To support BC Government’s vision of doubling tourism revenues by 2015, 84,000 new jobs will become available in BC’s tourism and hospitality industry, of which 44,000 jobs will be in the food and beverage sector. With BC’s aging population, it means that employers will be fiercely competing for eligible workers as more job opportunities become available in various industries, including the food and beverage sector.
Considering this labour challenge and the demand for new workers, it is important for employers to work creatively and diligently to attract new workers and retain current staff.
“A good way to keep your staff is by showing your genuine appreciation,” says Peter Larose, Director of Industry Workforce Development at go2. “By recognizing your employees for their hard work and effort, you’re able to validate their contributions and value to your business.” Larose adds that while recognizing staff through a formal program is great, it’s certainly not necessary. “At the end of the day - literally, sometimes - it’s about maintaining a great relationship with your employees.”
Indeed, many inspiring stories of excellent employer-employee relationships can be found. At the Jolly Coachman in Pitt Meadows, Marilyn Sanders attributes her successful employee relationships to communication. Before she took ownership of the pub, the Jolly Coachman had experienced several previous owners. In fact, the head server and bartender were ready to quit in frustration as the pub changed hands once again. Despite both of them having other job offers, they decided to stay on and give Marilyn a chance. That was four years ago. Not only have they stayed, so has most of the staff. With 40 employees and an annual turnover rate of less than 1%, Marilyn has turned the Jolly Coachman into a veritable model of positive HR relations. “My biggest strength is communication,” she says. “Here everybody feels
like they’re part of a team.”
Every two weeks, with their paycheques, the staff receives a newsletter listing every single event, on a daily basis, for the next month - regardless of how small the details. Marilyn also hangs a large calendar where everyone signs in and out, which reminds employees of what’s happening or what’s changed - if there’s a live band, Monday night football, what the dinner special is, and so on. “I never want a staff member to say ‘I don’t know’ to a customer,” she adds. “Employees have to be well informed and in the loop.”
In terms of recognition, Marilyn says she adores her staff and does her best to acknowledge each of them in big and small ways on a regular basis. Two years ago, she whisked nine of her key staff members away on a holiday to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico as a way of showing her appreciation. She also had bought her head waitress, and her two sons, tickets to Toronto to visit family during the Christmas holidays.
“Here, everyone knows your name - almost like Cheers. When you walk in the door, your drink is already on the table. I have so many stories of how the customers love my staff and vice versa,” explains Marilyn. “And when you have staff like this, you want to keep them. They’re invaluable.”
For Marilyn, employee recognition runs the gamut and can be as simple as walking through the kitchen on a busy night and patting everyone on the back to say, “Thank you, you’re doing a great job”, or more formally acknowledging someone in front of his peers.
Though paying for staff trips may not always be feasible for many business owners, there are many creative ways of recognizing employees. As Marilyn notes, “With staff, it’s important to remember that they love the same things as everyone else. They love to be acknowledged, they love to be patted on the back, and they like to be appreciated. A little goes a long way.”
