- 85% of hospitality employees report they have experienced poor mental health in the last 12 months
- 67% state having more notice of shift patterns would improve their life
- Planday shares actionable advice for managers to increase staff happiness and retention
Planday – the shift planning software by Xero – has released survey results on why staff retention in hospitality is so low and uses the results to share practical advice on what hospitality leaders and managers can do to increase staff retention and happiness.
The survey results – dissecting the habits and work priorities of over 2,000 UK shift workers – were turned into a white paper report in association with The Burnt Chef Project. Off the back of these learnings, Planday launched The Single Biggest Shift campaign, promoting actionable solutions to the hospitality employment crisis and creating happier, healthier teams who are more likely to stay in the industry for longer.
With one in seven (15%) hospitality workers stating they would not recommend the industry as a career – primarily down to low pay (66%), long shifts or uncontrollable hours (57%) and a lack of control over rotas (46%) – and 53% of UK shift workers confessing they have plans to leave their current job, it’s clear that something in the industry needs to ‘shift’ in order to increase staff retention.
On top of this, shockingly 85% of hospitality employees report they have experienced symptoms of poor mental health in the last 12 months, including depression, anxiety or stress.
One of the clear actionable results that came out of the survey findings to alleviate the unhappiness at work was that 67% of employees believe having more notice of shift patterns would improve their life. Indeed, 68% of employees have considered switching to another industry due to lack of notice on rotas and unpredictable shift patterns. 53% state that they suffer from stress and anxiety due to not regularly knowing when they will be needed at work, but only 31% get a week or more notice ahead of their next shift.
Dave Lee, CEO at Planday, comments: ‘Being able to plan ahead more efficiently is quickly becoming an essential component of a successful hospitality business, and is the single biggest shift that hospitality businesses can do to support staff. Those that fail to do so will struggle to retain current staff as employees quickly become burnt out and frustrated with schedules that aren’t accurate or fail to give them the flexibility to swap shifts.’
Listening to the survey results, Planday shares four practical actions that businesses can take to really shift the dial on staff retention:
- Improve mental wellbeing support. 85% of respondents reported poor mental health problems in the last 12 months and yet only 24% have access to support in the workplace
- Create progression plans for all employees. 71% who feel they lack appropriate guidance to reach the next level plan to leave their role in the immediate future.
- Plan rosters further ahead. 69% of employees get a week or less notice of their next shift, and 68% have considered switching to another industry due of lack of planning.. Planday can help managers plan shift work further in advance, and this small change could positively impact a vast majority of hospitality workers.
- Use technology to work across generations. 68% state they would make regular use of a mobile app that allows them to make shift changes and stay on top of their rota and pay. Giving employees more freedom gives them a better work / life balance, which in turn will lead to happier staff.
Using these simple tips will help hospitality businesses keep their staff happy and in turn have higher staff retention. Indeed, 47% cite a good work / life balance as the most important factor for them when looking for a new job, and 25% demand regular working patterns.
Lee comments: ‘At Planday, we believe that if businesses can make some simple changes, such as improving mental wellbeing support, having robust progression plans in place, planning rotas further in advance, and using technology to support them, their businesses will become not only a more desirable place to work, but staff members will be happier and will have higher staff retention.’
