Royal Caribbean announced its fourth quarter financial results with CEO Richard Fain stating that the cruise company received revenues of $2,000,000,000 with net profits of $288,040,000. Royal Caribbean’s fourth-quarter profits and revenues reportedly exceeded Wall Street estimates,

Mr. Fain told CNBC that the company met its lofty three-year goals of “double earnings” and a “double-digit” return on invested capital. In response the Royal Caribbean executive stated yesterday that Royal Caribbean employees will each receive a bonuses in the amount of 5% of their annual salary.

Investor Place reports that the cruise line will be distributing the bonus to its 66,000 employees. This will include shore-side and shipboard employees. This bonuses will be in the form of “equity grants” which will vest over three years. RCL reports that total spending on the bonuses will be $80 million.

Crew members state that their annual minimum guaranteed salaries range from $500 to $600 a month for a pot-washer to around $800 to $1,300 for a waiter, cabin attendant or bar tender. These Royal Caribbean ship  employees typically work contracts of around 6 to 8 months straight which turns out to working approximately 9 months a year. So a 5% bonus turns out to be around $225 to $270 for a pot-washer to around $350 to $550 for waiters, cabin attendants and bartenders, to be paid over the course of three years.

Meanwhile, CEO Fain reportedly sold 20,000 shares of Royal Caribbean Cruises stock in a transaction on January 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $128.10, for a total transaction of $2,562,000.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 807,741 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $103,471,622.10, according to SEC records. Ms. Fain indirectly owns another 216,206 shares which, at a price of $128.10 each, have a value of $27,695,988.60. Mr. Fain’s’ direct and indirect holdings of RCL stock are valued at $131,167,610.70, at the price of $128.10 a share.

RCL shares are now worth around $132 a share, up approximately $4 more a share since last week, so Mr. Fain’s RCL total RCL shares are now worth around $4,000,000 more than they were at the time of the sale last week.

The point is, that although it’s to be commended in theory that crew members will be rewarded for their hard work with bonuses, the amounts to be paid to the crew in question are rather minuscule, especially because they are to be paid over the course of the next three years rather than in a single check now. The bulk of the $80 million to be paid in bonuses will primarily go to the higher paid shore-side workers. So be sure to tip the crew members with cash when you cruise.

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Photo credit: CNBC