Z Generation avoids the hospitality industry

The Z Generation is ducking clear of careers in the hospitality industry.

Their biggest concern: copping a spray from an irate customer.

The result: the sector now faces a crippling labour and skills shortage.

The Z Generation applies to anyone born since 1995.

And they are very different.

According to Edith Cowan University researcher Edmund Goh, this is a generation raised in the digital world and one more comfortable with emojis than real-life emotion.

Goh conducted extensive research on the issue interviewing young hospitality students at three training institutes.

He found one in three admitted they were apprehensive about handling difficult situations face-to-face.

“That is one of the key barriers for Generation Z to joining the hospitality workforce,” Goh told the Sunday Times.

“I associated this fear with the fact they have been brought up overly dependent on technology and don’t have experience with the basics of customer service.”

He said this was a problem for the industry with 42 per cent of Australian hospitality employers reporting problems filling vacancies and 28 of every 100 roles going unfilled. 

And it’s going to get worse as the baby boomers retire.

It’s a big issue in Western Australia with youth unemployment hitting a 21 year high of 16.7 per cent in February.

This is despite sustained demand for a wide range of hospitality jobs.

Analysis by Australian employment website JobGetter reveals there were nearly 350 advertised hospitality roles in WA this month, making hospitality the third biggest sector needing workers behind only retail and administration and office support.

Australian Hotels Association WA chief executive Bradley Woods says Goh’s research has some important lessons for the sector.

“The challenge for us is to disarm them from their devices and demonstrate that you can have a safe and comfortable environment where people are interacting face-to-face,” he told the Sunday Times.

Leon Getler 3rd April 2018.