Doing the splits

One of Britain's biggest industries pays moderate wages, imposes a punishing schedule, then asks its key staff to work split shifts. So if someone said it had a recruitment crisis, most people would say it was little wonder.

But a working day that consists of working in the morning, having a few hours off in the afternoon, and then heading back to the kitchen for the evening is the daily reality for thousands of chefs. Split shifts are a big issue in the industry, with opinion divided on whether they're an anachronism and a barrier to recruiting the best of young chefs, or a fact of life for a chef.

Chris Aspden, food and beverage director of Whitbread-run Marriott hotels in the UK, says that aspirationally, he would like all chefs to work straight shifts. "That spreads the talents of the kitchen team across the whole day from breakfast to late-night functions. But the reality is that straight shifts need a full brigade and often kitchen teams are understrength."

On chef recruitment, Aspden says the prospect of split shifts is not as much a problem as chef retention. "We want Marriott to be an employer of choice, and believe in the five-day working week," he says. "The best way to get more straight shifts into the industry is through a proactive recruitment programme so that kitchens are fully staffed."

Long working hours might be a tad more acceptable if chefs were routinely hourly paid. But most are salaried, so the daily routine is to work as many hours as it takes to get the job done. That's the infamous AFD shift, which to the uninitiated stands for "all effing day".

Hazlewood Castle near Leeds is one of the leading function and fine-dining venues in Yorkshire, with hundreds of weddings a year and extensive banqueting, as well as the main 1086 restaurant. Head chef Paul Rowntree says long hours are part of cooking in a fine-dining restaurant. "I know contract catering can offer nine-to-five shifts, but from a cost point of view, for many restaurants wage costs would double with straight shifts. We've been working long day shifts, but I want to move the kitchen on to splits so at least staff get time off in the afternoon. The salary remains the same, but the working hours reduce."

At the sharp edge of chef recruitment are agencies such as Chess Partnership. Recruitment consultant Lindsay Graney deals with chefs for Chess, and says that in the higher echelons of the kitchen brigade, long hours come with the job. "That's a choice chefs make," she says. "But there are lots of chef jobs in contract catering where straight shifts are the norm, and extra work is paid as overtime."

So are split shifts a permanent barrier to recruitment? Not always, according to Jonathan File, executive chef at Crewe Hall in Cheshire. "Some chefs prefer splits," he says. "If you want a chef who's happy to have three hours off in the afternoon, find one who has a big dog. They love to walk them in the afternoon."