19/10/2021
Sector urged to use Hospitality Apprenticeships Week
Trade association, UKHospitality has urged the sector to use Hospitality Apprenticeships Week (18th - 22nd October) as a platform to champion the diverse careers on offer, advises The Caterer. This year's event will seek to challenge misconceptions around roles in the industry and show how working in hospitality is #MoreThanAJob. Business minister Paul Scully, who is also backing the campaign, added: "Through our Hospitality Strategy, the government is working hand-in-hand with the sector to help it make the most of its creative and innovative spirit as it builds back better from the pandemic."
Restaurants boost wages amid staffing struggles
More than a third of UK hospitality employers have boosted pay and benefits in an attempt to attract and retain staff, new data from Lightspeed reveals. According to their Global State of the Hospitality Industry Report, 38% of UK merchants are already operating with fewer employees than needed, with 14% forced to reduce opening hours. Hiring and staff retention were singled out as the biggest challenges facing the UK hospitality industry, with almost half of survey respondents struggled to retain staff, reports Big Hospitality.
Pubs and bars enjoy 43.5% boost during September
Pubs, bars and clubs benefited from a 43.5% boost during September, while entertainment saw its strongest growth in more than two years with an increase of 28% owing to new film releases, gigs and theatre shows reports the Morning Advertiser. Barclaycard data confirms spending on essential items has increased by 14.4%, the highest uplift in more than two years, while spending on non-essential items grew by 12.9% this month. Raheel Ahmed, Head of Consumer Products for Barclays said: "Pubs, bars & clubs and the entertainment industry benefitted from post-work socialising."
Government delays business rates reform
Chancellor Rishi Sunak wants to keep studying the business rates problem for small businesses versus online retailers before committing to wholesale reform. The government will not be announcing reform of business rates for small businesses in the Budget, as had been expected. Business rates reform has been "thrown into the long grass" according to The Telegraph and instead only small-scale tweaks will be announced after the Budget on October 27th.
Door staff shortage are a risk to public safety
The Night Time Industries Association has said a long-term decline in security resources has been "hugely exacerbated by the pandemic", with many licensed staff leaving the sector for jobs with better hours, reports Sky News. The NTIA stressed that security staff in venues are "fundamental to public safety" as it called for government action.
And Finally...
A man with a passion for pubs believes he has set a new Guinness World Record. Matt Ellis, from Cambridgeshire is currently waiting for his attempt to be verified, after he visited a remarkable 51 pubs in 24 hours reports The Drink Business.