November NUI Galway academic sets out recommendations for action to improve hospitality work

NUI Galway academic sets out recommendations for action to improve hospitality work

Whitaker Institute webinar to outline research findings on the lived experience of people employed in the sector

A NUI Galway academic whose research has helped to lay bare the lived experience of hospitality workers has set out a series of recommendations for Government to improve employment conditions and welfare in the sector.

Dr Deirdre Curran, Lecturer in Management at the J.E. Cairnes School of Business & Economics, said legislation on tips, a salary pathway, opportunities for professional development and the introduction of a basic set of industry HR standards should be progressed without delay.

Dr Curran will highlight her research at a special webinar hosted by the Whitaker Institute at NUI Galway at 1pm on Wednesday 3 November 2021.
The event will also hear from Dr Mary Farrell, an Executive Head Chef who completed her PhD at TUDublin on gender inequality in the chef profession, 

Registration for the webinar is open at https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_Vq32jyDpS72xs0P2FFQWuw

Dr Curran said: “The hospitality sector was uniquely impact by the Covid-19 pandemic. Many businesses were shut for more than 16 months and staff were out of work. But reopening has been fraught with recruitment challenges. We have limited research on the reasons for this but the wide range of issues and suggestions for improvement now provide Government with the opportunity for root and branch reform of the sector for the benefit of the workers.”

Dr Curran outlined recommendations recently to the Oireachtas at the Joint Committee on Tourism, Culture, Arts, Sport and Media, including:

:: A basic set of standards for treatment of hospitality workers that are monitored and enforced, initially through a targeted campaign.

:: Legislation on workers’ tips to be introduced without delay.

:: A salary pathway. Workers should not be retained on the minimum wage.

:: Incentives for good practice in the sector, including links to Government funding.

:: Ethical leadership from employer bodies and a stronger voice for workers.

:: Review of apprenticeships to prevent them being a source of cheap labour. Courses and outcomes should be linked to employment rights eg how to use your voice; how to deal with bullying and harassment.

The Whitaker Institute webinar will see presentations from Dr Curran and Dr Farrell, shedding some light on the current challenges facing the hospitality sector, and open the debate on how the sector could be reformed to make it a more attractive job/career choice.

There will be a discussion with a panel of hospitality sector stakeholders, including Julia Marciniak, Hospitality and Tourism Organiser with Unite trade union; Liam Lally, former hotel general manager with four decades of industry experience; Khristina Ridge from weraizup.com; and Andrew Leech, former chef and hospitality employer.

Ends