The myriad of issues that hospitality has faced since the beginning of the pandemic has changed the trajectory of the industry.
Arguably the most prominent issue facing hospitality candidates currently, however, is the cost-of-living crisis.
Though the hospitality workforce has grown 8.8% in the last year, which is undoubtedly a positive shift, there is also heightened apprehension from many candidates about how to survive the cost-of-living crisis.
The Talent Hive team has compiled their best tips to survive the cost-of-living crisis for hospitality candidates.
Let’s see what they had to say.
1. Negotiate a pay rise
We’ve spoken in a previous blog post about how you can constructively ask for a pay rise in your hospitality role, but here are our top takeaways.
After all, one of the best ways to feel more secure during a tumultuous period is to raise your income.
Firstly, we’d recommend that you avoid accepting a counteroffer.
Though there can be a temptation to get a pay rise by telling your employer that you’ve been offered another role, this could be harmful in the long term, whether your employer does increase your pay or is unable to.
Rather than going to such extremes, we’d instead suggest that you:
- Note down your skills, particularly those that may not be getting utilised but are valuable (e.g. management experience)
- Seek in-house training opportunities to show a commitment to growing and developing your skillset
- Do your research on current salaries for your job role to best be able to negotiate your pay rise
Our top tip: It’s important to ask for a pay rise that is more than you expect, but not completely unreasonable – if you have data to back up salary benchmarks to show you’re being paid under the industry average, tactfully include this alongside your other evidence as a reason for requesting a pay rise.
2. Update your CV
If you’re looking for a new role with a higher salary rather than sticking with your current employer, updating your CV is the best course of action.
It might sound simple, but it’s often overlooked – how many skills have you developed in a role that you might not even have on your current CV because it hasn’t been updated?
This is even more essential for highlighting skills that are in high demand, given that this will place you as a sought-after candidate and enable you to negotiate a higher salary.
For example, the most requested skills for back of house jobs according to job postings include:
- Food safety knowledge
- Basic knife skills
- Cleaning/sanitation
- Prepping food/ingredients
And soft skills include:
- Teamwork
- Communication
- Positive attitude
Doing a bit of research into the most sought-after skills to match against your own skillset and experience means you can tailor your CV to the exact role you’re pursuing!
Our top tip: The best way to highlight skills on your CV is to provide examples, where possible, as to how a skill has been beneficial. For example, how have your skills contributed to KPIs? This puts your performance and skillset into context.
3. Look for the best employee benefits
One of the many ways that hospitality businesses have been offsetting the impact of skills shortages and high vacancies in the industry has been to focus on crafting a strong employer value proposition (EVP).
This means that hospitality businesses are focusing more on how they reward employees for the value they bring to a business.
During a cost-of-living crisis, this means that if you’re looking for a new role, you can focus on finding an employer that can help you to maximise your earnings (and minimise any additional spending).
These are the key areas that employers generally focus on for their EVP:
- Workplace culture
- Career and growth opportunities
- Health and wellbeing
- Flexible working
- Work-life balance
- Diversity and inclusion commitments
Of course, areas such as health and wellbeing could offer potential savings through benefits such as subsidised gym memberships or healthcare plans.
Additionally, workplace culture that focuses heavily on rewards could mean employee bonus structures or a higher number of holidays.
Career development may be overlooked in favour of more immediate cost-cutting / income-maximising options, yet the opportunity to receive additional training and skills will help you in the long term to progress in your role, and consequently, increase your salary and overall income.
Our top tip: Check job postings and the social media accounts of any hospitality businesses with vacancies to see the kind of benefits they offer. The best option will generally be a business that is transparent about the benefits they offer, rather than you having to ask at the interview stage!
4. Remember your worth
Labour shortages are continuing to be an issue in hospitality, with an average of 11% of hospitality roles being vacant.
This high level of competition for hospitality candidates has driven up salaries as well, at an average of 10% in the last 12 months alone.
In other words, there’s never been a better time for hospitality candidates to truly know their worth and to secure the best job role for themselves.
Keep in mind that skills shortages are significant and that if you follow the above advice, you can craft a CV and strong basis to negotiate a great salary and a variety of employee benefits.
We know that times like these can be really difficult, but if we could give hospitality candidates any advice and words of encouragement, we’d say that the market is now candidate-driven.
You’ve got everything you need to get a role that suits you and your needs during the current cost-of-living crisis, and we’ve got faith that every candidate has a lot more to offer than they might think.
Get in touch
If you’re looking for a new role, Talent Hive can help.
Our team has first-hand experience of the ups and downs and ins and outs of hospitality, and we’re passionate about helping candidates secure their dream hospitality role.
Get in touch today to find out more, or take a look at our vacancies.