According to Hotel Employees Federation of India, even though a committee appointed by the Union tourism ministry had recommended payment of a uniform 10 per cent service charge to hotel employees in 1957, the recommendation is yet to be implemented.
In a memorandum to the Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Association of India, the employees' federation has urged the hotel and restaurant federation to provide incentives to employees. "It (service charged) has no financial implication for hotels and would not affect the flow of tourists," employees' federation president Subhas Naik Jorge said in a report by TOI. The hotel standards and rate structure committee had recommended a stop to the system of 'tipping' hotel employees as it caused harassment to Indian and foreign tourists.
"It is a matter of regret that even 55 years after the recommendation, the system of payment of 10 per cent service charge to hotel employees has not been introduced in India," Jorge claimed. The committee had also recommended strict disciplinary action to ensure that bakshish is wiped off without upsetting the pay structure. Stating that some neighbouring countries (Nepal, Sri Lanka etc) have implemented it (service charge) to their advantage, the employees' federation alleged that some starred hotels in India pay low minimum wages with barely any benefits to unskilled employees, who often work 12 hours or more a day.
In a memorandum to the Federation of Hotel and Restaurant Association of India, the employees' federation has urged the hotel and restaurant federation to provide incentives to employees. "It (service charged) has no financial implication for hotels and would not affect the flow of tourists," employees' federation president Subhas Naik Jorge said in a report by TOI. The hotel standards and rate structure committee had recommended a stop to the system of 'tipping' hotel employees as it caused harassment to Indian and foreign tourists.
"It is a matter of regret that even 55 years after the recommendation, the system of payment of 10 per cent service charge to hotel employees has not been introduced in India," Jorge claimed. The committee had also recommended strict disciplinary action to ensure that bakshish is wiped off without upsetting the pay structure. Stating that some neighbouring countries (Nepal, Sri Lanka etc) have implemented it (service charge) to their advantage, the employees' federation alleged that some starred hotels in India pay low minimum wages with barely any benefits to unskilled employees, who often work 12 hours or more a day.