Tipping waiters for good service is commonplace throughout most of Ireland and the UK, but how should these tips be separated by staff – if at all?

Waiter tips have been making headlines throughout the British Isles – with stories about waiter’s tips being used to level cash registers. Large companies, such as TGI Fridays, have committed to a fair-tipping system that aims to see staff get 100% of any tips earned – and many others are following suit.

This blog serves as a short guide for your tipping process.

Should Tips Be Shared Between Kitchen and Serving Staff?

Tips are usually given to serving staff due to their often lower wage and customer-directed service. Tips can make up for a large amount of a waiter’s earnings - especially as most waiters will be on a minimum hourly rate. This doesn’t mean that you have to ensure 100% of tips go to your waiters, as kitchen staff work hard, too. Talking to front-of-house staff is a great way to communicate their feelings about tips, and you may find that staff are happy to share a percentage of their tips with others.

In recent years, staff within large companies have started to share tips with kitchen staff to make-up for decreasing wages. But is this fair? If you, as a business owner, cannot afford to pay chefs and kitchen staff with a higher wage, then maybe sharing tips is the best way to go. However, this should not be done to simply save you money on paying salaries, but instead as a reward for hard work and successful periods of service. This recognition can help to retain staff and keep employees happy

What Do We Recommend?

Each business will treat and receive tips differently, so creating your own process is a great way to get an in-depth look into how your staff can get the most tips during service. In general, these are some guidelines that we would suggest:

• First of all, talk to your staff. You may find that the waiters would prefer if kitchen staff received part of the tips received


• Tip amounts should be recorded for tax and legal purposes


• All staff – new, or old – should be made aware of the rules regarding tips. It would be best to have this in writing so that staff can have access to these guidelines at any time


• Most importantly, respect the work that your staff complete and understand that tips are often vital to staff members’ lives

Why not offer guests the opportunity to leave a universal tip for all staff members in a designated tip jar?

Be Responsible and Fair

As a business owner or manager, being fair to your staff is vitally important to keeping a happy and healthy working environment. We understand that keeping your costs down is important, but if staff feel as if they are being recognised for their productiveness, then they are more likely to want to progress and work that little bit harder.