Hospitality businesses looking for a trading boost from May’s three bank holidays will need to work closely with key staff to ensure they have the teams in place to deliver on customer expectations, says workforce management specialist Bizimply.
Despite a small dip in sector vacancies revealed in the most recent figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS), most hospitality operators will still be facing serious challenges in finding staff across the unprecedented three bank holiday weekends.
Vacancies in the food service and accommodation sector, which includes pubs, bars, restaurants, and hotels, were 139,000 from January to March, according to the regular ONS Vacancy Survey, compared to 140,000 from December to February.
“Businesses across the hospitality sector will be hoping this small decrease in vacancies accelerates during the rest of this year and into 2024, creating a better environment for staff recruitment and retention after a long period of labour shortages,” said Bizimply chief executive, Conor Shaw.
“In the short term, however, many operators will be struggling to fill shifts over the bank holidays next month. These long weekends, combined with extended trading hours for the Coronation, are golden opportunities for our sector, and those businesses who can crack the staffing issue should reap the rewards.
“Ensuring that enough experienced staff are available for the peak trading periods, as well as scheduling shifts around team members’ own plans, will be essential to success.”
Bizimply’s technology helps hospitality businesses to deploy the right team members in the right place, at the right time, so every shift runs as smoothly as possible.
