Britain’s General Union (GMB) has released a report revealing that waiters, bar staff and kitchen staff are in the bottom ten of lowest paid workers out of 341 occupations featured.

According to the analysis, waiting staff are at the bottom of the league, earning around £11,303 per annum (38 per cent of the UK average).

Just above them, at around £12,500 (42 per cent), are kitchen, catering and bar staff.

Paul Kenny, GMB general secretary, said: “We are asked to believe that those at the top need to be ‘incentivised’ by multi-million pay packages to maintain a dynamic economy, while those at the bottom must make sacrifices for the good of the economy.

“GMB members do not buy this logic and we want the tax system to even out the rewards and the National Minimum Wage to rise to £7 per hour to help those at the bottom.”

Bob Cotton at the BHA responded: "As far as the GMW survey in concerned, the union has been singularly unsuccessful in persuading hotel employees that it can gain them higher wages in the past - which might indicate that most hotel workers are satisfied with what they get.

"You have to bear in mind that waiters' wages are usually augmented by tips and income from the service charge, which, in some cases, will easily double their income. There are other 'perks', such as meals on duty, uniform, live-in accommodation in some cases, and all the other statutory benefits.

"On a more general level, the industry pays minimum wages (and often above) for low-skilled jobs, as does every other industry. Wages are already almost 30 per cent of hotel revenue (up from 23.7 per cent in 1997) and rising. Few other industries have such a high ratio of payroll cost to revenue. Hospitality pays the going rate."