The lasting impact of the pandemic and the workforce shortage crisis means a lot of exceptional talent has left hospitality in recent years. As the industry enters its most critical trading period of the year - the festive season - it’s important to remember that it can be a stressful time to work on the front line of bars and restaurants.
When it comes to building a long-lasting career, the industry has a bad reputation. The hospitality industry is ranked more stressful than the retail, transport, and education sectors, with three in five hospitality workers experiencing high levels of workplace stress, according to Catering Insight.
The cost of living crisis has triggered price increases which have led to more people taking their frustrations out on staff, who themselves are not immune to the challenges of the crisis. As a result, many will work over their allocated hours and then self-medicate with drugs and alcohol. It’s no wonder people often don’t last long in the industry.
That’s not a badge of honour here. At Civerinos, we celebrate good people and doing a good job. Maybe if everyone was forced to do a festive season in hospitality, kind of like a national service of sorts, we’d all be in a better place.
But it’s a great industry to be involved in; you get to serve people during their special moments, you get a chance to start again every single day, and you work with great people who are immensely talented, creative and kind. Our people are everything and hospitality is about treating everyone well - whether that’s inside or outside of work.
As well as access to a skills network, including fully-funded government courses, we’ve introduced an inclusivity and diversity policy, and invested in a production kitchen, training academy and creative studio.
We know that to feel good at work, you need to feel good outside of work – real life isn’t like Severance, the TV show where people were surgically divided between their work and personal lives. That’s why we’ve implemented an Employee Assistance Programme which offers access to resources to help deal with mental health, legal issues, financial advice, or grief management. This also extends to our team’s partners and children.
By introducing these policies, we’re showing staff they are truly valued. It’s people that make a business and we hope to encourage other businesses in the industry to follow suit and up their game.
Restaurant owners are trying to foster safe environments where individuality is celebrated and staff feel confident in their abilities, whatever they’re doing. We work tirelessly to show that hospitality is a respected industry, and staff should be met with the same grace by customers.
It sounds simple, but enjoy yourselves safely, and remember we’re just trying to help you do the same. And if you book a table, please turn up - or at least call to cancel. For small venues this makes all the difference.
Mark De’Mar is head of operations at Civerinos, a group of pizza slice bars with four venues across Edinburgh and Glasgow, with more openings on the horizon in 2024.
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