ROPE
MANAGERS GET CREATIVE TO
COPE WITH LABOR SHORTAGES .
rate of US $ 9 to US $ 10 an hour , only to see a nearby sign from fast-food outlet Chipotle offering US $ 13 to US $ 14 . Another complication : With higher starting hourly rates , newcomers may be close to earning as much as a 15-year veteran . “ The veterans aren ’ t shy about pointing this out ,” Latture says , “ which requires us to revisit our entire wage structure .”
Reducing turnover can go a long way in helping the bottom line . Russo ’ s team worked with a hotel in a top U . S . metro market that was suffering from 72 % staff turnover . The team established a US $ 50,000 budget for employee engagement with the goal of cutting turnover in half . The hotel cleaned the locker room , upgraded the cafeteria and established a monthly lunch with the general manager as a way to offer suggestions . “ It ’ s better to invest in your staff instead of always
We ’ ve had it easy . I refuse to call it a crisis .
LAURENCE GELLER , CHAIRMAN , GELLER CAPITAL
being on the hamster wheel of finding new associates ,” Russo says . “ If people are happy , they ’ ll stay .”
Managers are getting creative . One hotel offered English as a second language classes , Russo says . Another gave backpacks with school supplies to employees with kids in school . One hotel staggered housekeeper start times , which enabled parents to drop their kids off at school and relieved cart traffic jams on the elevators at 7 a . m .
Even as they seek to hire , managers are finding ways to get by with fewer workers . Robots are vacuuming public spaces and accompanying some housekeepers as well , enabling them to save minutes per room . Some hotels give guests who stay more than two nights the option of foregoing room service in exchange for points or a small discount . In the F & B department , properties used to staff room service with a couple of people every evening . “ Now it ’ s the host or a cook in the back taking the order ,” Latture says . What happens when the labor shortage turns to a glut ? That isn ’ t expected to happen anytime soon , but when it does , the robots may have taken some of those jobs . “ The operational changes will stay ,” Latture says .— J . C .
June 2019 hotelsmag . com 47