Cameron House accused of withholding tips from staff

Cameron House has been accused of withholding tips

Workers at a top Scottish resort claim they are losing hundreds of pounds worth of tips following a restructure.

Cameron House on Loch Lomond is at the centre of a union grievance signed by around 60 workers.

Unite the union said the hotel introduced a service charge equally split between staff in January, and that workers want to establish a more official and democratic tip policy.

The hotel said it gives staff all tips and is working towards a resolution.

The union said card tips are not paid until the end of the year, which could cause short-term staff to lose out.

Service charges

It said 15% of the service charge is kept by the hotel for a "self-funded Christmas present" for staff without any consultation.

It claimed the charge is also being used to subsidise salaried staff.

The five-star hotel charges up to £610 a night and a bottle of wine at the bar can cost up to £1,200.

The complaint claims to represent the majority of staff at Cameron Grill, Tamburrini & Wishart, the Great Scott's Bar and the Boathouse.

Unite is calling for a new tips committee made up of bar and restaurant staff to oversee the democratic and proportionate distribution of service charges and card tips.

The hotel has hosted famous guests including former US president Barack Obama

Staff say service charges were previously distributed only within the department they were earned.

However, this changed in January when staff discovered card tips were being split across the entire hotel.

Zach Brotherton, 31, has worked as a senior sous chef at the resort's fine dining restaurant Tamburrini & Wishart for a year.

He said: "We had no issues with the service charge and then in January it started to drop off dramatically.

"Tips make a big difference for the guys who work here, they work hard for them.

"We want to know what's happening, we want it to be fair and it's very murky at the moment.

"It's building a lot of anger and mistrust with management.

"I'm losing at least £300 a month. People are at the end of their tether."

A worker at Cameron Grill told BBC Scotland: "In the old tip structure, each restaurant had its own service charge and it was shared within the outlet itself.

"However, they changed it in January so all of the tips made across the resort were pulled into one pot and distributed to staff from there.

"People working at the high revenue venues like Tamburrini & Wishart took a big hit following the restructure."

The worker said there was "a complete lack of clarity".

Cameron House looks onto Loch Lomond

"Cameron House isn't taking the money, but they're just deciding where it goes. We want to decide where our money is going.

"Some customers can tip hundreds of pounds on a table, but I worked out that last month I got just £11 of the service charge per night."

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: "Minimum wage workers are losing hundreds of pounds worth of tips at Cameron House, one of Scotland's top-drawer luxury hotels.

"This is staggering abuse - a posh resort for the rich fleecing the tips of minimum-wage workers.

"The hotel faces significant reputational damage unless it acts to end this injustice."

'Open and transparent'

Bryan Simpson, industrial organiser for Unite Hospitality, said: "A month after our members submitted this collective grievance, Cameron House senior management continue to refuse to honour the key commitments they made during negotiations.

"They need to ensure service charges and card tips are distributed fairly, transparently and democratically.

"Our members have had enough and will be escalating their campaign for fair tips at Cameron House."

A spokesperson for Cameron House said: "Cameron House gives 100% of service charges to our staff and always has.

"We are committed to being open and transparent during this process and will work closely with Unite and the teams to come to an agreement as quickly as possible.

"Getting a satisfactory outcome for our team is a priority and we will continue to move forward to deliver this."