Changes in Internal Operations - The Hospitality Staffing Crisis
The COVID-19 crisis feels like it has passed its apex and life around the globe has started to return to something more closely resembling normality.
Now restaurants can once again open their doors and welcome guests to dine in, it should be a time of overwhelming positivity for an industry which has been hit particularly hard by the restrictions inflicted upon it during the pandemic. However, now things are opening up again and staff are being welcomed back from furlough (in the UK) and stimulus (in the US), business owners in the restaurant and hospitality industry have come up against a brand-new set of challenges.
Many staff members have not returned to work and have, in fact, resigned from their positions. This has naturally left the industry with a record number of vacancies which they are struggling to fill.
A Staffing Crisis
Official data from The National Restaurant Association shows that the food and beverage industry shed some 2.5 million jobs in 2020 and federal data shows just shy of 1.4 million job openings presently waiting to be filled.
Of course, having high staff turnover is not a new concept for the food and beverage business. For many people the industry is a stopgap job or a part time gig while they study, rather than a full-time serious career. However, what is unique about this situation is how much the industry is struggling to fill the jobs which have been left vacant.
"We are in the midst of a very severe labor shortage," said Sherry Villanueva, Owner and Managing Partner of Acme Hospitality, which operates eight eateries in Santa Barbara. "With staff stretched paper-napkin thin, the employees are doing the job of two people."
Many restaurants are now having to reduce the number of guests they can even book in as they simply do not have the people in place to handle large numbers of customers. This author knows of a hotel nearby which normally has three restaurants in operation but has been forced to close one entirely, so the staff can be relocated to support the teams operating the other two. This reduced ability to serve customers is compounding the economic problems already being felt by an industry which has seen revenue and profits throttled by the COVID-19 pandemic and its associated restrictions.
Most restaurants rely on being able to turn tables multiple times during a service to make the business financially viable, but the staffing crisis is reducing this ability. Not only this, but the additional workload and pressure being placed on the staff which are in place is likely making them consider looking for greener pastures.
What Happened?
The most likely explanation for the food and beverage staffing shortages is that, while these people have been away from the business, they have been working in other industries. After all, the opportunity to try out other roles, without having to quit your present job, and still being in receipt of payment - even at a reduced rate - doesn't come along very often in life.
And, while working in these other roles, they may have gotten a glimpse of what life is like outside the hospitality sector.
Like it or not, the restaurant and hospitality business has a notorious reputation for bad pay and working conditions. Roles are often minimum wage or even rely on tips to make pay up to the minimum, hours are long and unsociable, and often involve being on one's feet for up to 12 hours at a time, with few breaks, all the while taking abuse from customers and managers alike.
Then there's the industry's reliance on zero-hour contracts.
Zero-hour contracts only ever benefit the employer and, no matter how they try and spin it, never the employee. Staff are expected to be grateful for the shifts they get, are vulnerable to being sent home early without pay if business is quiet, all the while being pressured to take additional shifts with very little notice. Sick pay and other benefits - such as healthcare - is often non-existent, and employees have very few rights or means of recourse when they have a grievance. In fact, even airing a grievance can lead to cut hours - essentially placing the employee at the whim of their manager's mood.
Zero-hours contracts are basically asking your staff to supplement your desire to make a consistent profit with their job security.
While working other roles, hospitality staff have realized they can earn more money, doing fewer and more sociable hours, in better conditions, with guaranteed shifts and more rights. Is it really any wonder they haven't returned?
Final Thoughts
If the food and beverage industry wants to survive this crisis, it needs to take a good hard look at itself and seriously consider changing the entire way it treats staff. People who have spent their entire lives in this business are now realizing they have other options, and you can bet they are going to take advantage of them.
Consider serious changes to your internal operations when it comes to staffing and you may be able to pull your food and beverage business out of this nosedive and start getting back to the real business of providing your guests with exceptional eating and drinking experiences.
The food and beverage staffing crisis is set to be a hot topic at Digital Food and Beverage 2021, taking place in November at the JW Marriott Austin, TX.
Download the agenda today for more information and insights.