100,000 fewer employees
Industry under pressure – Corona is costing the hospitality industry many jobs
October 17, 2023, 4:13 p.m
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The months-long closures in the catering industry have cost hundreds of thousands of jobs. In view of high inflation and the lack of staff, sales are still below pre-pandemic levels. In view of competition from other sectors of the economy, the industry has to correct its current business model.
The corona pandemic has shaken the business model of the hospitality industry with numerous part-time and seasonal employees and the consequences are still being felt. Last year, according to one study For the Hans Böckler Foundation and the NGG union, around 100,000 fewer people are still employed in the industry than before the pandemic. The industry is under pressure “like never before” to increase its attractiveness for employees and improve working conditions.
Before the corona pandemic, the hospitality industry in Germany recorded steadily growing sales figures – and steadily growing numbers of employees. According to the study, 2.1 million people worked in restaurants, bars and hotels in 2019. During the corona pandemic, the number fell to a “historic low” of 1.8 million people subject to social security contributions and those in marginal employment. But the gap is gradually closing. The study cites projections from the Federal Employment Agency, according to which around the same number of people will be working in the hospitality industry next year as in 2019.
Almost 330,000 fewer people worked in the hospitality industry at the peak of the pandemic. More than one in four employees who were subject to social security contributions in 2020 chose a different profession during the pandemic. Employees under the age of 25 and in companies with 50 or more employees turned their backs on the hospitality industry. Many mini-jobbers and temporary workers also changed. They often now work in retail or logistics jobs. According to the study, the pandemic also caused a 22 percent decline in trainees – in 2022 there were almost 37,000 trainees, two thirds fewer than 15 years earlier.
The number of companies, on the other hand, was again just above the 2019 level at more than 159,000 in 2022. According to the study, sales last year reached 98.4 billion euros – which was below the 2019 value of 104.2 billion euros.
The companies have now significantly increased their workforce again, by around 224,000 last year – but according to the study, they are primarily relying on mini-jobs and unskilled employees: almost two-thirds of the recent increase in employment was attributable to mini-jobs.
Criticism especially of work organization
In a survey cited in the study of more than 4,000 employees and works council members, employees complained not only about poor pay but also regular overtime, constant time pressure and enormous demands on flexibility. “In many cases it is not the work itself that causes problems for people, but rather the organization,” explained the Hans Böckler Foundation. A fifth of those surveyed often have to fill in at short notice beyond the agreed working hours.
When it comes to pay, however, there has actually been movement in the hospitality industry recently, according to the foundation: after the statutory minimum wage was increased to twelve euros in October 2022, a number of new collective agreements were concluded. In addition, according to industry representatives, the value of collective agreements is increasing – not least because competition from other industries has increased significantly. Depending on the region, monthly wages currently range from 2,076 euros gross in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and 2,622 euros in Bavaria.
Another approach to increasing attractiveness could be a proposal from the Food-Gourmet-Gaststätten (NGG) union to pay all employees in the hospitality industry a starting wage of at least 3,000 euros gross full-time after their training. Above all, there is a need for “employee-oriented regulations on working hours”. Without wage increases and better working conditions, the staffing gap will be “difficult to close,” the study concluded.