HR & hospitality | The Bear and Boiling Point shed light on the realities of this niche when it comes to people, recruitment and retention

The kitchen has always fascinated people. And never more so when it’s dramatised.

Two shows are top of the viewing lists right now: The Bear and Boiling Point, and they’ve reminded us of the unique niche that is HR and hospitality.

Staff turnover can be high – recent figures from the Cairn Hotel Group showed that almost a third of staff (32%) wouldn’t plan to stay in a hospitality job longer than six months. Almost a fourth (24%) of Gen Z leave hospitality jobs because they believe there is little progression. Meanwhile, over half of adults believe that a job in hospitality is one without progression.

Not so when we look at the TV dramas where chefs can rise to Michelin-starred status. There are also reality shows with chefs which showcase the realities of hospitality – most notably, recently, Tom Kerridge’s Hidden World of Hospitality. Kerridge has been very open about the challenges of working in hospitality, and the show lifts the lid not only on what it’s like to run restaurants and bars, but being part of that workforce, too.