‘Struggling’ hospitality sector hit by staff shortages
Britain’s pubs and restaurants are down almost 200,000 workers as the pandemic has affected all sectors, according to trade body UKHospitality.
Job postings in the hospitality sector, meanwhile, have risen well above their pre-pandemic levels.
Staffing shortages are hitting the industry hard – and that is without the added issue of the NHS Test and Trace App ‘pinging’ staff meaning they need to self isolate.
The nationwide picture is similar in West Sussex.
The Beresford, in Middleton, last month experienced both these problems and had to close for a week.
The pub said: “We are unfortunately still unable to open as we are still having staff issues. The pingdemic is causing havoc!”
Other businesses in the area have told us of their problem with recruitment in recent months.
Dave Skinner, landlord of the Lamb Inn in West Wittering, said lots of pub staff had been ‘swiped by the likes of Amazon’ and it will be a tough job getting them to return.
“Recruitment is currently the biggest challenge I have known since I became a pub landlord,” he said.
“Every advert I have put up has produced one or two responses and no one has shown up.”
Todd White, general manager of The Wheatsheaf in Midhurst, said: “There are a lot of jobs out there but every single pub I have spoken to is struggling.”
Staff shortages are due to a number of factors including furloughed staff finding work elsewhere, European workers not returning, people having health fears of working in the industry and ongoing closure of many venues.
Worthing and Littlehampton restaurateur Andy Sparsis, owner of Proto Restaurant Group, said the industry also needed to change to improve its attractiveness to potential new recruits.
He argued if drastic changes were not made now, ‘it is quite likely that tourism in the UK will be seriously affected by the lack of open hospitality businesses’.
“The sector must understand that employing people in the hospitality business is no longer a popular choice, especially when relying on the domestic employee,” he said.
“Employers must work hard to allow more flexible working hours, weekends off and improve pay structures.
“Different models of employment, such as four days off, three days on and up to eight weeks paid holiday a year may well be ways of enticing people back to the industry.”
Latest figures from hospitality industry trade body UKHospitality confirm 85 per cent of venues are looking to hire chefs, while 80 per cent need front-of-house staff.
Some within the industry have suggested a shorter working week and increased wages to attract back workers.
UKHospitality intends to run sessions in conjunction with JobCentre Plus to help promote opportunities to job-seekers within the hospitality sector.
And throughout the pandemic, councils distributed more than £11billion to 880,000 small businesses in 2020, continuing to help businesses reopen safely.
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To let us know your experience with staffing shortages, email news@ chiobserver.co.uk