By Jill Goodwin, Contributor
Staff shortages can have a massive impact on the way a restaurant, bar, or any business in the hospitality industry runs. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, this industry has been hard hit with a lack of potential employees and several other major changes.
There are several reasons behind this, and most are related to how the industry essentially got shut down for large portions of 2020 and 2021. When restrictions eased, these same businesses were hit by capacity limits and a heavy focus on sanitizing—an extra expense many could ill afford at the time.
Datassential stats published by PR Newswire show that around one in ten restaurants that closed during the initial hard lockdowns in the USA didn’t reopen. All of their staff members were laid off with very little notice.
The result of this was that most of those employees found other jobs, many shifting to a different industry due to a lack of jobs available in the hospitality industry. Now, there’s a distinct shortage of people wanting to wait tables, work in kitchens and bars, and provide entertainment.
4 Steps for Ensuring Your Business Grows
It’s not all doom and gloom for your restaurant, though. You can build up your business and grow it while still winning the War for Talent with these steps:
Create A Strong Employee Retention Strategy
Holding onto the employees you have can be a major game changer, especially when there’s a surplus of jobs available. Employees can look around for a better deal if you’re not careful.
It can be a tricky balancing act in the restaurant industry. For example, as a restaurant owner or manager, your focus is so often on ensuring that your guests are happy, and that can mean pushing your wait staff to go the extra mile, even with a difficult customer.
It’s important to show your staff that you’re on their side and that you want the best for them. This can be done quite simply by having honest and open conversations about this, creating an environment where everyone feels heard and seen, and actually having your team’s back.
It’s also important to know the wants, needs and desires of various generations of workers. For example, how to attract young Gen Z employees are going to look a lot different than trying to retain their long-time Gen X staff. Be proactive and talk to your team to see what their pain points are and how your business can help.
Build Incentives and Benefits into Employee Pay
Another means of boosting employee retention and attracting more staff to your restaurant is to give them strong reasons to want to work for you. In restaurants, staff often rely on customer tips to get a bonus or extra income. However, the economic impact of the last few years has led to people having less disposable income and not being so inclined to tip as much.
According to The Guardian, restaurants are now tackling staff shortages by increasing wages and improving benefits. If you can offer incentives or benefits for your employees, you’ll find that they’re much happier working for you and will be more likely to recommend you to other job seekers. What you’re able to offer will, of course, depend on how your restaurant is doing and what you have easily available. You don’t want to stunt your business growth by offering too much.
The classic bonus or increase in wages is one way to go, but that can impact your bottom line. You may need to get creative in your thinking. Teaming up with a college or a mentorship program can help you offer exciting benefits to your employees.
Remember, most wait staff aren’t in it for the long haul; this is a job that serves them for now.
Put An Emphasis on Employee Physical & Mental Wellbeing
Happy employees are ones that are going to work harder for you and help you to grow your business. If you’re unable to offer financial incentives for employees, you can always boost retention and hiring with a policy that promotes physical and mental well-being.
People working in restaurants and other parts of the hospitality industry have had it very hard over the last few years. The pandemic put their jobs in jeopardy time and time again. They’ve also not been able to work from home, putting them on the frontline of human interaction.
One way that you can set your business apart is to show your employees that you care about their safety and their well-being. This can be through a thorough cleaning process for the restaurant, ensuring that you keep your staff as physically safe from infections as possible. You can also offer counseling and team building experiences that help your staff members to open up about topics that concern them and give them an outlet for any problems they’re having.
If you want to build a strong team, you need to look after them and nurture them.
Make Work-Life Easier with Technology & Automation
Technology has advanced to such a point that you can automate a multitude of processes. It’s true, the restaurant industry relies heavily on the human experience and can’t go without it. However, there are plenty of places to improve workflow and help your business to continue operating, even when facing staffing shortages.
One of the main advances is in contactless transactions. You can make it possible for customers to place orders on their smartphones, or at the very least, view the menu via a QR code. This means fewer people are waiting for a menu or for a staff member to take their order. Digital displays in the kitchen rather than printed-out tickets can streamline processes for cooking. Additionally, contactless payment options such as mobile pay can speed things up for your patrons.
You can also improve the way you manage your finances through the use of technology. This doesn’t necessarily mean investing in expensive software. You can make use of tools like a general ledger template to help monitor your financials and ascertain your current financial position. In doing so, you can make sound financial decisions that benefit your business and your employees.
Remember: Focus on Your Staff
Growing a business in the restaurant industry may seem like a tall order due to the widespread staffing shortages that have come about in the wake of the pandemic. However, it’s not impossible to achieve growth if you focus on creating the right working environment for your staff.
