The Employment (Allocation of Tips) Act 2023 (c. 13) (sometimes known as the Tipping Act) is an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom designed to ensure tips, gratuities and service charges are allocated to workers.
| Act of Parliament | |
 | |
| Long title | An Act to ensure that tips, gratuities and service charges paid by customers are allocated to workers. |
|---|---|
| Citation | 2023 c. 13 |
| Introduced by | Virginia Crosbie MP (Commons) Andrew Robathan (Lords) |
| Territorial extent |
|
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 2 May 2023 |
| Commencement | 1 October 2024 |
| Other legislation | |
| Amends | |
Status: Current legislation | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Text of the Employment (Allocation of Tips) Act 2023 as in force today (including any amendments) within the United Kingdom, from legislation.gov.uk. | |
History
editSeveral employers such as Pizza Express and Giraffe were accused of abusing a voluntary code of conduct.[1] Wahaca was criticised for taking deductions from certain employees' tips, although they had changed the policies by 2024.[1]
Provisions
editUnder the law, a statutory code of practice will provide guidance on implementation[2]
Agency workers are also included by the legislation.[1]
It is unclear if the legislation will require sharing tips with employees on maternity leave.[3]
Employment law is devolved to the Northern Ireland Assembly, so the act does not apply to Northern Ireland.[4]
Reception
editNisha Katona, owner of Mowgli Street Foods,said the law was necessary because "young people depend on the law to protect them", but also said that some businesses which would be "casualties" because they were unprepared.[5] Harriet Mansell, chef-owner of Lilac in Lyme Regis, acknowledged the need for transparency around tips, but also said that "some relief, independent restaurants like mine won’t have the capacity to buffer this situation forever".[6]
Unite indicated that the trade union had concerns about businesses imposing unelected individuals and senior managers as heads of tip-pooling committees.[3] The fact that Northern Ireland would not have this legal protection, which was also in place in the Republic of Ireland was also criticised by Unite.[7]
References
edit- ^ a b c Saker-Clark, Henry (1 October 2024). "What you need to know about the new law banning employers from pocketing staff tips". The Independent. Independent Digital News and Media Limited. Archived from the original on 1 October 2024. Retrieved 1 October 2024.
- ^ Thomas, Aimee (24 August 2024). "New tips law means I can treat my nan at Christmas". BBC News. British Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 24 August 2024. Retrieved 1 October 2024.
- ^ a b Butler, Sarah; Hickey, Shane (28 September 2024). "Restaurants ponder price increases as new tip-sharing law comes into force". The Guardian. Guardian News & Media Limited. Archived from the original on 29 September 2024. Retrieved 1 October 2024.
- ^ Stewart, Amy (12 November 2022). "Tipping laws: '100% of service tips should go to staff'". BBC News. British Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 12 November 2022. Retrieved 1 October 2024.
- ^ Labiak, Mitchell (1 October 2024). "Workers must keep all customer tips under new law". BBC News. British Broadcasting Corporation. Archived from the original on 1 October 2024. Retrieved 1 October 2024.
- ^ Mansell, Harriet (30 September 2024). "'I understand the need for transparency around tips, but this is why restaurants need to add a service charge'". The Indpendent. Independent Digital News and Media Limited. Archived from the original on 30 September 2024. Retrieved 1 October 2024.
- ^ "Tips: Union warns NI workers could be short changed". BBC News. British Broadcasting Corporation. 15 October 2019. Archived from the original on 15 October 2019. Retrieved 1 October 2024.