By Jill Goodwin, Contributor
Health and well-being of hospitality industry staff is crucial to operations. For restaurant employers, the promotion of self-care is key to a productive workforce.
The concept of self-care developed a long time ago, but it has only recently become a part of popular culture. Contrary to what many people believe, self-care isn’t all about bubble baths and manicures. It evolved in the 1950s from the idea that institutionalized people could improve their health through holistic activities designed to reduce stress.
Fast-forward to today—roughly 70 years since the concept of self-care was born. For the past year and a half, the world has plunged into chaos. The COVID-19 pandemic has left economies floundering and millions of individuals in dire financial straits. The hospitality industry has been especially hard hit, with many employees losing jobs and many establishments facing closure. As lockdowns ease up, businesses are opening once again. But employees continue to face extremely stressful situations as they navigate the “new normal.”
What Is Lacking?
Since the beginning of 2020, there’s been a dramatic loss of healthcare availability. In a study of 130 countries, 67% experienced more difficulty providing counseling and therapy and three-quarters of participating countries reported deterioration in mental health aid in schools and workplaces. Employees are facing stress and need ways to manage it—practicing self-care is once again an imperative.
How to Encourage Self-Care for Restaurant Employees
Restaurant and bar employees are in dire need of support. Not only to boost their personal well-being and economic situation but also to help establishments transition from strict lockdown regulations to a more “normal” way of running.
Many staff members spend the bulk of their days at work and will not have the wherewithal to implement self-care in their limited free time. As an employer, it is within your power to enable self-care for your employees. You can do so in these ways:
Promote stress management activities.
It can be difficult to provide all the support that workers need, but it is relatively simple to introduce activities that can help them cope with stress in the workplace. This could take the form of a short meeting during the workday in which employees can express things they’re struggling with. This won’t magically solve their problems, but colleagues and managers might become more aware of the need to treat others kindly.
Be respectful of your staff’s time.
This might sound like a contradiction of the above suggestion, but is really another way of letting staff know they matter. Many companies don’t seem to value the time that employees spend going to meetings—time when essential tasks could get done. When staff have to fit non-negotiable duties around long meetings, they end up working overtime. Some solutions include:
Limiting the number of meetings
Planning in advance
Scheduling meetings during work hours
Make breaks compulsory.
In the hospitality industry this can be challenging—patrons aren’t in the habit of waiting patiently. With careful scheduling, however, it is possible to ensure that every worker can grab a little time to recharge during work hours.
If need be, communicate to patrons that your establishment is prioritizing self-care for staff and management to provide better service. It might surprise you how understanding people are when they’re reminded that servers are also people with needs.
Do not place this responsibility on your employees. If they have to explain time and time again why they’re allowed to take breaks the benefit from those breaks is negated.
Communicate.
One thing that causes stress among workers is lack of communication between management and one another. Finding out first thing in the morning that you’re going to have to cover for another employee can be infuriating if you’ve planned your week around this day off.
Setting boundaries is a huge part of self-care, and the expectation of being available 24/7 demotivates people and causes resentment. Of course, it is impossible for things to run smoothly all the time, but try to cultivate a culture of communication, where employees feel able to tell you what they need. When people feel heard and respected, they’re more likely to engage with their work rather than see it as a burden.
Make health achievable.
Part of staying well is having access to nutritious food and keeping physically healthy. It’s a great idea to find a way of providing food for employees, even if it isn’t a full daily meal. Hospitality workers spend their days being physically active, which can make it hard to prepare food in their time off.
Once or twice a week, try to provide a meal for all employees. Encourage taking the time to eat during work to keep energy levels high. It doesn’t take long to get in a snack, which can make the difference between exhaustion and being able to cope with demands.
The Benefits of Self-Care
Practicing self-care is obviously a good thing for individual employees, but it can benefit your business too.
Happier and healthier staff are more motivated and more likely to provide good service to customers. Many people seem to go through life with a permanent resentment towards their employers, and some have good reason to. If people feel undervalued and disrespected by management, they won’t see the point in putting in effort and engaging with their work. Fostering an environment of mutual respect and letting employees know that they’re valued as individuals goes a long way towards achieving excellent service.
While the work-life balance in the restaurant industry is notoriously difficult and a 9-5 lifestyle isn't generally attainable, employers can improve employees quality of life in other ways. It’s unlikely that stress levels are going to decrease soon, which makes it vital to learn coping skills and engage in self-care.
The Bottom Line
In the wake of COVID-19, restaurants and hospitality businesses have had to adapt to changing times. Still, we expect staff to be loyal and work towards the betterment of the company. Reciprocate this by enabling your employees to stay well physically and mentally.
