latourguide pros and cons

Well it's fall again and about that time of year when the tour biz drops off! I think with the state of the economy were seeing even less Americans on our tour than usual and a higher ratio of foreign visitors this time of year. I enjoy working with foreign visitors, tradeing insight and related simularities of their countries with my info on Los Angeles, I feel enlightened on things that the travel channel can't do, interaction and followup questions and answers through smalltalk along the way! I learn new words and gain knowledge of life around the world, the tours are like riding around town with my friends everyday!
One concern I feel, voiced by most of my co-workers is the gratuities at the end of the tours...always a problem from visitors from some countries where tipping is not common or included in the wages. When I began with my current tour company, I was assured by the owner and manager that I would make good tips since tip signs are posted in the busses "A 15% gratuity is appreciated for a job well done" and started at half the wages I made as a limo bus driver (just driving passengers here and there) five years earlier. My job as a professional tourguide is more extensive, built from years of schooling, research, voice lessons, on the job experience and driving the most difficult traffic in the world! I've not asked or been granted a pay raise since begining since the tips should have been substantial. When a passenger books a tour through their hotel, the concierge or desk clerk can make a hefty commission at about $20.oo per person and can make more than the tourguide who gives the tour when they book 4 or more passengers, yet most forget to mention anything about tipping the tourguide my passengers often tell me, and most are caught off guard by the tip signs or don't understand it when they come from other countries, especially if they don't understand english!
So the tour business can be enjoyable and somewhat rewarding but also uncertain and humiliating!