Access Hospitality Highlights Simple Steps To Help Protect Physical and Mental Wellbeing of Hospitality Employees

With anticipation rising about the reopening of hospitality venues, Access Hospitality has added to its catalogue of sector support with the publication of a digital employee wellbeing guide. It highlights some of the simple steps operators should consider to help staff adjust to their new circumstances including the importance of offering on demand pay.

Henry Seddon, Managing Director of Access Hospitality explained “Looking after the physical and mental health of employees needs the human touch, but managers can benefit significantly from technology support to deliver their care. As hospitality staff return to an environment that has evolved and will continue to adapt to changing consumer behaviours, they will have all sorts of health concerns, arising from different personal circumstances and this guide signposts some of the assistance available. 

“Some team members will be worried about their own physical health, or that of loved ones, others will be adapting after isolation and many will have anxieties over financial stability. The Access Hospitality Guide to Employee Wellbeing Post Lockdown is available for free download and includes sections on being mindful of different people’s readiness and attitudes towards reopening, staff engagement, reassurance and creating job satisfaction in an uncertain trading environment.” 

Employee Wellbeing is the third guide in a series produced by leading sector technology provider, Access Hospitality, demonstrating how technology can support practical measures across a range of business areas. It follows a checklist for getting operational and a guide to social distancing within hospitality venues.

Henry continued “A survey by Unite union illustrated the delicate balance that many of our industry colleagues are facing, with hospitality staff being more concerned about the financial consequences of the Covid-19 virus than they were the health implications. Whilst 48% were worried about becoming ill from the virus, 78% were worried they could not pay household bills and cover living costs. We expect many people will have ongoing concerns over reduced hours, loss of tip or tronc income and even the threat of redundancy once hospitality venues have reopened.”

The simple steps suggested, that could alleviate the impact of some of these financial issues on overall health and wellbeing, include offering more free meals on shift, increasing staff discounts, introducing on demand pay and reviewing the businesses tip policy.

“Operators should consider, for example, how important business cashflow is going to be post lockdown” continued Henry “and this will give them an insight into what their staff will be going through. Some could be waiting four to six weeks for the first payroll run, leaving them with the agonising decision of whether to buy food or pay bills. A flexible on demand pay scheme, such as Access EarlyPay, allows staff to draw down wages when they have been earned rather than having to wait and could help them budget more effectively as the economy gets back on its feet.”

A recent survey of Access EarlyPay users revealed that 90% of workers who could access on-demand pay said it was the most important employee benefit available to them during this time. Of those who had used the service during Covid-19, many needed it as a safety net with 72% withdrawing money for food and essential shopping and 62% for bills. The employee benefit of the system is obvious but, at no cost to the employers, they also see the importance of offering the service through improved staff retention and motivation, with staff turnover being reduced by up to 25% and service users working over 20% more shifts.

For further information, download the checklist at https://pages.theaccessgroup.com/Wellbeing.html, contact Access Hospitality on 0845 340 4542 or hospitality@theaccessgroup.com.

www.theaccessgroup.com