More than 90,000 new jobs are forecast in Australia’s hospitality industry
ALMOST 90,000 new Australian jobs are forecast to be created in the coming five years and one in 10 are likely to come from one particular industry.
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ONE in 10 new jobs is forecast to be in the hospitality sector, creating thousands of new opportunities for jobseekers with a flair for good customer service.
The national cafe, restaurant and catering services sector’s turnover last financial year was $26.5 billion, a 4.1 per cent increase year-on-year, Australian Bureau of Statistics figures show.
South Australia recorded the highest growth, at 19.9 per cent, followed by New South Wales (8.7 per cent) and Victoria (5.2 per cent).
Federal Government projections for the next five years reveal need for an extra 40,100 hospitality workers – including waiters, bar attendants and baristas – as well as 16,800 chefs, 16,100 kitchen hands, 9700 cafe and restaurant managers, 6200 cooks and 4800 fast-food cooks.
Combined, these occupations make up about 93,700 jobs, which is about one in every 10 new Australian jobs forecast to be created between 2018 and 2023.
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Restaurant and Catering Australia policy and public affairs manager James Coward says hospitality jobs are growing right across the country, with nowhere “immune to the skills shortages”.
“We’ve seen significant growth in the skilled occupations – cooks, cafe and restaurant managers, and chefs,” he says.
Restaurant and Catering’s 2018 Industry Benchmarking Report reveals 48.2 per cent of businesses find it “very difficult” to fill positions for chefs and 41.1 per cent say the same for cafe and restaurant managers.
“Employers are reporting increased difficulty in filling those vacancies because of the high level of demand,” Coward says.
“It’s a combination of increased demand for the dining experience as well as increase in growth in domestic and international tourism.”
Tourism Research Australia’s National Visitor Survey reveals an 11 per cent increase in spending on restaurant and takeaway meals by domestic tourists in the year to June, 2018.
They spent $11.1 billion during this period.
Coward recommends people interested in hospitality work apply for an apprenticeship.
“We are really encouraging pursing pathways through apprenticeships and pursuing long-term career paths in the hospitality sector,” he says.
“At the moment there is a high attrition rate as apprentices come through then are employed by a business but are not staying for very long.
“(With a long-term career in the hospitality sector) you can travel overseas, there are opportunities to work for big businesses and you can translate skills from hospitality into other sectors and industries.”
Food and beverage attendant Summer Seden went straight from her school-based hospitality traineeship to landing a full-time job and being named Employee of the Quarter.
The 16-year-old undertook a year of training at ibis Mackay Hotel via the Johnathan Thurston Academy after the footballer and the ibis Mackay team launched the JT School-Based Traineeship program to help Indigenous school kids get work experience and kickstart their employment journey.
“My hospitality teacher thought it was a good opportunity and put my name forward,” Seden says.
“I was always active in the classroom in hospitality class and at lunchtime I would volunteer my time in the school cafeteria.
“I like to stay busy so I don’t get bored and there is so much to learn.”
Her boss Scott Grant says employers need to embrace younger generations and give them opportunities.
“I also believe we have a responsibility as a large employer to give back to the community and assist in skilling up our locals,” he says.
“We have seen Summer’s confidence really grow and I think our customer service training helped her feel she had the skills to do the job.”
Grant says Seden, 16, was named Employee of the Quarter after her peers “unanimously voted” her the winner.
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Originally published as More than 90,000 new jobs are forecast in Australia’s hospitality industry