The Hospitality sector is always changing and changed alot over the past 3-4 years. As we look forward to 2024, we look at a few trends and changes

Food costs & trends

These are now becoming more stable, which means menus and pricing should be able to go back to be set for 3 or 6 months at a time with no major issue. it is still essential to look at the cuts of meats, to ensure your using the right type of cut. Think whole animal and whole plant. use every part of the item, to keep food costs down.

We are still looking at the luxury and ultra luxury markets doing very well, as is the budget end of hospitality. The grey and pink pounds still seem to be doing well, the grey pound does not get as effected by interest rates in a negative way as many have paid off the house and higher rates means higher savings

With higher rents, we are finding the 18-24 yr olds stay at home longer, this means they have more money to spend on eating out.

Rents & live in

For companies, These are set to continue to be high on rent renewal dates. The reason for this is due to the high interest rates.

With house rents going up, we have seen a massive surge in people looking for live in. This is not suitable for couples or families as live in is for the worker only. The move towards more live in jobs has surged so much in the past 2 to 3 years.

Recruitment

There been a big movement this year away from ongoing temps. in the past, temp workers was about filling a one off gap and not for the whole year. There been a move away from temps for many kitchens to recruiting full time posts. With the minimum wage going up, the hourly rate for a temp will become high, for many kitchens. This is why we are seeing this move away from temp workers to full time

productive and days of opening

We have seen loads of companies go to 5 day week trading instead of 7 days. We have had others trade less hours. We have also seen more hospitality companies doing breaks for workers, this keeps the number of hours down per day. We are also seeing more technology being used with food ordering systems

Sponsorship of visa’s to work in the UK

The UK government has announced that it will increase the salary threshold for workers who need sponsorship from £26,200 to £38,700 starting from spring 2024. This change is expected to have a significant impact on the hospitality industry. The basic salary, excluding tips, will mean that many companies sponsoring a chef de partie will not be able to sponsor new ones. Candidates who are in the UK now under sponsorship will not be able to move to a new company after May if the salary does not meet the requirements. Most sponsorships last up to 5 years but only for that one company, moving companies means a worker needs a new sponsorship. This could have a big impact for companies and also for workers, as they would need to stay with their sponsored company for the length of the sponsorship unless they are doing a job that is paying at least £38,700 basic salary.

In 2024 we will have two big changes happening, this will affect Hospitality and you will need to start planning now. The biggest change is the allocation of tips, as this will affect agency workers who are paid on a agency PAYE and your own casual staff. Many companies have moved towards a fixed allocation of service charge, based over a month, this will affect this and could mean it based on a day or hourly rate.

In addition to this, minimum wage will be going up as well from 2024, which was announced at the conservative party conference in October 2023, this will happen from April 2024.

Minimum wage (living wage)

It was announced, for over 21 year olds, this will now be at £11.44 per hour. This means if someone works 40 hours, the wage is £23,795. A 45 hr contract is £26,769 and a 48 hr contract is  £28,554. This is basic wage excluding tips and service.

There are things you will need to start to do, this will include:

• budget for the difference
• review the hours you require your team, do they all need to be on a 48 hr week contract or can some be on 40 hours or 45 hours
• review the opening hours of your business, if you have a quite day, do you require to be open or can open later?
• review technology, can you use technology to reduce manual labour, which in turn, can help staff feel happier and also it means they can work 40 hours and not 48 hours

The rates for under 21 year olds, at the time writing this has not been released yet.

Allocation of tips:

The Employment Allocation of Tips Act 2023 received royal assent earlier this year and is expected to come into force in 2024. This new law will make it illegal for companies in the UK to take a portion of the service charge or tips from their staff who are employed on PAYE by restaurants or hotels.

For years, there have been reports about how some restaurant and hotel chains were pocketing a portion of the service charge or tips left for their staff by customers. This act will put an end to this unethical practice, ensuring that all tips are fairly distributed among the employees who provided the service.

The act will require companies to be transparent about their tipping and service charge policies and inform customers if any portion is kept by the business. It will also give employees the right to challenge any decision made by their employer on the allocation of tips. Further, it will ensure that the tips are not used to make up the minimum wage, which will have a significant impact on the lives of low-wage employees in the hospitality industry.

This move comes as a great relief to many workers in the hospitality industry, especially those who rely on tips as a significant part of their income. It will help to ensure that their hard work is rewarded and that their employers cannot take advantage of them by keeping a portion of their tips.

Overall, the Employment Allocation of Tips Act 2023 is a significant development for employees in the hospitality industry. It will provide greater transparency and fairness in the distribution of tips and service charge, making it a win for both workers and customers.  This is for workers employed direct by a Restaurant, Hotel or Bar on PAYE either on a Full time, part time or casual contract.

HtE Recruitment News & Insights

This news and insights page has been written by Rick based on information on the government website and the autumn statement. Rates of pay quoted is correct on 17/11/22 and the rates do change each year. HtE Recruitment take no responsibility for this post.