Jobs And Careers Autumn 2018 - 101

H O S P I TA L I T Y

Diversity
in hospitality

that holidays are very reasonably priced,
because you can keep your accommodation
costs down so you can spend your money
sightseeing - though you always become a
critic when you see other people's hotels!"

8
 

Direct customer
interaction
If you're someone who enjoys
dealing with customers
face to face, the decision
to go into this sector is a
no-brainer. "There aren't many other
lines of work where customers are able
to directly show you their gratitude," says
Willingham. "People genuinely appreciate
what you do and you can make people
happy - I think that's rather special."

9
 

Never a dull moment
Don't want to spend your
life sitting at a desk? Then
hospitality could be perfect
for you. The time you get up,
how many hours you work,
your daily tasks, who you speak to, even
what you eat - everything varies from day

to day. It's also highly flexible and can fit
around other commitments like family. It'll
keep you on your toes and never get boring.

10
 

The people
you meet
There are few other
industries that bring
you into contact
with so many people
from different places and backgrounds
- not least because it employs so many
people from overseas (see the box, right).
"You meet different people every
day, so you learn about other countries
and cultures as well as being able to
share all the exciting information about
your own area," says Miller. "This can
also apply to colleagues who are likely
to be from a range of countries - I've
learned a lot about countries' traditions
which I would never have known
without working in hospitality.
"Also, it's really helpful when you go on
holiday and they can recommend places to
go so you get to see the 'real' parts of the
country instead of just the touristy bits!"

The hospitality sector is one that has
always welcomed women, with recent
figures showing that its workforce is
54% female. And while women have
traditionally been excluded from some
roles, that is changing: in 2017 the
number of female chefs grew by 34%,
while male chefs increased by just 5.9%.
Although women make up only 26%
of senior management in hospitality,
many big companies - including Hilton,
InterContinental Hotels Group, Bourne
Leisure and Marston's - have signed
up to Women In Hospitality's target
of 33% female representation across
boards and executive committees by
2020, prompted by the HamptonAlexander Review of companies.
The hospitality sector is also welcoming
to those from all backgrounds: 43% of
employees are from overseas (rising
to more than half in restaurants), with
the highest percentages in Greater
London and Northern Ireland. The job
with the highest proportion of nonUK EU nationals is waiting staff with
75.3%, followed by housekeepers at
37.1%. Meanwhile, around 14% of the
hospitality workforce are from a BME
background (higher than the percentage
of BME people in the population), while
2016 government population figures
showed that 19% of all employees
from UK ethnic minorities worked in
"distribution, hotels and restaurants".

JOBS & CAREERS /// 101
Jobs And Careers Autumn 2018

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Jobs And Careers Autumn 2018
