I am sitting at HKG lounge and really emjoying, had a nice breakfast. I apologize for the question coming and I am not really sure it belongs here; I posted here because I' d like to know SPECIFICALLY about CX. I am a leisure traveller, never travelling for work, still travelled over a million miles and I started to get into lounges only 18 months ago.It may sound stupid but do you usually leave tips? I would like to as I get gratuities monthly.Thank you

I've never left a tip.

I always tip the cabana attendant but do not tip the lounge staff. You might be interested to know that the F dining catering is done by the Peninsula hotel.

There is no expectation of tips.

None.

A polite "thank you" and treating lounge staff cordially is the best choice, I'd say. If you pay J or F tickets, you've already done more than enough for staff salaries.

Tipping is not expected. In Hong Kong, it is a felony to accept money for services without approval from their employers, and it is also a felony for people to pay these employees as well.

Eh? Could you tell me which law you think that's under? What you say would make pretty much every one in HK a felon given the amount of money given out at CNY to staff and various other people who render services to you through the year.

It's one of the ICAC catch all laws, designed (e.g.) to stop people selling jobs to highest bidder at interviews, or accepting lai see of 100,000 HKD. Obviously giving someone 20 HKD isn't going to get you in trouble, but if ICAC are already on your (or their) case then who knows?

I've seen someone get gaoled for two years (ISTR) for wrongly filling in an immigration form - it was a HK/ cambodian triad that they wanted to put away and he was considered to have deliberately lied on the form...

IIRC, the famous ICAC Act Section 9.

Nope - the ICAC Act simply establishes the Commission. There is the Bribery Act, but that covers public servants, tenders & auctions.

I can't see any law that makes it illegal to offer a non-public servant a tip for services rendered. And frankly it would be ridiculously unenforceable were there to be one.

So can either of you come up with the specific clause? The legal database is here: http://www.legislation.gov.hk/eng/home.htm
The ICAC Ordinance starts here: http://www.legislation.gov.hk/blis_i...c?OpenDocument
The Prevention of Bribery Ordinace starts here: http://www.legislation.gov.hk/blis_i...5?OpenDocument

You are right - not the ICAC Act, but the PBO, still Section 9, which technically says that (1)(a) an employee shall not accept any rewards for services relating to his/her employer's business unless (4) permitted by the employer. Tipping is allowed in restaurants as that is generally considered permitted by the employer, but for the lounge...:
(1) Any agent who, without lawful authority or reasonable excuse,
solicits or accepts any advantage as an inducement to or reward for or
otherwise on account of his-
(a) doing or forbearing to do, or having done or forborne to do,
any act in relation to his principal's affairs or business; or
...
shall be guilty of an offence.
...
(4) If an agent solicits or accepts an advantage with the
permission of his principal, being permission which complies with
subsection (5), neither he nor the person who offered the advantage shall
be guilty of an offence under subsection (1) or (2). (Replaced 28 of 1980
s. 4)

Why can't they have that law in USA? I'm jealous! Nowadays, anything less than 15% gets a glare, no matter how good or bad the service was.