Bargirl Pay & Penalties

I have just returned from a trip to Bangkok where I had the opportunity to meet some lovely ladies working in Patpong. The interesting thing is that during my conversations with both of them (separate occasions) they each discussed their pay and penalties
that make up their total monthly compensation. Both girls worked at different bars owned by the King's Group and the girls' stories were different. Since both girls came from bars owned by the same company, I was wondering if the bars
are managed differently or was one girl testing her story telling skills? Also, if the latter is the case, could you tell from their stories which one reflects the true pay and penalty structure of the bars?

The first girl was working in one of the King's Gogos on the lower level (I think it was King's Castle 1). When I agreed to barfine her, she asked if I could pay two times because she did not have enough barfines. I didn't
understand her request (lost in translation) and since didn't have any intensions of doing anything naughty I just paid the 500 baht. We went across the way to a Thai restaurant on the "Pong" and enjoyed a meal and tried to talk
a little. During dinner she told me that we could go back to the hotel and … to which I told her I was just interested in her company to go out and have some fun in Bangkok. She became very happy with this idea and proceeded to show me several
areas around Bangkok via foot and skytrain. During the course of the evening she asked me to come back to the bar tomorrow to bar fine her again. This time she explained that the bar required her to have 6 bar fines every month. If she did not
achieve this, the bar would reduce her 6,000 baht pay by 500 baht for every barfine missed. Since it was near the end of the month (July 28) she had only had 4 barfines including mine that evening. She also told me that the bar gave her a quota
for 80 lady drinks each month, again with a penalty if she didn't meet this. I remember reading in one of your articles that some bars have this type of system to get the girls to keep the customers paying.

The interesting thing is two days later I went to Queen's Castle 2 (upstairs) and met another lovely that I took out. Not a dancer, she seemed to be a hostess. This girl at 30 was a little older than the first, but also seemed to be
very honest and easy going about discussing the bar and her pay. We went out to eat and played pool for a while before going back to my hotel. Anyway, she had told me that she also had a 6,000 baht monthly salary, but did not mention anything
about a quota system. I asked her about it specifically and she told me that if she goes to the bar every day for one month the bar pays her 6,000 baht even if she never goes with one customer during that month. I asked if QC2 had a drink quota
for the girls and she said "no". She was adamant that drinking with a customer or going with a customer was "not up to bar, up to her!"

This got me wondering if the King's Group would have two different policies for different bars or if one of the girls was trying to save face. Is it just different between the gogos and the upstairs bars? The second girl did say that
the girls sometimes change bars within the King's Group. I would think that this would make things pretty confusing for mamasans and girls alike if the policy wasn't the same throughout. If one of the girls was telling me a story, I
can see maybe the first girl was trying to justify that she goes with customers because the bar makes her go with quotas. On the other hand, I can see that the second girl didn't want to admit that she has had a minimum number of customers
each month for the duration of her tenure at the bar (11 years x 12 months x 6 customers = 792 bar fines!). Do you know if the King's Group of bars has a quota system and if so is it carried across all their bars? Do you happen to know what
the quota system is? I have asked my two friends that live in Bangkok, but they do not know.

Although the trip was very enjoyable, and I had a lot of fun (much of it very clean) with both girls. I am not sure why, but my curiosity has gotten the better of me, their different stories have really gotten under my skin. I don’t
know why either one would feel the need to lie about their bar's policies, and would really appreciate it if you could clearify this for me. I have not left with any delusions of the girls or their professions. Both girls were not what I
expected before I arrived even though I had read up on your site and others before the trip, and I am really curious as to which one was bending the truth.

Stickman's thoughts:

In different bars there are different rules for different positions, for dancers, showgirls, hello girls, waitresses, cashiers etc. And then we are talking about two different types of bars, one gogo bar and one "naughty show bar". Odds are that both girls told you the truth!