The Truth About Hospitality Turnover

The Truth About Hospitality Turnover

by | Nov 16, 2015 | Management

The turnover rate for employees in the restaurants-and-accommodations sector rose for the fourth consecutive year in 2014, though it remains relatively low in historical terms.  Restaurant employee turnover is higher than the private sector due to several factors, including higher proportions of teenagers, students and part-year employees in the industry workforce, according to the NRA’s chief economist Bruce Grindy.  His Economist’s Notebook commentary and analysis appears regularly on Restaurant.org and Restaurant TrendMapper.

The turnover rate in the hospitality sector rose for the fourth consecutive year in 2014, but remained below pre-recession levels, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover (JOLTS) program.

The overall turnover rate in the restaurants-and-accommodations* sector was 66.3 percent in 2014, up 10 percentage points from the recent low of 56.6 percent in 2010.

Despite the increase, the turnover rate remains relatively low in historical terms. In 2007, prior to the economic downturn, the turnover rate of the restaurants-and-accommodations sector was 80.9 percent. This was generally on par with turnover in the previous five years (2002-2006), when the annual rate averaged 80 percent.

In comparison, the average turnover rate for all private sector workers stood at 44.4 percent in 2014, up four percentage points from the 2010 low but still below the average turnover rate of 50 percent during the 2002 – 2006 period.

The JOLTS program breaks turnover into three components, with the sum of the parts representing the overall turnover rate.  The quits rate in the restaurants-and-accommodations sector was 46.5 percent in 2014, while the layoffs-and-discharges rate was 17.2 percent.  Other separations, which include retirements, transfers, deaths, and separations due to disability, comprised 2.6 percent of the sector’s turnover rate in 2014.

Most sectors of the economy saw their overall turnover rates decline during the challenging economic environment of 2008 – 2010, as workers were less likely to quit their current jobs with fewer other employment opportunities available. However, the quit rate rose in recent years, which indicates that workers are becoming more confident in the labor market and are willing to jump to another job.

Restaurant industry turnover tends to be higher than overall private sector turnover for a number of reasons.  First, the restaurant industry is the economy’s largest employer of teenagers, as one-third of all working teenagers in the U.S. are employed in a restaurant.  Many of these 1.5 million teenage restaurant workers are getting their first job experience, and will go on to start a career with a different employer, either inside or outside the restaurant industry.

Second, the restaurant industry employs a high proportion of students, who typically don’t work on a full-year schedule.  Twenty-eight percent of eating and drinking place employees are enrolled in school, versus just 11 percent of the total U.S. employed labor force, according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2013 American Community Survey (ACS).

The restaurant industry also boosts seasonal staffing levels at various points throughout the year, which adds to the normal cyclical turnover numbers.  For example, the restaurant industry is one of the economy’s largest creators of seasonal jobs during the summer months, adding more than 400,000 jobs during an average summer season.  Overall, 31 percent of the eating and drinking place workforce are part-year employees, compared to 19 percent of the total U.S. workforce, according to the ACS.

Full-year employees also contribute to the industry’s comparatively higher turnover rate, as upward mobility in the restaurant industry often happens when employees move from one restaurant to another.  More than any other industry in the economy, the existence of multiple restaurants in nearly every community gives employees additional opportunities for upward mobility and career growth.

*Note that the turnover figures presented are for the broadly-defined Accommodations and Food Services sector (NAICS 72), because the Bureau of Labor Statistics does not report data for restaurants alone.

Source

Serving Hacks Part 1: Cracking The Interview

Serving Hacks Part 1: Cracking The Interview

by | Nov 4, 2015 | Career

Whether it’s your first time interviewing for a server job or you’re a seasoned veteran in the industry, you have to be ready for whatever they may throw at you. From how to present yourself to demonstrating your skills, here are some tips to help you dominate the interview.

Think of it as just another table

For me, approaching the interview like you’d approach your tables is the best way to express your qualities and personality.

Your interviewer is looking to see who you are when you’re at a table and what better way to show this than by treating them as you would treat a guest.

Confidence is key

Serving is all about confidence. Guests can tell from a mile away if you’re comfortable with what you’re doing or if you’re nervous as hell, and so can your interviewer.

It’s crucial to exude confidence, even if you’re faking it!

So, whether you know everything there is to know about serving or you’re in over your head, it’s crucial to exude confidence, even if you’re faking it! From dominant body language to assertiveness, showing your interviewer that you can keep your cool while being grilled will show them that, if you’re hired, you’ll do the same with your tables.

Stay positive

Positivity is contagious and attractive to a manager as well as a guest. Conveying that you’re happy with what you do and can keep a positive attitude despite the mayhem around you is a crucial element of both serving and interviewing.

So, do your best to keep on smiling even if you’re not totally feeling it.

All about the attentiveness

I try to incorporate this word in every serving interview as a fancier way of saying “guest/customer service”. In the industry, putting the guest first is elemental.

In the industry, putting the guest first is elemental.

Proving that this is important to you will delight your interviewer and reflect well on your priorities as a server. Use this buzzword and give an example of how attentive you can, and will, be.

Trust goes a long way

Establishing trust with customers is goal #1. If you can establish trust right off the bat, guests are more likely to be comfortable asking you questions and following your suggestions. This is good business for the restaurant and, not to mention, you’ll probably get a better tip!

So, it goes without saying, getting your interviewer to trust you goes a long way in demonstrating that you can do the same with customers.

Pro-tip: A great way to gain trust quickly is through your drink recommendation. If you have a suggestion for a drink that you know is universally enjoyed, the guest will likely feed off of your interest and try it. If you describe it correctly and they like it, you’re in. Expressing something like this to your interviewer will show off your know-how and get some extra points!

Make organization and efficiency a priority

When interviewing, be sure to articulate how important being both organized and efficient while serving is to you.

While most people believe that serving is a brainless, simple occupation, the amount of multi-tasking involved is far from easy. From drink and food orders to maintaining tables and helping out co-workers, there is a lot on your plate.

Describe your go-to strategy for staying organized and on-task while on the job.

Establishing that you can handle the multitudes of responsibilities and can manage your time efficiently is a sure-fire way to impress a manager and interviewer. To do so, describe your go-to strategy for staying organized and on-task while on the job.

Keep your head in the game

In the industry, we call it being in the weeds. You’re dealing with a fussy customer, trying to find a manager to comp a bill, thinking about the fight you’re having with your roommates; what do you do?

Freak out and cry in the corner or keep your head and breathe? The latter, obviously.

A simple way to impress your interviewer is to be aware of this and express how you would deal with the stress. Servers are ubiquitously known as prima donnas and have trouble keeping their emotions in check. If you show that you can keep your cool, you are on your way to getting a job.

The interview is half the battle to becoming a great server. Use these tips to nail it every time and the rest of our serving hacks for when you get hired!

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6 Tips To Rock The First Day Of Your New Job

6 Tips To Rock The First Day Of Your New Job

by | Oct 1, 2015 | Career

Starting a new job is nerve-wracking whether you have experience or not, but we all have to go through it at one point or another. Here are a few first-day tips to follow that will boost your confidence from the get-go and impress your new boss, managers, and coworkers.

1) Come Prepared

Before starting your shift, make sure you’re both mentally and physically prepared to work. Don’t go out or stay up late the night before and be ready to do a lot of listening and learning. Get your clothes/uniform and anything else you’ll need (like a notebook) for work organized the day before you start. This will decrease pre-shift stress, plus it will save you time. This is key because, more than anything else, be on time, or even better, 10-15 minutes early. Showing up late to your first day of work doesn’t exactly send a great message to either your boss or new co-workers.

2) Make the first move

Whether it’s when you first walk in the door or in the middle of your shift during a slow period, ask what you can do to help. Being proactive will not only impress the higher ups, but it will also speed up the learning process, so you can go from training to tips that much faster.

3) Pay close attention

Even if you’re experienced and highly qualified for the position, there will be differences between past and present employers. From operations to expectations, you’ll have a whole new set of rules to play by, so listen to your trainer to get a lay of the land. Also, to help you remember the important details and also give you a resource to reference, take a lot of notes. Bonus: this will also show your trainer that you’re dedicated to learning the work-flow and getting in the swing of things.

4) Get your hustle on

Whether your new job is slower or faster paced than what you’re used to, make sure to work quickly and efficiently. Strolling around the establishment won’t help you excel at your job, nor will it do anything for your bank account. Commission and tips don’t grow on trees. Even if your paycheck isn’t directly tied to how many customers you have, hustling at work, during and post training, will impress your boss and make your coworkers happy that you joined the team.

5) Be friendly and polite 

This applies to all parties: trainer, coworkers, and customers. With your trainer and coworkers, don’t talk back. Make sure you have your facts straight before calling someone out, which means having at least a few shifts under your belt. If nothing else, keep smiling, even if you’re not really feeling it. Not only will this keep your morale up, it will also have the same effect on those around you.

6) Ask questions 

There are such things as stupid questions, but you should still ask them because it’s better than making stupid mistakes. Asking questions will only help your cause. You’ll learn more, avoid making errors in the future, and also show that you’re engaged in the experience and on point when it comes to training. So if you don’t know something or are confused, speak up so it doesn’t come back to bite you in the butt.

 For more on how to excel at work, click here.

Why Sirvo is the Place to Find Jobs and Hire in the Service Industry

Why Sirvo is the Place to Find Jobs and Hire in the Service Industry

by | Jul 15, 2015 | Sirvo Stories

The service industry employs 30.7 million people nationwide. That’s 1 in every 10! And, since the service industry is the “fastest growing sector in terms of the number of people employed”, that’s a stat that’s on the rise.

But there’s a problem that’s also on the rise: recruiting and hiring employees within the service industry.

Open calls, social networks, and large job boards such as Craigslist just aren’t cutting it.

Job seekers apply to countless numbers of job listings without the chance to gather more information about the job or business to see if it’s a quality fit for them. And there’s no good way to tell if a job is an opportunity or a dead end when you’re looking at an ad on Facebook.

Employers and hiring managers are spending their time sifting through piles of paper just to find a suitable candidate when they should be spending time considering job seekers who are qualified for the position in terms of skills, experience, and culture fit.

And it’s a waste of time and money for both sides, because although these methods are great in terms of quantity, they don’t do much when it comes to quality.

Sirvo is the solution.

Sirvo is a recruitment platform for the service industry. Connecting employers, professionals, and job seekers.

Professionals that are looking for a job (or something on the side) create profiles that not only show off their professional accomplishments but also their shining personality. Can you say the same about (literally) one-dimensional, paper resumes? Doubt it.

Businesses create company profiles and job listings in a matter of minutes. Full-time or event staff, managers or promo models, in a pinch or ongoing – we’ve got you covered. You can even close job listings, then reuse them later. All for a fraction of the cost of traditional hiring channels.

By combining social, jobs, and streamlining the application process, Sirvo is leapfrogging the industry into the modern age of connectivity. With just a click: apply to jobs, organize candidates, message members, and more. Sirvo does the busy work, so you can get back to what matters.

“Sirvo is where you go to connect with your service industry peers, because whether you’re working, searching, hiring, or influencing within the industry, we’re all part of this dynamic community that is in need of a home base.”

Interested in our beginning? Check us out at https://gosirvo.com to sign up for beta.

Restaurant Employees Cheated Out Of Money and Rights

Restaurant Employees Cheated Out Of Money and Rights

by | Jun 26, 2015 | Career

Pilot study published by the Center on Policy Initiatives and San Diego State University uncovers wage theft, discrimination, and break violations among restaurants in San Diego County.

“Overwhelming numbers of restaurant workers reported they had been cheated out of money they were owed in wages and tips, as well as their break time.”

Professor Jill Esbenshade, quoted above, is the principle investigator of recently published study Shorted: Wage Theft, Time Theft and Discrimination in San Diego County Restaurant Jobs, which includes results from a survey of 337 employees working in more than 160 distinct dining establishments in San Diego County, as well as 30 in-depth interviews and observational data collected at 40 top local restaurants.

The findings reveal disturbing numbers of labor laws violations and other exploitive workplace practices at restaurants of all kinds, from fast food to fine dining:

  • More than 75% of employees surveyed reported that their employers had illegally shorted them on wages or tips during the past year.
  • 25% of respondents said that wage theft is a regular part of their jobs.
  • 84% reported violations of rights to meal breaks and rest breaks, and 23% said restaurant managers made them falsely record unpaid meal breaks although having worked through the break.
  • Wage theft was found to most often target women, Latinos, and back-of-house staff.

This study’s findings replicate what has been reported in other studies conducted throughout the country; the violation of employee rights is far too commonplace in the restaurant industry and warrant further exploration as well as the development of policy solutions.

Read full study here.