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ARCHIVED - American-style tipping reaches restaurants in Spain as bars start charging 10 per cent extra
Many restaurants in Spain now offer customers the option of tipping a percentage of the bill
The tipping culture in Spain is quite different to other countries, with locals preferring to leave a smattering of change or a couple of euros rather than pulling out the calculator to work out a percentage of the bill. But as the tourist trade booms, many customers are noticing a sway towards a more American style of tipping, particularly in the bigger cities.
In places like Madrid and Barcelona, hospitality insiders have noticed a new type of bill emerging, one that details the basic cost of the meal, as well as what the charge would be if the customer were to leave a tip of 5%, 8% or 10%. It’s entirely voluntary of course, but many consumers feel that restaurants are pushing for larger tips in order to keep the basic wage of waiting staff low.
The general secretary of Facua-Consumers in Action, Ruben Sánchez, tends to agree, suggesting that the new bills are specifically designed to “create a feeling of guilt” in customers who decide not to leave anything. He recently pointed out that restaurants that employ this technique are acting well within the law, since tipping still isn’t mandatory, but that owners are “trying to take advantage” of their patrons by getting them to bump up insufficient salaries.
In his view, the tip “cannot be a substitute for a decent wage”.
To add insult to industry, one Madrid restaurant chain has caused quite a stir by launching a campaign encouraging its customers to leave a tip so that waiting staff can “fulfil” their “little dreams and ambitions”.
This tactic, unsurprisingly, had the opposite effect, with many patrons refusing to leave anything at all in protest.
Tipping is a big business in the States, with most hospitality workers relying on generous customers to bump up their meagre salaries.
In other news: Top Spanish beer launched in the UK
Image: Freepik
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