In the UK can my employer deduct money from "tips" when customers fail to pay for meals?

Question

In the UK can my employer deduct money from "tips" when customers fail to pay for meals?

Answer 1

Tips are usually given for good food and service without any long waits, so the tips should really be shared out between all the staff working that shift (including the kitchen staff/ manager/ etc.) as they all had part to play in the overall service and tips should be included on your pay slip, not taken as 'free' cash.

Yes the manager is being a little unfair, but if you have not been declaring the extra income you make via tips to the inland revenue  (you are required to by UK law) then you could find yourself in a  lot more trouble for tax evasion if you complain.

If you do receive your tips via your pay slip then you do have a case. But double check your contract.

Answer 2

no stand up and shout(at him)

Answer 3

no i'd kick his a55

Answer 4

Not unless it says so in your contract. The business should have losses like this factored into the price structure so they are covered. Tips are not part of your wage. It is in fact theft since the tips are given to the staff (generally not management) as appreciation. But if you want to take it further make sure youre declaring your tips to the taxman lol

Answer 5

I have hearsedof retaurants htat deduct from wages for this type of thing, supposedly to make the waiting staff more vigilant.  I find it reprehensible as waged employees do not nomrally have the benefit of gains from the business and therefore should not be asked to shoulder the risk of loss unless it is directly linked to misconduct or genuine incompetance

Buster, I have some sympathy with the idea of sharing tips with kitchen staff manager etc., but those sort of people should be on adequate salaries possible including bonuses the waiting staff are incentivised by tips by acting as hosts to their customers, smile, ensure individual needs are met etc. They ususally have lower wages to account for tips and often the tip given is based on the personal attentiveness of the the individual waittor/tress.  While luck plays a part, over a longer period the truly good staff get a good return and they should not lose part of this to more lethargic waiting staff..

Answer 6

I'd go to the Citizens Advice Bureau on that one.

In the mean time, having had the issue raised once, makje a fuss and get some written guidance (ie;a  policy) from your employer on this one and if you then don't like it - leave, stating why.

It really sounds out of order, but there might be a legal loophole that says that they can do that.  Ethically, it's blatantly unfair and they shouldn't be doing it.  it's not your fault that they've scarpered and when they do - it's a cost that the compnay should bear - and have fixed into their pricing structure.

The reason for the documentation is to get some clear, sanction guidance from the company that you can then challenge if you have too.

And a good point from Jeanimus; if you've going to make a fuss - make sure that you're cleaner than clean.

Answer 7

Absolutely not. I had a similar issue many years ago as a waitress and my boss suggested that when the till was down we should put money in from our tips. I told everyone what the law was, and it didn't happen. They cannot deduct from your income to make up for a loss to the business. They should be notifying the police of the crime and making changes to policy to stop it happening again.