Working in Spain

On the Costa del Sol, in the picturesque, bustling town of Nerja, I went to dinner.  There, among the dark Spanish locals working in the restaurant was a fair-haired maiden from the United Kingdom, Kellie Edwards.  I wondered how she got there and asked her a few questions...

Dinersoft:  How did you find out about job openings in Spain?

Kellie Edwards:  It was just a matter of getting to Spain and starting a door-to-door search and a looking through the local newspapers.  Some restaurants put up signs in the window saying that they need staff, some don't.  I talked to some people that found their job through the internet but these are few and far between and are asking for something specific in the candidate.  For example, an Italian restaurant may advertise for Italian staff on an Italian web site.  Also, jobs come and go very quickly.  So it is good to leave a contact telephone number so that they can call you if a vacancy comes up.

Why were you interested in working in Nerja?

My starting point for choosing Nerja was selecting a Spanish language school.  I wanted to spend three weeks learning Spanish then stay on in the town or city for awhile working.  Nerja has a very good language school which I found on the internet.  I wanted to be by the sea, have plenty of sun and not to be located in a big city.  Nerja looked ideal.  I was not worried about finding a job as the summer season along the Costa del Sol creates thousands of jobs.

Is it necessary to obtain special visas or permits to work in Spain?

Working in Spain is different for someone who is already a member of the European Union (EU).  By law any EU citizen is allowed to work in another EU country.  But yes, paperwork has to be completed for this.  What should happen is that every employee should have a contract.  This contract is for the employee and employers protection.  Employers should then declare the staff to the relevant authorities and pay social security.  The employee receives a social security card and can get free medical care if taken ill etc.  Officials do visit establishments to ensure that everyone there has a contract.

What also happens is that people do not get contracts and employers do not do pay social security for some of their staff.  If inspectors catch the establishment employing staff without contracts then they will be subject to a fine.  I have known members of staff to hide in cupboards or leave out of the back of the restaurant and have the night off.  But, that employee will not be protected and could be fired or treated unfairly with no recourse available to them.

I am not sure what would happen for Americans.  I would suggest that a special work permit / visa would be required.

Describe your first contact with your employer.  What was the interview like?  Was it conducted in English or Spanish?

I was introduced to the employer by a friend of mine who worked at the restaurant.  I had what could only be described as a brief chat.  My chat was in English and some Spanish (my Spanish is poor as I have only started learning four months ago).  The chat was very informal.  I wanted to work in the bar or as a waitress.  But he offered me the chance to prove myself first in the kitchen.  I accepted on the understanding that if I proved myself he would give me the job that I wanted.

Describe your first day on the job.

[I started as] a kitchen assistant.  For the first two and a half hours I had to strip chicken meat from the carcasses of chicken.  Everybody spoke Spanish (I understood a lot but found it difficult to reply without thinking about it for five minutes and in kitchen you don't have five minutes to think!) but they were all very nice to me.  The rest of my evening was helping out with odd jobs around the kitchen.  I felt quite chuffed (English word not sure if you know it, but basically means pleased with yourself) as my immediate boss in the kitchen said that I had done very well and that I understand a lot of Spanish.  The only trouble was that I was temporarily put off chicken and my first meal with the staff was chicken.  I felt really rude as I could not eat it, the chicken stripping for two and a half hours destroyed my passion for chicken.  I made polite excuses the best I could and said that I would have it later.  I left it in a bar later that evening.

I had three days in the kitchen and was then promoted to a waitress. Yippee!!

Has the job(s) met your expectations? Better? Worse? What have been the biggest surprises to you?

I did not know what to expect really because this was my first time working abroad and everything was in a foreign language.  But I was willing to give it a whirl.  A few general points I was expecting that I would work long hours with little or no breaks and that my feet would want to leave my body without me and go on strike.  I was right.  My hours were 8 to 2am / 2.30am, everyday.

I never thought that the staff would be so friendly but they all were.  All the staff were Spanish.  Some could speak a little English but not a lot.  Being the only English person was quite lonely at first but as the staff are so nice to me I started to really enjoy working with them and felt like a member of the team.

My friend told me about some things so I was pre-warned.  Items like, you eat with the staff at the end of the night (it was difficult getting used to eating at 1.30 in the morning), the restaurant is very busy and has about 130 covers which turn around approximately 160% during the night and that the boss is not very nice. My friend and I had a nickname for him, mole man.  He looked like a mole.

Yes he was right about all of the stuff above including the boss.  A little man who manages to shout at every member of staff for no apparent reason including me.  Maybe I have a little Irish spirit in me especially with the red hair but I did not let him walk off without apologizing immediately for his gross inaccuracies.  I have since learned that lots of staff have left the restaurant due to the manager.

What I did not realize is that as I was the only English person working in the restaurant and that would be lumbered with all the complaints and problems from the English customers.  I tried my best at patching over blatant mistakes from the kitchen but they would not try to rectify it quickly and the boss would not allow me to offer something that would be complementary to apologize.  This was something that happened too many times and should be sorted out.  I would like to have changed a few things about the restaurant.

What is the tipping expectation in Spain?

Not quite sure about this whole tipping thing in Spain.  I have heard conflicting stories.  Some restaurants include it in the bill but either do or do not tell you this.  Some do not include any service in the bill and it is up to the discretion of the customer.

What I found was that most tourists especially the English tipped between 5 and 10% sometimes more if they had a very enjoyable and long evening at the restaurant.  Typically the Spanish residents left hardly any.

I believe if that if you had an enjoyable evening with food that met or exceeded your expectations and that the staff were friendly and attentive then you should leave a tip to show your appreciation.

Do you keep all of your tips, or share them? How do they get shared, if they do?

The tips are all put into a pot and shared equally among the staff including the kitchen staff.  Sometimes customers will put money directly into your hand specifically for you but that money always goes into the pot as well.  Some staff may choose not too but it would be frowned upon by the other members of staff.  If tips are included in the bill then it should be paid through the wages to the staff.  Restaurants give the tips to the staff at the end of the evening, week or month.

Any funny stories to tell about waiting tables in Nerja (or anywhere else)?

I don't really have any funny stories to relay to you. I thought that it was funny that many different customers would guess where I was from, some said Holland.  Some guessed South Africa.

What advice would you give to someone thinking about doing what you are doing?

Go early in the season, there will be more jobs and you have a better chance of finding one that you want.  Also, there will be more accommodation to choose from.  It gives you a chance to find some flat mates.

Be confident.  You need to be able to walk into a restaurant and ask for work.  Walk in with a smile and be prepared to go back the next day and the next day.  Also be prepared to negotiate a little about pay, working hours.  If you don't ask you don't get!

Brush up on your Spanish or at least learn basic Spanish words for table, bill, food, drinks etc.

Take a white shirt and black skirt or trousers.  You might need them and it will save you the trouble of buying one when you are out there.

Take enough money with you to live for a few weeks.  You might not get a job straight away and some accommodation places require payments up front.  Travelers checks are the safest.

Take the most comfortable pair or shoes with you!!! You will need them. 

What would you warn them about?

Nothing specific to warn you about.  Just be sensible about things, as you would do at home.

Describe your typical day in Nerja.

I get Get up around 10 - 12am (depending on whether you go out after work or not), then have lunch.  Never really have breakfast in Spain just coffee and toast.  Most days go to the beach for a few hours, as I am from England I need to make the most of the beach and swimming in the sea.  Afterwards, I normally meet up with friends for a coffee and a snack before work.  Then go to work.  Some nights would go for a drink after work.

Then it all starts again the next day.

Anything else you would like to tell Dinersoft readers about?

Remember to keep smiling and be confident.  It is hard work but I think rewarding if you are prepared to put the effort in.  It can also be lots of fun, making new friends and living in a different country, experiencing the culture.

©2002 by Todd Lejnieks.  All rights reserved.