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.
With more than 250 food allergens identified, and 15 million Americans diagnosed with food allergies, it’s no small task ensuring your restaurant’s food safety protocols are up to par, a must if the hope is to continue serving this large market.
To help those dealing with food allergies feel confident about their safety while dining in your restaurant, here are the key takeaways from an educational session at the 2015 National Restaurant Association Hotel-Motel show during which a panel of food safety experts shared their food allergen acumen :
Train your staff how to handle food allergens. “Incorporate your employees into your process. They start buying into it and feel more confident in what they’re doing,”says William Weichelt, ServSafe director.
A certified manager should be present during everyshift and directly involved in all instances in which food allergies are a known concern. He or she acts as a knowledge center for customers as well as a resource for employees.
Never guess. Speaking of certified managers, if employees are asked a food allergy question that they can’t answer, ensure that they reach out to a manager who can. If your restaurant cannot confidently satisfy a guest’s request, expressly communicate this. This outcome, although not ideal, is much safer for all involved rather than the risky alternative.
Make ingredient lists available to guests. They know their allergy better than you do, and thus will likely know the names of ingredients or sub-ingredients that may be red flags for them.
Sub-out widely used allergens. If possible, isolate ingredients or recipes that could trigger a common allergy. For example, P.F. Chang’s China Bistro now uses wheat-free soy in lieu of regular soy in all of its marinades.
Create a back-of-house system for allergen-specific equipment. Consider using color-coded, allergen-specific plateware, prepware and other equipment.
Invest in allergy-specific technology. Natalie Krusemeier, director of training for the 7-unit, Chicago-based Colonial Café, says the company’s POS system has an allergen key. When pressed by a front-of-house staffer, the back of the house knows of the allergy, and a manager then becomes involved.
For additional information regarding food allergens, reference FARE, Food Allergy and Research and Education group, and CHART, the Council of Hotel and Restaurant Trainers.
This article originally appeared on www.restaurant.org and can be found here.
When: July 3-5, starting at 10 am. Where: Cherry Creek North, from 2nd to 3rd Avenues between Columbine St. and Steele St. What: The signature festival is a cultural celebration of the visual, performing and culinary arts. It’s a great experience for the whole family with the Artivity Avenue, a full block of interactive activity for youngsters, the Cultural Pavilion, where performing arts come to life, and the Culinary Avenue, featuring some tasty snacks and live cooking demonstrations from popular eateries around Denver. Free for all who wish to attend.
When: Friday, July 3, 4-8 pm. Where: Ridge Street Arts Square, Breckenridge, CO. What: A celebration of street, pavements and graffiti arts featuring guest artists specializing in each media. Also on the schedule is live music (starting at 8 pm), a chalk art contest, and stenciling workshops including kid’s graffiti. No admission fee.
When: Friday, July 3, beginning at 8 pm. Where: Civic Center Park (Colfax & Broadway). What: Start your 4th of July early at the 6th annual FREE community celebration featuring a concert, light show, and fireworks. The concert will feature Funkiphino and 101st Army Concert Band from Buckley Air Force Base. Lawn seating will be available on a first-come, first-serve basis so get there early! Attendees are welcome to bring their own picnics, but concessions will be available as well.
When: Saturday, July 4, kicking off at 1:30 pm. Where: Along 23rd Avenue, from Dexter St. to Krameria St. View route here. What: Celebrate Independence Day with family and friends by watching the 6th annual Park Hill parade featuring more than 50 groups including floats, marching bands, costumed characters, classic cars and more! The parade will run along 23rd Ave., with viewing areas available along both the north and south sides of 23rd. Get there early to set up blankets and chairs, then relax and enjoy the fun!
When: Saturday, July 4, starting at 7 pm. Where: Sports Authority Field at Mile High. What: Watch the Outlaws, Denver’s professional lacrosse team, face-off against the Boston Cannons this 4th of July. Then after we take home the big W, enjoy the fireworks show- pyrotechnics paired with visuals on a 220-foot wide, HD screen! Tickets start at $28 available for purchase here.
When: July 10-12; Friday 4- 10 pm, Saturday 11 am- 10 pm, Sunday 10 am- 5 pm. Where: TEV Edelweiss festival grounds in Morrison, CO. What: Celebrate traditional German culture with food, entertainment, music, dance and beer! There will be activities for children and a real German all-you-can-eat Frühschoppen (brunch) for $15 on Sunday morning from 10 am- 2 pm. Price of admission: Friday & Saturday $5, Sunday $3 (or $1 before noon); children 12 & under are free.
When: July 10-12; Friday 5- 10 pm, Saturday 10 am- 10 pm, Sunday 10 am- 7 pm. Where: Clement Park, Littleton, CO. What: Experience the largest Irish celebration in the Rocky Mountains with traditional Irish music performances and dancing, Irish drama and storytelling, crafts, games and food and drinks. Known throughout the west for its display of kilts, bagpipes and Irish step dancing, this year’s Irish Festival promises to be a memorable weekend. Price of admission: Friday $10 (or free before 6 pm), Saturday & Sunday $13; children 12 & under are free. Tickets are available online here, King Soopers/Ticket West outlets, and at the event gates.
When: Friday, July 10, starting at 9 pm. Where: VIE Nightclub Denver. What: Meet the person you’ve been stalking on Tinder! Or find your match among Denver’s hottest singles. Show your Tinder app at the door to skip line/cover. And join us as we celebrate Stephanie (a.k.a Sirvo’s fearless leader) turning 27 with bottles galore and beats provided by DJ GARMAN!
When: Saturday, July 11, 12- 4 pm. Where: Millenium Harvest House in Boulder CO. What: Third annual celebration of the best & baddest IPAs organized by The West End Tavern. Try IPA’s from 30+ breweries, enjoy live music from The Goonies & Sixty Minute Men, and food from The West End Tavern. Tickets are $35; 100% of proceeds to benefit Safehouse.
When: Sunday, July 12, 11 am- 6 pm Where:The Breakers Resort Denver What: To celebrate the opening of the Riviera at the Breakers Resort, a lounge and internet cafe, 303 Magazine is throwing a series of pool parties throughout the summer. The next one is just around the corner, and will be featuring DJ Kate Elsworth on the 1’s and 2’s. Tickets are $26 and only available online. Get them here ASAP because they’re going fast.
When: Wednesday, July 15, 6- 9 pm. Where: The Omni Interlocken Resort in Broomfield, CO. What: Ten beer-savvy chefs from around the town will compete to create up to 20 dishes to be paired with one of 20 award-winning beers. On the day of the event, chefs will be preparing then serving their dishes alongside samples of each beer. A panel of food and wine experts will name the winners for “Best Chef” and “Most Creative Chef”, and attendees will also get to cast their votes to decide the winner of the “People’s Choice Chef”. Tickets are on sale here for $75.
When: Thursday, July 16, starting at 6:30 pm. Where: Galvanize Platte in Denver, CO. What: Colorado’s premiere startup party where members of the Galvanize community, local startup scene and all who are interested come together to enjoy conversation, cocktails, giveaways, and interactive demos from presenting startups including yours truly. We’ll be showing off Sirvo and giving away some free shwag, so come and support us! Tickets are available for $15 here.
When: July 17-19, starting at 5 pm. Where:Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, CO. What: If you like electronic music, this concert is definitely for you. The greatest EDM artists from around the globe travel to Colorado to play for thousands of enthusiasts under the open sky at Red Rocks. The lineup includes Tiesto, Kaskade, Above & Beyond, Benny Benassi and many more. Get your tickets here before they sell out!
When: Thursday, July 23, 6- 10 pm. Where: The Galleria at the Denver Performing Arts Complex. What: Enjoy bites from over 40 of Denver’s best independent restaurants, then wash them down with cocktails from Denver’s top mixologists and craft beer from our favorite breweries. And like every BigEat, expect surprises and countless fun to benefit EatDenver. Tickets are available online for $55 here.
When: July 25-26, 7- 10 pm. Where:The Mile High Station in Denver, CO. What: The Summer Brew Fest at Mile High Station will celebrate craft beverages from around Colorado and beyond, not to mention live local music, food, and other vendors. Tickets are available online for $35 here, or on the day of for $45. Proceeds benefit Swallow Hill Music Association.
When: July 25, 7- 8 am. Where: Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, CO. What: Get your yoga on in one of the most awe-inspiring venues in the world. After the event, visit the Top Plaza for goodies from participating sponsors. Tickets are $12, available online here; $1 per admission will go to the Whole Planet Foundation.
When: July 31, starting at 7 pm. Where: Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Morrison, CO. What: Gather your friends and family and head up to Red Rocks to enjoy this classic. Tickets are $12, available online here.
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 oftentarget 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.
