Three ways to boost team morale & attract new staff
Data from the Australian Government shows that accommodation and food services is the number one sector in the country for staffing shortages in 2023
Working in hospitality is challenging at the best of times, but during this extended, post-pandemic period in which staff shortages and turnover are exceptionally high, working in a service role is harder than ever.
Since the start of the pandemic, staff shortages have continued to affect the hospitality and tourism sector globally. Data from Europe shows that over 1.2 million jobs in tourism remain unfilled, while 87 percent of hotels in the US reported staff shortages this year.
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A little closer to home, data from the Australian Government shows that accommodation and food services is the number one sector in the country for staffing shortages in 2023, with 45 percent of businesses reporting an urgent need for staff.
International visitor numbers are expected to exceed pre-pandemic levels by 2025 while domestic visitor spending is also expected to exceed pre-pandemic levels, reaching up to 149 billion AUD by 2027.
With this in mind, ensuring you are rebuilding a strong and enthusiastic workforce is more important than ever.
Here are three areas that could help improve staff morale and entice new employees.
Implement internships and training schemes
In his speech at this year’s Australasian Hotel Industry Conference and Exhibition, Accommodation Association CEO Michael Johnson spoke on the need to encourage young people to consider a career in hospitality.
“[We need to] convince the next generation, including their parents, that accommodation and hospitality is a viable, skilled, rewarding and life-long career is the only way we make sure this problem is not still here in ten years’ time,” he said.
As part of this, Mr Johnson suggested implementing workplace internships, encouraging school leavers to see what a career in hospitality looks like.
In addition to internship programs, hoteliers could also look at training schemes to upskill current employees.
Not only will this help bolster your workforce, but it also allows you to identify staff who may be able to step into managerial roles in the future.
Offer flexible work hours
For many workers, hybrid or remote working flexibility has become an expectation.
While many roles in hospitality and tourism are unable to be worked remotely, it may be time to consider what aspects could be worked within a hybrid model.
For example, could staff conduct the administrative aspects of their job from home?
Chat with your staff to gauge their interest, as embracing a hybrid model could give you a competitive edge for both future employees as well as helping to retain current staff.
Embrace technology
For all the negative aspects of the pandemic for the hospitality sector, it did inspire the industry to reconsider its relationship with technology.
While the heart of hospitality will always be customer assistance, technological advances mean that staff labour can now be re-routed to where it matters.
Contactless check-in and check-out, Guest Room Automation Systems, AI chatbots, and QR code menus can all help reduce the workload of your current staff.
And with staff no longer being task loaded, they can refocus on the best part of working in hospitality- enhancing the guest experience!
Sarah is a freelance journalist with experience across print, digital and audio. After working for Multimedia Publishing as a contributing writer, she has recently joined the team in a part-time capacity for School News AU and AccomNews.
