out to Black Barbadian workers.Many of the bloggers should have experienced that treatment to understand the horrors may of those workers must endured on a daily basis.Those who feel it know it.I try not to be that critical of workers when I am subjected to not to good a service.I empathize & sympathize with those workers.

    Workers in the categories of work I have outlined above are expected to put their personal problems aside,forget about the horrible conditions many of them have to work under,ignore the snobbish,insulting behavior & attitude of many of their customers and those workers must smile,have pleasant words to say to those who despise them and must be cheerful.I say to hell with that.Until many of us show respect and have humility and do not look down on those people they considered to be of a lesser status,the poor service that is exhibited in Barbados will continue.In addition employers must also provide a better work environment & those employers must also have respect for their workers if they want those workers to be more friendly.

  21. Readydone Avatar
    Readydone

    As usual i see this from a “the other” point of view from most on BU but i have to agree with the fact that it has a lot to do with management. I would put my head to the block that there is no training in customer relation by the employers of the places referred to, usually the only requirement is that you would accept the pay they are offering. But you get what you pay for, in high end places it is much different, the service is good.

    The attitude is to spend as little on the employees to maximize their profit in lower end markets. There is a endless market of young girls to exploit that want to be INDEPENDENT and also the pay is so little the average girl would work for weeks only, so to spend money and train them is a no no. But good service starts with managements ability to foster an environment that encourages good service and discourages bad.

    I is more wonder what the effect of constant harassment of a tourist for a taxi is got on the tourist, i is feel for them sometimes when i walk behind them in Bridgetown.

    One point of note is the fact the the type of tourist has changed a poorer tourist has emerged that want to stretch the dollar and the cost of living is very high in Barbados as compared to other destinations.

    When it comes to the government don’t get me started, the government never takes any chances and copies what is done every where else, now Barbados has become no different from the places where the tourist come from. I mean the tourist left their homeland looking for something different, a novelty in the destination. When they get here they find the same hot dogs, same hamburgers, same clothes the same style of buildings, same carnival its basically like they never left their country of origin. One example was back when ZR were allowed to be paint how ever they pleased to most this was an expression of art but to those in power it was viewed as a negative image, they said the uniformity would make ZRs identifiable but in those days you couldn’t miss a ZR if ya try. Those were beautiful works of art capable of being a unique tourist attraction. Now Gone.

  22. Christopher Halsall Avatar
    Christopher Halsall

    @Negroman et al… With respect…

    This is going to come across as harsh.

    It is also reality.

    1. The customer is the most important person in the world.

    2. The customer doesn’t care about the pain you’re dealing with.

    3. If you can’t satisfy the customer, there are *many* who would like to try.

    4. Welcome to competition.

    5. Deal with it.

  23. Peltdownman Avatar
    Peltdownman

    Negroman, you have just epitomised the very problem of poor service in Barbados. Your diatribe speaks volumes. I started in the service industry at a very young age, and as an apprentice, I was pushed from pillar to post, disrespected by those with “real” jobs, and often made fun of, or set up for practical jokes. I had two choices: I could take the option of giving up – of taking my meagre pay and being negative. After all, who did they think they were, treating me like that? The other option was to learn from it and to be as good at or better at the job than they were. After all I was better educated than they were, and they knew it. When it came to customers, I soon learned that people behave differently when out of their comfort zone, particularly when travelling. A man with his family has to prove to them why he is the boss, so his nervousness tends to spill over into his attitude towards others, especially those serving him. Travelling and being in unfamiliar territory among unfamiliar people, especially in a strange country, makes people a little nervous and they often behave accordingly, including being rude sometimes. The challenge is to overcome this and send them away feeling comfortable and satisfied. That is the essence of good service and you don’t have to be subservient to do it, quite the opposite. You should show confidence and poise , and a smile will work wonders in diffusing the tension. It’s a good feeling when you succeed, believe me.

  24. Negroman Avatar
    Negroman

    Peltdown Man,& Chris Halsall
    The daily persecutions the less fortunate in Barbados must endured on a daily basis just to say that they have a job that provides a little income to support their families should be ignored just for the sake of customer service.Thanks very much for the humility the two of you have shown for the plight of those not fortunate enough to be n a position like the two of you esteemed persons.The contemptuous nature of many of the bloogers are manifested in many of the writings on this blog.

    I will continue to write diatribe in defence of poor Black Barbadian People who have to subject themselves to daily abuses from people who look down on them.

    I am so thankful that I elevated myself and find myself in a position that I no longer have to be the recipient of bad treatment from the snobs in Barbados.

  25. Avatar Gurl Avatar
    Avatar Gurl

    Nowadays, it’s not about WHAT you know, but WHO you know! Pure & simple.

    And the nicest people DON’T win the race in retail. It’s the most cunning.

    If you have pieces of the puzzle but can’t connect them, you are gonna get frustrated. People can only do so much. They’re not robots.

    I treat people with the utmost respect. However, people don’t do the same. May karma strike them accordingly.

  26. ac Avatar
    ac

    Questionto All

    Would you smile if you are overworked and underpay?
    I don’t think so!

  27. Hants Avatar
    Hants

    There are people on this blog who are aliens.
    No mother,grandmother, aunts or sisters.

    $250 bds per week and you want employees to smile
    while employers driving Bimmers amd Benzes.

    Prehaps wanna middle class Bajans should have some empathy for
    the less fortunate.

  28. David Avatar
    David

    @Hants & ac

    Maybe part of the problem is in the hiring practices of some of the companies. For example, why would a company (KFC or Cheffete) hire a hardback woman or man with children to work for minimum wage in a fast food setting? Compare this to what is done in N. America where student/college grads are hired because the motivation is different i.e.working way through college or getting work experience etc.

    Comments?

  29. ac Avatar
    ac

    In north america alot of the work in hotel and restaurants are done by immigrants and most of them appreciate the fact that they have a job not being able tofind one in their country and some might even have a language barrier.so they see it as if the tables are turned against them and would do any and everthing to keep the job. But inside all of that is the fear factor of losing the job if the don’t comply . Also they might be working in the country illegally so why
    ruin a good thing.
    However I am convinced that when a person is unhappy with their job most of the time it comes down
    to poor management which then shows in the attitude
    of its workers.
    In north america you would find that service is better in high end hotels and restaurants , Maybe the same
    applies in Barbados.

  30. Straight talk Avatar
    Straight talk

    David:
    Can I just enlighten you on how to make a million dollars a year with fast food.
    #1 Motivated staff
    #2 Quality product
    $3 Consistency
    #4 Success Projection

    How you get there?
    # 1 Careful interviewing
    # 2 Judicious buying
    # 3 Profit Sharing
    # 4 Team building
    Proven formula, works every time, everybody wins.

  31. David Avatar
    David

    @ST

    Agreed!

  32. Straight talk Avatar
    Straight talk

    May I add, with all due modesty, been there done it.

  33. Readydone Avatar
    Readydone

    Straight talk you own Big Johns?

  34. ac Avatar
    ac

    @Straight Talk
    Maybe if you are a conscientous business owner you would adapt those principles. However i doubt if kfc and small hotel chains have a fully funded budget for management training.

  35. David Avatar
    David

    ac

    Then those businesses which don’t model to the key success factors of what a good business should be will fold, such is the price of a competitive environment which places the customer at the focal point of what they do.

  36. ac Avatar
    ac

    @David
    But most of the time the customer grin and bare because of the price.

  37. ac Avatar
    ac

    @that is why companies like kfc in barbados pay little
    attention to customer service because they have very little competition and the customer keeps coming back.

  38. Austin Avatar
    Austin

    @BU

    Based on the many families supported by the Tourism industry ……………… and the many large and small businesses that provide support services to the industry as well ….

    We only hurt ourselves as a Nation when we service our visitors poorly ……….. It’s that simple and serious…

  39. Hants Avatar
    Hants

    @Austin,

    Pay workers a decent wage and they will smile even
    if it is a phony smile.

  40. David Avatar
    David

    @Austin

    We have to get the model right how we service Barbadians first and all else will fall in place.

    @Hants

    If we reference Maslow pay don’t always cut it.

  41. Bonny Peppa Avatar
    Bonny Peppa

    If I enter a place of business, I expect proper service. No snapping, barking or biting attitude. You are here to offer a good service to the customer who is paying to keep the business afloat. If you don’t like the pay then take that up with management. Don’t take out your frustration over pay out on me the innocent customer. I beg your pardon.
    Some persons are just plain unmannerly and no amount of pay or customer service training will make a difference to them. They are just abrupt and uncouth regardless.It is reallly sickening to go into a place of business and the attitude stinks from start to finish. I am sure that none of you here would feel good to know that you go to spend your money and you are getting hog-treatment as though you’ve come abegging. Gimme a break man. Doan gimme dat crap a’tall.

  42. ac Avatar
    ac

    True pay don’t always cut it. Does these companies have incentives in the way of oppportunity for their
    employees to move into better position in the company,Speaking of KFC i rather doubt here in Barbados. but then what does an employee have to gain for themselves at the end of the day. In the end no one wins country or worker. Evidently the ball is in
    Corporate hands.

  43. Bonny Peppa Avatar
    Bonny Peppa

    Just recently I visited the U.S embassy and let me tell you something man. ALL the guards on duty were B/dian and talk about PLEASANT. Oh my God. I was really impressed. There was this particular guard, sorry I didn’t get his name n number, he was greeting you at the entrance. He was so pleasant, I almost cried. I fell in love with him right there n then. When he was leaving he said to have a nice day all of you and hope you’re successful. I got to find out he name doe. He real dark n kinda muscula. I got ta ga back up day just ta meet he. But seriously though, those guards in there make you feel really comfy and they’re really helpful and genuine. Not like a bunch a sour grapes. Gimma a break man.

    But I gotta find out de name a dah guard. Fa real. He lef a big impression.Even if I din get me visa, he made me visit worthwhile.He too sweet.

  44. ac Avatar
    ac

    @Bonny
    it isall about job training! You can’t put anybody in ajob without proper training and send them into the public setting. it is not that simple . Also it is up to management to do a good background check of the applicant. However i doubt this happens in Barbados
    since it is all about who knows who to get a job.
    Also hook me up with one of dem guards they sound sweet fuh real

  45. Bonny Peppa Avatar
    Bonny Peppa

    ac
    but you must agree to that some persons will be downright unmannerly regardless.
    I have visited the US several times and the service has always been very good in the stores, supermarkets, you name it. They’re always pleasant and always remember to say ‘Have a nice day or please come again’. Even if they don’t mean it, one would never know. They’re just polite. I think that when these people see customers they automatically see dollars man. And Americans just love dinero. I’ve had the same politeness in Puerto Rico too.

    But most a de guards down day is women. Still hook you up wid one? (teeheeeee) I got my eyez pun de dark whun so you could choose any a de res. I know de one dat does mek ya hold up ya pants fold n tek off ya belt before ya ga thru de second door. He is a real cool fella. I know he a long time. He tall n skinny too but he doan tickle me fancy dah way. Not like de guard I meet outside. Oh shoiteeeeeeeeeeeeeee.And he was coming to ya an mekkin sure dat ya got evryting in orda. When he get ta me, I play i askin he bare foolish questions just fa he ta stop day by me. And he did smiling all de time. I even ask he ta help me turn off my cell-fone. Bare delay tactic man.

  46. Pat Avatar
    Pat

    Did any one stop to think that the poor cashier was most likely on her feet since ten that morning, or had menstrual cramps, a migraine and could not take any time off because she would not get paid, or worse, get fired? If she took off or called in sick, who do you think the boss could find on a Saturday to replace her?

    And, yes, they do get $250 per week. I know someone who refused it and is now home on welfare plus the bits she gets from her son and daughter.

  47. Pat Avatar
    Pat

    @ Bonny Peppa

    If I am not mistaken, if the guards are locally engaged staff, and not from a security company, then they are well paid, with full benefits like any other American working at the embassy. For all you know, they can afford to be happy and pleasant. Apart from training (continuous) they will be paid in $US.

  48. the hood Avatar
    the hood

    @ Bonny & ac

    It looking like I better go get a job as security at the embassy if dah is de onliest way I gine be able to hook up wid de 2 a wunna! 🙂

  49. Amit Avatar
    Amit

    Good evening, David (and BU family).

    I recall sending BU and BFP a summary of the findings of the questionnaire component of my dissertation: Resident Perceptions of Tourism Impacts in Barbados (wrapped up in late 2009, small sample size of around 400 persons).

    Maybe the results of said study can be looked at in the context of this particular blog post, as well as the comments from members of the BU family? Who knows, maybe some light, even if it is but a faint glimmer, can provide some insight?

    The study is freely available to anyone interested (all I ask is to be cited as the source/author). If anyone wishes a copy, leave a comment and arrangements can be made.

    Rgds,
    Amit.

  50. Young Bajan Avatar
    Young Bajan

    Are we missing that satisfaction and accomplishment in a job/position do impact the attitude of employees. Ask the guards how satisfied they are with the job, what they accomplish daily and possible promotions open to them. Then ask a cashier deemed unmannerly and see what she says about those very same questions. If people are faced with continual brick walls, they usually find themselves wondering and without any guidance or support they usually continue to wonder if not become disgruntle. WE encourage people to strive for better and full well know that there are many situations where people are “held/prevented” from moving forward for what ever reason. We are identifying problems but no solutions are really coming forth.

    Maybe retiring earlier, maybe 55, and allowing others to move up the ranks would be a good means of encouragement.
    Before you criticize it, try to consider what i am saying.

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