Staff at top London restaurants consider legal action over cover charges

Exclusive: unions could back legal action against firms such as Harrods that levy a charge that is not passed on to staff

Workers are considering legal action against a swathe of upmarket London restaurant owners including Harrods, the Savoy Grill, the Ivy and the Wolseley that add a cover charge to diners' bills that does not go to workers.

Legislation that came into force in October requires business owners to hand over all tips and service charges to staff. However, a number of restaurants add a mandatory cover charge as well as a service charge and only pass on the latter to workers.