Restaurants that don't pass the service charge to staff Post Reply

[this_is_cat]

I was in a well-known Northcote Road restaurant (which I'm in two minds as to whether I should name) at the weekend, and when the bill arrived, I asked the waiter if the service charge was passed onto them.

He was very polite, but evasive in his answer, so I pressed him a bit more, and he revealed that NONE of the service charge went to any of the staff, and it was retained in full by the owner.
He also let slip that they had been told not to tell customers this, and if asked, they were to say it was shared between staff.

I asked that the service charge be removed from the bill so I could leave a cash tip (which he was allowed to keep) but the whole thing has made me very cross.

I know how competitive the restaurant industry is, but if the owners need to keep the service charge to prop up the business/line their pockets, they need to be honest about what it is on the bill, rather than dressing it up as something that most of us willingly pay under the belief it's going to the staff.

I know this was a big issue a few years ago, when the Evening Standard did an expose on some of the chains doing this, but I honestly thought our local independents would be above such sneaky practices.

So please double check when you pay your bills with an added service charge!

[papinian]

I appreciate why you would not want to name the restaurant so soon after visiting. However, in a few weeks could you come back and name it? It is one thing not passing on service charges to staff. It is quite another to have staff lie about where the service charge goes. That is a criminal offence on the part of the employer and if the authorities had any decency (they don't) employers who require their staff to lie about where the service charge goes would be prosecuted.

[auntieplanty]

Sad to say, this is probably not an isolated incident. When we are in a restaurant, and paying by card, if he can my hubs removes the service charge off the bill and will leave the cash tip on the table. This means that there's a good chance that the kind person who served us will be able to get it.

If there was a central fund, then it should be shared out to all - and that includes the folk beavering away in the kitchen. But for the management just to pocket it, tut tut. Telling the staff to lie - double tut tut..

[Tina01]

I am not sure which restaurant you are referring to but we always ask for the service charge to be removed at Bills. The staff are always extremely grateful and remember us well when we visit.

[addled]

this_is_cat, stop pussyfooting around; name and shame them!

The restaurant that was serving food with raw sewage in the kitchen was named and shamed. This restaurant treats their staff like s*&t.... You should name them

[this_is_cat]

The restaurant in question was Rosita...

[Bluebird27]

Thanks to this post we have been diligent in asking who the service charge goes to everytime we dine out now and I'm sad to report that the service charge does not go to the staff at Pizza Express! Was very surprised to learn that! Please be sure to give your tips in cash!

[Alchemy]

Pizza Express has a clear tipping policy, which I find quite reasonable:

"All cash tips go straight to your waiter. But credit card tips and our service charge tips are different. Tips made on electronic card payments are fully distributed among employees as agreed by the company’s Tronc committee, with no deductions. Currently, this independent group elects to give 30 per cent of card-based tips to cleaners, pizzaiolos and other kitchen staff; with the remaining 70 per cent going to the individual waiter as a reward for great customer service."

[dudette]

We've been going to Rosita since it opened and love it. It's the only restaurant in Northcote Road that we go to regularly. So I'm sorry to read this. However I would say that we are generally served by the owners - they don't seem to have many paid waiters (although that's not an excuse). I would also add they're not the friendliest people - especially given how often we go there, but their food is really good. Hopefully they'll read this and amend their policy.

[grumpydad]

It's about time that restaurants displayed a sign saying where the tips went. Or they could put something on their menu. Then we'd all be in the know about their tips distribution policy.

[Scottov]

Have you asked the management whether this is true?

Surely they deserve some right of reply

[Samalawl]

Wow I didn't even know this was a thing, always assumed my money went to the staff. I will definately be more vigilant about service charges and tips in future! Thanks!

[jojosolitaire]

My sister has recently taken on part time work at Ben's Canteen and I was really surprised to find out that service charge doesn't go to staff there either!

There is a 50p 'uplift' to the wait staff pay per hour that apparently is covered by the service charge. What a joke!

Its really made me always carry cash to make sure I can always tip my waiter/ess directly and always removing a service charge from the bill

[graceygirl]

You should ask everywhere you are planning to pay it...

[Mivana]

There is a difference between service charges and tips.
I used to work in a (then very well known) restaurant, in Northcote Road, many years ago.
The waiting staff got all the service charges and all the tips, shared amongst them, equally, at the end of the evening (if the waiting staff handed over the additional tips at the end of night tally-up) with part of it distributed to the bar staff...., if it had been a very good night.
BUT that was ALL that they (the waiting staff) earned!
No basic pay nor "minimum wage" guaranteed by the establishment, for many years!
Until the recession hit and evening's might be very quiet, when the place introduced a minimum evening rate, which would be taken out if the Service Charges amount first, bit if there was more than what was needed to cover it the rest would be shared again....

I imagine that most restaurants (cafes etc,) do pay their waiting staff a fixed or hourly rate now, which is covered by that section on one's bill called "Service Charge".
I do not think that is unreasonable.
If paid as part of the total bill, with "food, drink, and VAT, by anything other than Cash, this would end up in the business' bank account and they would have to account for every penny and pay tax, on these amounts.
Part of the Wages paid would be offset against the Service Charges income....
It also gets recorded/split as income from a different source (other than Food, Drink and VAT) in the company accounts.

If one is particularly pleased or impressed with the service received during one's visit, by one or some of the people attending your table, you can choose to tip them something extra and I agree that should be in cash and go to them directly.
But personally, I think the system of tipping (anywhere!) should be abolished.
People should be paid a, decent, wage for the job they do, know how much it is going to be and they should do the job well.