Are you up to dealing with staff shortages?
Back in Victorian times the poor were poor of their own making. They didn't have jobs because they were lazy and therefore undeserving of any privileges that society had to bestow on them.
Fortunately, attitudes have changed. These days we accept that unemployment and poverty have many causes. Redundancy, a surplus of skills in some sectors and a dearth in others as well as numerous economic factors have led to large numbers being out of work. But these people are not necessarily lazy or work-shy. More likely they haven't had the opportunity to retrain and get back to a culture of working.
Enter the New Deal, launched in the UK last September, a scheme to get the long-term unemployed off the streets and back into work. In the USA a similar system has been operating for two years, pioneered by hotel group Marriott. It has not worked overnight, and has demanded much commitment by participants for any long-term gain.
But the results are now appearing. According to Marriott, the quality of labour is comparable to that which comes from standard recruitment methods. But the real value is in the retention rate which, at 70%, compares well with the 52% for walk-in applicants, demolishing the stereotype of work-shy scroungers.
UK hospitality companies should take note. Many are already considering the unemployed as a potential workforce and the line-up of companies which have signed up to the New Deal includes an impressive number of big names. But, as Garry Hawkes pointed out at the British Hospitality Association's annual lunch last week, New Dealers are slow in coming through.
Why? The problem is twofold. First, it takes understanding and patience. New Dealers need training in areas such as attendance and appearance as well as occupational skills. They will also need careful management as they risk being resented by existing members of staff.
Second, it takes the industry itself to come forward and promote what it has to offer to this potential workforce, and this needs to happen on a local level. If you are willing to take on the New Deal then contact your local job centre and explain the kind of vacancies you have and the training you are prepared to offer. Don't sit around waiting for people to come to you - chances are they won't.
Finally, a word of caution. New Dealers should not be seen as the sole solution to the skills shortage problem. There are plenty of other schemes such as the BHA's Excellence through People, Springboard UK's Let's Make it First Choice and the HCIMA's Hospitality Assured. If you want to help address the skills shortage problem then look to these initiatives to start helping yourself.
And if you're not prepared to do any of these, then find something else to complain about. The weather, perhaps?
JENNY WEBSTER
Deputy Editor
Caterer & Hotelkeeper
