Sleepaway Camp Tipping
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Anonymous
How much did you pay for the camp itself? |
Anonymous
| I’d find out how many total people are working the camp including counselors and behind the scenes. Multiply that number by 250. That’s your tip. Also give the 5 people in her bunk and anyone else that worked very closely with her $700 visa gift cards so that money can’t be split up. Stick it in a card and tell them not to open it until they get home. |
Anonymous
So who pays them at a “good quality camp”? I’ve worked enough summer camps to know counselors don’t make crap for what they have to put up with. I’m also smart enough never to be hired directly by a camp because I won’t work for nothing. A good quality camp isn’t measured by how much it pays their staff. Some of the best camps I’ve worked are majority volunteer positions. Summer camps are purposefully cheap and day camps are voluntary or minimum wage at best and overnight camps are a couple hundred bucks a week pay with minimal time off for counselors. I have given small gift cards or notes of encouragement to young camp counselors before because I see how much they do without pay or recognition. A lot of the counselors really care about kids and try counselor to see if working with kids is something they’d like as a career. Do you think a good counselor working for nothing would still consider a job with kids after the parents don’t even say thank you? Most parents don’t even think about the people watching their kids, they’re just happy to have them out of their hair for the summer. Even if you can’t afford a big tip a nice thank you note goes a long way to making people feel appreciated. I kind of feel like if you can afford a 7 week camp though you can afford more than just a thank you note and a $10 gift card. Think how much a babysitter would cost you for around the clock care for 2 months and they wouldn’t even be able to pull off half of what goes into a summer camp. Staff work hard prepping and breaking down after camp, that alone takes a couple weeks and usually falls on just a couple people, they have to have a full kitchen staff and get delivery orders like a restaurant would and plan menus, have a nurse on staff so your kid doesn’t die, directors have to deal with parents and staff issues while keeping everything running smoothly. Counselors in dorms are watching your kids day and night, acting as friends and parents, keeping them safe and accounted for, encouraging them to try new things, hugging them when they’re homesick, encouraging friendships, engaging in and watching activities, building self-confidence, and so much more. They’re usually there because they’re young college students that want to work outdoors and get experience working with kids or maybe just don’t want to live at mom and dad’s house all summer. They’re not there for the money but that doesn’t mean they don’t deserve it. If the camp isn’t paying them much and a parent can afford a camp for 2 months then a quality tip seems well-deserved. I think a camp that recognizes this and allows tips is much “higher quality” than one that doesn’t. This allows them to keep camp costs lower so more people can attend but let’s be real some people got some money-those people that can afford to monetarily thank a counselor should be able to do it if they want to. Those that can’t can buy a couple packs of thank you cards from dollar tree and start writing. |
Anonymous
More to the point, how much did the camp pay the counselors? |
Anonymous
That’s between the counselors and the camp. The parents agree to pay X amount to send their kid to camp and the counselors agree to do a job for X amount. Teachers put up with lot of crap for low pay also. Should I be tipping them, too? |
Anonymous
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I worked for one summer as a counselor at a day camp and made something like $700 total for 8 weeks. However, when I had to take a day off because I got pinkeye from one of the campers, my pay was docked by minimum wage for the day. I greatly appreciated the tips that I received but also decided that I wasn't going to ever work as a camp counselor again. While I enjoyed it, this was a camp for wealthy families and it was ridiculous that I was being paid virtually nothing for my labor.
If you want your kids to have well-staffed camps, you can either tip the counselors or pressure the camps to pay counselors better. |
Anonymous
| No way. I can’t believe the camp is pushing for tips. I’d find a new camp, that is a poor policy and unprofessional. |
Anonymous
Most camp counselors at the 6+ week sleepaway camps were former campers, love camp, and have wealthy families themselves. No one works as a summer camp counselors for the money. They do it for the experience. I’d rather have a staff of former campers that truly love being there and want to be there. Recruiting counselors via high tips from wealthy parents is not how you find quality staff |
Anonymous
| Reviving this thread, as I’m off to retrieve my kid from two weeks of sleepaway camp tomorrow. Should I show up with money? Are we tipping counselors this summer? |
Anonymous
What does the camp say? My kids go to two different camps and both sent emails shortly before pick up reminding us of the no tipping policy. |
Anonymous
You probably already do in the form of gift cards and stuff several times per year |
Anonymous
Same. It was specifically stated tipping, gift cards, gifts or anything of the kind is strictly prohibited |
Anonymous
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Aw.
It's too bad the counselors' employer doesn't pay them enough, apparently, and so it needs to beg its customers to make up the difference with "tips." Eff off. Nope. Someone's being cheap here and it's not the parents so don't even start with me |
Anonymous
No one is a camp counselor to make bank. These are older teens and young 20 somethings with wealthy families full paying their private SLAC tuition and they have zero expenses. You are housed and fed. Have activities provided all day long. Treated to nights out, get lifeguard, first aid, cpr training for free and builds leadership. Plus you get paid an avg of +1,000 per month depending on how old and qualified. Older counselors make more money. Taking cash and gifts from parents is unprofessional |
Anonymous
This what does it cost, $15000 for the 7 weeks? Come on. |