Someone from change.org reached out regarding a petition that has received thousands of signatures, which involves airline employees wanting their airline elite status honored on all stays. I thought this would be an interesting topic to cover.
Continue reading: Airline Employees Urge Marriott To Honor Elite Perks On All Stays
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
Apparently they are unaware that literally no one gets Bonvoy perks in the U.S. Clearly they live in a parallel universe.
The airline employees have earned their status at no cost them. They can enjoy that status for all of their personal travel, for the rest of their life if they are lifetime status. Sorry, y’all. The rules are clear. Negotiate for your airline to pay Marriott for lounge access in your next contract.
“They’ve worked hard to earn status”
……or maybe just paid $650 for a cc?
Sounds like a bunch of entitled union workers to me.
This is just ridiculous. And the airlines should investigate employees signing this petition since they're likely scamming travel benefits and so forth. What next: Marriott employees demanding Bonvoy perks for $30 employee rates?
And, by the way, the hack to get points on non-qualifying rates is to spend some money at the bar or in the gift shop. Not only do you get points on the spend, but you also almost always trigger an elite qualifying night.
And? Employees flying on corporate travel get it for free too. In fact most elites are not paying for these benefits with their own money. Why should airline employees be any different?
I have 1611 nights stayed (airline trips don’t count so that me paying points and or cash) I earned lifetime Titanium elite. Why shouldn’t I be able to eat off the Buffett in which the food would be tossed anyway ? Marriott is pretty bad for not offering benefits. Points … I totally understand but benefits should be honored.
Lol. No one is more entitled in this world than a Delta Diamond. I’m sure if you were an airline employee you would still have the same angle.
If you book through a 3rd party (like AAdvantage Hotels) you do not get credit or Elite benefits. Airline rates are cheap - compared to corporate negotiated rates. Corp rates are not in many cases cheaper than AAA or Senior rates. Yes - I do at times see crews (capt etc) at Lounges)
Question - how did the one with the petition get 1100 nights and LT Titanium if most of those nights were from airline stays?
Also - if you are on Corp Travel - you pay with a credit card with your name on it. You get the bill and get reimbursed. Airlines pay direct - the crew doesn't but it on a CC.
Airlines get Priceline type rates for crew stays. Hotel chains don't award points for Priceline/Hotwire stays. Why should they provide points for crew stays?
This petition may be directed at the wrong party. It seems to me that this should be between the employees and their employer.
But corporate travel discounts are not nearly as cheap as airline negotiated rates. It’s less so “who is paying” and more so, how much are they paying.
If you book through a travel portal and get a bulk rate or your company books out a hotel on behalf of employees, those stays also may not be eligible for elite perks. So it’s not just specific to airline employees.
I don’t need a bunch of flight attendants classing down my club lounges. No thanks.
So, they’re whining because it all boils down to them not wanting to spend their per diem on food during layovers. They just want to eat at the free Marriott trough. Sorry, but that’s not the way the game is played.
Join the club. We all want our earned perks honored.
As a side note, I'm assuming most airline staff aren't staying at much above a Fairfield Inn or a Hyatt Place on most nights. There really ain't that many perks at those types of properties.
What in the world does being a military veteran have to do with any of this? He leads with that for shameless clout irrelevant to the discussion.
I can't think of any reason a chain would add perks to massively discounted rates. Bad business.
I don't feel sorry for this group at all. These are the people who talk the entire flight while their customers are trying to sleep, then wonder why people resent the employees!
FWIW, I spent about $30,000 of MY revenue (sole proprietor) on food and beverage in Marriott hotels, and I get ZERO credit on any of that toward becoming an Ambassador status customer. Candidly, if I don't get recognition when spending my own money, why would a hotel give someone recognition when the airline people are spending someone ELSE's money?
Airline employees should remember that they are trying to jump in front of people who pay more per room AND make the purchasing decision on that money.
Is there anyone more self-entitled than those in the airline industry?
Pay a group/package/crew rate, get nothing related to status seems like a fair deal
Petition is way too much fluff language. "Veteran", "cultivated", "honor", "respect our status", "proud", etc. etc. etc.
They're staying on heavily discounted rates as part of the travel business. You don't get perks with that.
They can easily pay the difference if they wish.
"Sounds like a bunch of entitled union workers to me."
Yup.
And the fact that they get *paid* for their work is completely unfair to the airlines.
I think even those without special circumstances would like Marriott to honor elite benefits. Ha.
I guess it depends on the airline and possibly a region but I regularly see crews in likes of Hilton, Intercontinental, Conrad, etc. Especially premium carriers and Asian airlines tend to pay for really good hotels. Low-tier airlines tend to be less generous, e.g. I usually meet Lufthansa Group crews in the likes of HGI, Crowne Plaza and similar.
They do not get perks - but also things like late cancellations do not apply to them.
(sorry)
They do not get perks - but also things like late cancellations do not apply to them.
Maybe offer a deal - you get the perks - but other rules which apply to regular guests apply to you as well. Flight cancelled 30 mins before departure and you never made it to layover city? You are still on the hook to pay your (airline negotiated) night rate
Clearly, the requests are coming from pilots who want free drinks and canapes at lounges during Happy Hour while keeping their per diem.
Just as an example to support Jetset, a particular Hilton in Baltics gives 25% off from the cheapest flexible rate for airline employees, while corporate rates are 15% off
So clearly things are not the same, so one getting lounge perks is quite understandable…
Exactly... I've dealt with some of these contracts. There are benefits to the contract that the general public doesn't have, like even being able to cancel a room at midnight and not get charged.
Many hotels offer them other benefits/perks. Like special buffets (included in contract). Or I've even seen properties like a Comfort Suites have a room set aside as a "crew lounge" with free sodas and light snacks. Regular elites staying at the hotel don't even get that.
Yes, then in their off time they sometimes get up to 50% off rates. Would you rather have 50% off a room or a room upgrade to look at the Target next door versus the parking lot?
Some airlines used to have happy hour perks as part of their hotel contracts. Southwest used to have a standard 1/2/3 pricing for pilots... $1 drafts, $2 house wine, $3 well drinks (with crew ID of course).
I stopped my loyalty with Marriott and switched to another brand. On rare occasions, my employer will book rooms for large meetings and the bill doesn’t go to me. Previously you could charge food to the room and ask for the credit. They stopped this. More than once, I’ve stayed and have not been granted the room nights for the stays to reach status. I can promise those contracts charge for late cancellations— bc that occurred when I got COVID the night before a trip. And the rates were still high- I saw the contract.
If Marriott can’t give me credit for the nights I stayed in their facility (no upgrades, no lounge, no parking)…. Then why will I be loyalty to them. Roof riddance you can have them! I haven’t been able to use room upgrades in over a year (consistently denied) AND the hotels are all gouging point stay. I may not be able to choose the twice a year my company picks — but I can choose the other >100 nights! Marriott stopped caring about customer loyalty a long time ago.
Because “America”. Everyone is supposed to have a hard-on for anyone connected to the military. The “thank you for your service” zombies. The military is a job. Get over it.
It's not just crew members, it's the traveling public too; because when a flight is cancelled and accomodations are provided by the airline, reward points are not accrued and the lounge access is denied. It's a tough call, but I doubt they care about going above and beyond with no compensation on the hotels part. ♂️
As an airline employee, even I have to say this is ridiculous. I am a Titanium member but it's from my OWN SPENDING, NOT my employer. I would never expect elite benefits from a layover stay, only stays I PAY FOR. Most properties at least offer discounts on food and beverages for airline employees on layover plus free internet. If you didn't PAY FOR THE STAY, then you shouldn't get the additional perks! Just my (probably) unpopular opinion.
Not sure the airlines will negotiate a higher room rate to fund the benefits. The airline pays, the airline benefits.
The irony of Flight Attendants demanding better elite benefits and recognition is rich.
I'm normally pro-employee but this ask is ridiculous. "Bump me into a suite and give me lounge access on my $78 crew rate at a Westin." just comes across as insanely entitled.
Come on. I’m a business traveler and happen to work for a company that gives me a corporate card to use when booking travel. I’m not paying, my company is, but of course I’m getting those hotel points and frequent flyer miles. When airline pilots and crew are staying in hotels on business, it’s the same situation. Give them the points they’ve earned through all those nights away from home.
Conceptually, is there really a difference to someone booking a stay using an agreed corporate rate (between Marriott and say, a large corporation), paying for the stay him/herself and then expensing it to the company per policy? (and thus the individual is getting all the Marriott elite benefits associated with the stays)
In the end, the agreed corporate rate applies, and the company pays.
For anyone travelling for business and using corporate rates their company generally pays as the stays are expensed. Those stays usually benefit the individual travellers that get the Bonvoy credit. Where's the difference?
Yes. When the employee pays and gets reimbursed they usually have chosen that hotel and therefore Marriott wants to encourage them to choose Marriott. When the company pays directly the employee was told where to stay.
This is not the same situation as a business traveler booking with a corporate rate. Business travelers often have choice among a list of preferred hotels. Crews are assigned to a single hotel.
You are not the single person that could gain the perk, so the thought that food just goes to waste is not logical. There will be an increase in food consumption and the hotels will have to cater more. Perks have a cost. Ask your employer to put them in the Marriott agreement in return for something else in your CBA, to equalize the higher rate the airline will pay.
Crews aren’t asking for perks earned from the airline purchase of layover hotel rooms. They’re asking for perks they’ve earned spending their own money on stays unrelated to layovers. Many of us have outside jobs requiring travel and these benefits should not be encumbered just because we choose to exercise those perks on a layover.
It is not about who pays. It is the incentive Marriott has to offer benefits. Corporate travelers often have choice among hotel chains, even though the business pays. If Marriott pulls the benefits, they lose business.
“I am a military veteran” — what exactly has this to do with status recognition at a hotel?
First priority to check-in. Just like the airlines (or some airlines) allow veterans and active-duty to board first. I'm all for the troops. But that's a stupid policy. And it's heavily abused.
This is as simple as the airlines have a negotiated rate that is billed directly to the airline and excludes benefits. For Corp rate - you get a corporate plan credit card in your name that is negotiated with the CC company. You pay, and submit expense report and company pays. But you have a choice at what hotel you stay at - company has a big list of contracted hotels and the employee chooses. Hence there is an incentive for hotels to try to get them to book a their hotel. Corp rates are much higher than airline rates - and more like a AAA rate or Senior rate. No comparison.
To prevent overcrowding, instead of lounge access, give the pilots and flight crews the Marriott benefit of raiding the complimentary in-room minibar for snacks and refreshing beverages.
And I think during negotiations of the contract between Marriott and airline. Marriott already threw in certain amount of elite status quotas for high-level executive / travel manager of the airline based on the number of committed rooms/nights per year. That is more favorable for Marriott since those are the one who make decisions on which hotel to use for the crew.
If the lounge access / room upgrade perks are to be implemented, I think that would be based on negotiation for a certain rank/position such as captain or purser rather than based on individual elite status.
The petition isn’t clear whether those 1100 stays include nights that the airline paid for or were totally paid for with his own money/credit cards he mentions. I can see if he’s asking Marriott to let him use the lounges on stays that the airline pays for if he built hid status on his own but if he’s claiming status based on any nights the airline paid for then it’s not legit. The airlines get special rates for their crews with the agreement that no points will be given. I actually wish this wasn’t the case because many other companies pay for their employees’ hotel stays and their employees get the points but the airlines are so large that they have this bargaining power to make better deals for themselves at the detriment to their employees - but that’s the hotel’s responsibility to both give the airline a discount and the employee their points.
Typo correction. My last sentence should have read “thats *not the hotel’s responsibility…”
This petition is misdirected, it should be to the airline to ask that they negotiate a rate which includes the benefits they are seeking. You can't have your company low balling on the price they pay per stay and then complain to the hotel that the insanely low price they received needs to come with perks. I am a veteran and the first sentence of the petition turned me off to the ask completely.
So funny it's like the airline employees asking for business class seats on the virtually FREE flights they receive on flights.
Also think about the logistics of 24 crew turning up at a lounge and the same time.
Next hotel already give "crew rooms" at many hotels.
Don't give airline employees access when on low airline rates. End! I pay regular rates and don't want employees taking away from the pool of upgrades. Tons of airport staff are in hotels every night!
I’m airline crew and I always receive access to the lounges at Marriott properties. I also get the elite might credited, but mainly for stays outside of the US.
As a current employee of Marriott. First, the airline crew doesn't realize that all Marriott properties don't operate the same because we're either franchise own or corporate own. When the sales departments negotiate these contracts with the airlines, they are looking for the hotel that has the cheapest rate for their budget. The crew might need to contact the individuals that handles these contracts and ask them to pay more so they could experience the perks. It's weird to me that they have petition for this because they are trying to get over on these properties and they didn't spend not one dollar to pay for their rooms. The need to be lucky that Marriott allows them to get the nights added to their account and let's not forget how rude & disrespectful some of the crew members are towards the hotel staff but I'll talk about that another time.
Many corporations negotiate significant discounts with travel and hospitality companies, leaving employees with limited choices when traveling for business. And unless both parties negotiate loyalty that is different from the standard then companies should honour their obligations.
How far do we want to go on this slope? Should employees of companies forfeit mileage accrual when flying on deeply discounted corporate contracts? The crew is simply doing what any employee would—accumulating miles and points earned during business travel. No more no less.
@Fonzy: If the hotel does not negotiate these issues, then they must honour their obligations. Many corporations have massive discount for flights. Perhaps airlines should start negotiating that there will be no miles accrued or perhaps only 0.25 -0.50% of a mile for every dollar spent on those contracts.
@Fonzy: If the hotel does not negotiate these issues, then they must honour their obligations. Many corporations have massive discount for flights. Perhaps airlines should start negotiating that there will be no miles accrued or perhaps only 0.25 -0.50% of a mile for every dollar spent on those contracts.
Ben, you chose the Le Meridien lounge at Cairo Airport for one of your photos. Thats nice.
As far as size goes, the hotel race to have the most rooms and most revenue, reminds of the banks too big to fail. They are approaching it.
We get the same feeling that Marriott doesn't care one bit about customers. We are merely widgets filling up their rooms for Wall Street. Thought Arne Sorenson was bad (Bless his soul), Anthony Capuano is not solving customers problems, ie; passing the buck instead of taking responsibility and showing he is a Marriott man. That type of conviction certainly built loyalty customers from the Marriott family.
I hope the Marriotts are reading your blog. And I hope Anthony is also paying attention. As football coach Jerry Glanville of the once Houston Oilers told the referee, "you know what NFL stands for? Not For Long".
I think there are big disagreement in Bethesda Maryland.
The purpose of a Loyalty program is to influence consumer spending and behavior. In this case, the airline is the buyer/ decision maker, not the employee. If next year's contract goes to Hilton, so will the petitioner's stays. It's the same way any time the purchase decisions are made by another, especially at a negotiated (discounted) volume rate.
Go ahead, take your business elsewhere. Your boss is paying. You can switch to Hilton. I'm sure your employer will reimburse you.NOT
@It's Me: As a Marriott employee, I would recommend that you read travel blogs where guests discuss their experiences with Marriott-branded hotels that fail to honor their commitments to providing upgrades to elite members and offering lounge access as outlined in the loyalty program terms and conditions. It’s important to note that simply attributing this to the franchise model is not an acceptable excuse.
Airlines offer hotels discounted prices for employees travel whether traveling for business or personal reasons, along with the miles and benefits that come with such purchases. Many contracts have do not downgrade clauses... Perhaps airlines should start restricting tickets purchased under corporate contracts in a similar vein to what Marriott and its franchisees do...
@Jakob: Exactly. I don’t quite understand some of the responses here. I wonder these posters would react if airlines decided to stop awarding miles for tickets purchased at contracted rates. I suspect there would be significant complaints from certain groups.
Many years ago when I worked for an airline, a few corporations had 40-49% discounts; several others had 30-35% all with no downgrades.
These stays are wholesale rates, booked in quantity by airlines. It's like asking the airline to give Pilots and Flight Attendants earned airline miles, while they are working.
This would flood the lounges and make them even more useless (in the US) than they are already.
How about asking the airlines to stop giving away "upgrades" to F to airline employees when paying 2,3,4 Million Mile flyers don't get an upgrade?