Representatives from the Union of Students in Ireland (USI) today attended a demonstration outside the Ivy on Dawson St over how the restaurant distributes tips.
Last year, the restaurant’s management accused waiting staff of “deplorable greed” after requesting that customers pay in cash and not card.
About 20 people, mostly past or present Ivy workers, stood outside the restaurant with signs reading “end tip theft” and chanting “Ivy restaurant, shame on you, pay your workers what they’re due”.
The mantra “eat your steak, eat your chips, give your staff their hard-earned tips” could also be heard.
Speaking to The University Times, USI Vice-President for the Dublin Region Craig McHugh said: “We’re here today to stand in solidarity with workers in the Ivy.”
“We’re encouraging the public who are going to the Ivy to obviously boycott it in the first place, but if they’re going to go in to pay in cash … if you pay [by] card the workers will not receive it, and also to avoid the non-compulsory service charge the ivy offers.”
“This does not go to workers, it is just an extra to bump up profits”, McHugh said. “This isn’t just an isolated case, this happens in places around Dublin. We’re trying to highlight that.”
USI is calling for legislation to ensure that gratuities in food outlets will be given to workers and not put towards the outlets’ profits.
“A lot of people and a lot of companies are able to do what’s going on in the Ivy”, McHugh added.
The dispute in the Ivy emerged last November after a notice given to staff stated that front of house workers would no longer be permitted to handle payments.
The letter accused staff of having “bad manners” in asking customers to pay with cash and not card, so they would receive their tip.
The notice, which was made public via RTÉ Radio One’s Liveline programme, said that due to the “continued inability of those taking card payments to follow procedures and consider the whole team here”, there was “no bonus payments for front of house members to share”.
“From Monday NO WAITERS will ever be allowed to take any payments from guests, there will be a password on the credit card machine and the managers will take all payments, without exception”, it read.
In December, the Irish Times reported that the Ivy did not distribute card tips to staff, and that the 12.5 per cent service charge levied on tables was used to top up the wages of staff so they reached the hourly minimum pay.
