Here’s How Applebee’s Is Tackling the Hospitality Staffing Crisis

The COVID-19 crisis has brought many challenges to the world of business, from how to continue operations in a safe and secure manner, to facilitating remote work and handling an increased number of requests and questions from customers.

However, one area of industry which has arguably been hit more than most is the hospitality business. If it wasn’t bad enough that restaurants, bars, and hotels were forced to close during lockdown measures – except those which were able to quickly switch to a takeaway model – the industry now finds itself in the midst of a staffing crisis. The industry has reopened and is ready to serve customers, but an important piece of the puzzle is missing – the staff.

With kitchens and front of house roles going unfilled, the future of hospitality seem rather uncertain right now and it’s going to take innovative thinking to ensure a brighter tomorrow.

A Crisis of Staff

The crisis is significant. Over half of US hospitality staff have stated they would not return to their old jobs, no matter the incentive. Moreover, another third of employees aren’t even considering hospitality as an option for their future career.

"No pay increase or incentive would make these workers return to their previous workplace, according to a poll of about 13,000 job seekers during the second quarter from Joblist, an employment-search engine," reported Fortune. "These former hospitality employees cited wanting higher pay, a less physically demanding workplace, and better benefits, the survey finds."

So, what has changed in the industry? After all, the hospitality business has long had a reputation for long and unsociable hours, low pay, and tiring work, but has not experienced a crisis like this before COVID hit.

The answer may lie in the fact that many hospitality staff enter the industry when they’re young and, those who remain, do so into their later years and never really get a taste for other career paths. They may, therefore, not realize that other careers offer less intense working conditions than hospitality for similar or better remuneration. However, thanks to COVID lockdowns, these people have had the opportunity to try out other career paths and, from the strength of their refusal to even consider returning, seem to have found them preferable to their old hospitality roles.

Hospitality must therefore try and find ways of attracting fresh talent into the business, something household name casual dining brand, Applebee’s has been attempting.

Applebee’s

As one of the country’s best known hospitality brand’s, Dine Brands Global owned Applebee’s has found itself feeling the effects of the employment crisis more than most. With a little shy of 2,000 locations across the US, the Glendale, California based bar and grill has thousands of vacant roles to fill.

At the beginning of summer, 2021, Applebee’s had over 10,000 open positions and was simply not getting the volume of applicants it needed to fill them – never mind enough to be selective about hiring the absolute best candidates. To try and combat this discrepancy, it decided to host its very own National Hiring Day where it would push recruitment efforts to a countrywide level and offer incentives for candidates to put in an application.

Dubbing the program Apps for Apps, Applebee’s promised every person over the age of 18 who put in an application on the National Hiring Day, would receive a voucher for a free appetizer at any Applebee’s Bar and Grill location. Roles including host, to go, server, bartender, cook, dishwasher, and management, were including in the offer with Applebee’s also promoting the potential for career development and advancement within the company.

"At Applebee’s, we see guests as neighbors and team members as family, and we’re looking forward to welcoming thousands of new team members to the neighborhood this summer to start their career with us," said Chief Operations Officer at Applebee’s, Kevin Carroll in a press release at the time. "Our restaurants offer team members the flexibility to write their own story, be themselves and have fun – if this sounds like the right fit for you, head to an Applebee’s restaurant near you to see why you belong here and get that free appetizer!"

Final Thoughts

Clearly people are not going to base a long-term career decision on getting a free appetizer – no matter how good those potato skins might be. However, by creating a promotion such as this, Applebee’s gives itself the opportunity to make its case to more people than would otherwise have even been willing to listen.

There is no easy answer to the hospitality staffing crisis, but a little innovative thinking is sure to help get things moving in the right direction.

You can hear Dine Brands Global’s Vice President of HR, Julie Kang, speak at HR Retail 2022, taking place in April at the Hyatt Regency Austin, TX.

Download the agenda today for more information and insights.