Incentives offered amid recruitment crisis

A London based restaurant group has offered staff who recommend friends to fill job vacancies bonuses of up to £2,000

Hawksmoor made the decision in the midst of a recruitment crisis in the hospitality sector, driven by Covid.

Pub chains Marston’s and Mitchells and Butlers have also warned they were finding it hard to recruit workers, blaming overseas staff returning home and the stop-start nature of lockdown forcing people to give up on the sector.

One recruitment company reported a 95% rise in hospitality job adverts over the last three weeks as the sector reopens and increases capacity.

‘Thriving profession’

Perfect Recruitment’s Lisa Brady said: “It is understandable that there is some natural hesitation over returning to work in the hospitality industry after such a turbulent 12 months of uncertainty; but as the wheels of industry start turning again, now is the time to re-join such a thriving profession and the chance to actively seek out your next challenge.

“According to the ONS* there are 335,000 fewer people employed in the hospitality industry compared to last year and this just really highlights the incredible opportunities that are out there for candidates across the board, from front of house and management positions to chefs and event managers in both full and part time roles.”

Latest figures from global recruitment firm Broadbean Technology found that in April, vacancies in UK hospitality soared 77% from the previous month. However, compared with April 2020, the number of applications slumped 82%.

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