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24.02.2026 / News / HARRODS

The Battle of the Tips Continues: Harrods Staff Take £1 Cover Charge Fight to Tribunal

“Harrods introduced this cover charge out of nowhere and without any transparency as to its purpose.”

Alice Howick, Harrods former restaurant worker and UVW member

Restaurant workers at Harrods are taking their fight over tips to the Employment Tribunal. At the heart of the case is a compulsory £1 “cover charge” added to every customer’s bill.

This is the first legal challenge of its kind under the new Employment (Allocation of Tips) Act 2023. For the first time, a tribunal will be asked to decide what really counts as a tip under the law. The decision could have consequences for hospitality workers across the UK.

Staff say they were given no clear explanation for why the charge was introduced. As one worker puts it, “front of house staff have been forced to justify this charge for years” to customers who believe they are paying something that goes to the people serving them. Workers say customers are unknowingly paying simply to sit at a table, with no extra food or benefit provided.

The law says that tips and service charges must be shared fairly with workers. Staff argue that the £1 cover charge functions like a tip and should be distributed to the people who prepare and serve the food and drinks.

Staff also report that the introduction of the cover charge in November 2023 (made mandatory from October 2024) has led to many customers removing the separate discretionary 12.5% service charge, further reducing workers’ take-home pay. Tips are a lifeline for hospitality workers, who often earn low wages, face unpredictable hours, and work in tough conditions. They are a crucial part of their pay and security. 

UVW members have fought this battle before. In 2017, Harrods workers forced the company to hand over 100% of the service charge after it had been keeping the majority – a shocking 75%. That campaign helped spark a national debate about tipping and played a role in winning the new law.

Since then, workers have had to organise, mount five campaigns and vote for strike action three times in order to win a 25% pay rise and fairer leave policies. Our members’ history at Harrods speaks for itself. Time and again, meaningful improvements have only come when workers organised, challenged management and were prepared to take action.

Now the Battle of the Tips continues. If Harrods workers win, it could strengthen protections for hospitality workers everywhere.

The hearing takes place on February 25.

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