It’s Difficult to Find Staff because of the Furlough

“We opened our event complex in Yavne in 2014, and I am the CEO and head chef.

We have a large venue with space for more than 800 people, a smaller venue with space for up to 500, and a magnificent and beautifully tended outdoor space. Our line of work involves bringing joy to all the people of Israel—and that is not easy. It requires waking up each morning with joy and love in your heart, because every day is the special day for the bride and groom, a day they spent a year building toward with you, and you have to put on the most beautiful and moving event possible for them, with the best food.

“Before COVID-19, we employed 150-200 staff, including waiters, cooks, administrative staff, sales and maintenance workers, and work was going great, with two events every evening. Suddenly rumors started to spread about a possible lockdown, and with them came a wave of calls from worried clients asking what they should do.

I found myself serving as an information service. Never in my worst nightmares did

I imagine that the lockdowns would begin and all the venues would be closed for more than a year. Because our cash flow policy is to not take deposits from our clients, we simply returned the cheques to them.

“Between one lockdown and the next, we held a few smaller ceremonies, even though it was not financially worth while, because we couldn’t bring ourselves to disappoint couples who just wanted to get married already. We tried to help wherever we could. It’s sad to say, but I saw couples before the wedding who fell apart and broke up because they were unable to overcome the stress and strain. Since the end of the third lockdown, and especially since the end of the Counting of the Omer, our diary has started filling up with orders again, but it goes without saying that it will take time for the sector to recover and for the restrictions on the number of guests to be fully lifted. At the moment we are busy trying to rebuild the team, but it’s hard to recruit new workers, despite the fact that salaries in the events’ sector have spiked by at least 40% over the past year. I expect the government to stop the furlough payments already, to push people to go back to work.”

The writer is the CEO and head chef of the Adia event complex. Shidlovski 3, Yavne. Tel: 053-9374140.