Dubai: Emarat Petroleum which is accused of strip –searching their fuel station staff is going public with their no-tipping policy.
A few weeks after XPRESS exposed how the company routinely strips and frisks its gas station employees to confiscate tips, the company has put up notices at fuel stations stating they don’t encourage motorists to tip staff.
‘Dear customers, In order to ensure excellent service level to all our customers, we adopt a No-Tipping policy. Thank you,” read the notice pasted near Emarat fuel dispensers.
Last month, XPRESS carried a story on Santosh Kumar, an Emarat gas station attendant who was sacked for pocketing a Dh10 tip. The money was found from inside Kumar’s socks by a supervisor.
Interviews with more staff revealed that Emarat employees regularly undergo the humiliating practice of body frisking by supervisors. Many said they had been asked to remove their clothes including their undergarments to prove they were not hiding cash.
Emarat responded stating that their employees are well aware of the rules and regulations they are expected to follow when hired.
However, despite the notices, Emarat staff said they continue to be tipped. “We are still getting tips from customers who appreciate our service. And the company has not stopped strip searches. So we do not know that purpose the notice is serving,” said a fuel stations staff on condition of anonymity.
Altaf Hussain, a Pakistani expatriate said he did not even see the notice. “I tipped the guy as usual. I saw the notice only when he pointed it out to me. I will continue to tip these guys as they deserve it,” said Hussain.
