Pizza Express are currently looking to recruit circa 1,000 people to meet demand when hospitality reopens indoors on 17 May. They are struggling to do so, as are countless other employers in hospitality.
It’s not just the big name employers that are having difficulty either. Switching your twitter or Facebook feed on in recent days sees small independents struggling with precisely the same problem.
The ‘same problem’ is… the foundation stone of hospitality recruitment has been removed
Hospitality businesses in the UK have always relied upon a transient workforce that works very effectively for both employees and employers. The seasonality of many parts of hospitality where staff need to be recruited in waves suits people looking for temporary and part time work. Reopening will see an unusually high spike in such needs as not only will many new jobs be created, but a staycation boom is also on the horizon.
Hospitality businesses that traditionally see a significant uplift in guests throughout the summer need staff to meet and greet, take orders, serve food, present bills and take payments, tidy and clean up, and generally look after their customers.
The UK hospitality industry has for decades been reliant on a significant proportion of their workforce being EU Nationals.
The UK hospitality industry pre-Brexit saw 12 -24% of its total workforce being EU Nationals. Regions and sectors within the industry varied, in London EU Nationals employed as waiters and waitresses made up 75% of the total workforce in 40,000 foodservice venues across the capital.
Now post-Brexit, all migrant workers, EU and Non-EU, must earn at least £26,500 a year and have secured a ‘suitable’ job before they enter the UK. Those requirements make it impossible for hospitality employers to provide jobs for EU Nationals wanting to work in the UK as waitresses and waiters, as well as countless other roles in hospitality.
The past year has seen migrants leaving the UK in record numbers, with as many as 1.3 million people born outside the UK leaving it.
The Brexit door has been closed, the workforce relied upon for decades has gone, and are unable to return.
It will take a solution never before identified to remedy.
News from the hospitality and catering industry is also being featured extensively in our Facebook and twitter social media accounts with the opportunity to engage with others in hospitality and share your views.
Hospitality & Catering News: People and skills shortages now needs a solution never before identified to remedy. – 27 April 2021 – People and skills shortages now needs a solution never before identified to remedy.
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