A new law to protect employees’ tips will be introduced on December 1st.
Tánaiste Leo Varadkar has signed a new law to protect employees’ tips and service charges.
Employees will be given legal rights over tip payments under the Payment of Wages (Amendment) (Tips and Gratuities) Act 2022.
It is intended to provide better clarity for customers and to implement additional requirements for employers to clearly display their policy on tips and service charges.
According to the new law, any charge referred to as a “service charge” must be distributed to employees as if it were a tip or gratuity received electronically.
Employers will have time between now and December 1st to prepare for the changes mandated by the new law, which have been well signalled.
“Tips can form a significant percentage of a worker’s take-home pay, and these changes go a long way toward ensuring those tips are distributed to the people who have earned them,” said Leo Varadkar, Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment.
“This new law is a positive step towards improving the rights and entitlements of lower-paid workers as well as providing transparency for customers.
“While most employers treat their staff fairly, this will help to stamp out bad practices where they exist and give customers the confidence that gratuities are paid to staff.”