Hospitality workplaces play an important societal role and the workforce is at the core of achieving workplace sustainability.
Hospitality Futures is a hub dedicated to showcasing exciting and impactful research projects on the hospitality workforce. It connects policymakers, organisations, universities, businesses, employers and workers to collaborate and address workforce challenges.
Our aim is to foster better employer/worker relations in the hospitality sector, gain a better understanding of the challenges that workers and employers face, address present and future workforce issues, and seek future-oriented sustainable solutions.
Do get in touch if you would like to collaborate or learn more about what we do.
Projects
Students for Hospitality, Hospitality for Students
Student-workers are an increasingly important worker group but have distinct needs and face distinct challenges. Based on research conducted with students working in hospitality while studying, this project provides research-informed guidelines for employers, universities, students and unions. The aim is to support businesses in building stronger relationships with their student-workers; to help students navigate early experiences of work; and to guide universities on how to best support working students. The 8F Framework of Good Principles in Student Employment can be accessed via our website.
The Good Student Employer Charter
Join now! This is a free initiative for visitor economy businesses (hospitality, tourism, events, leisure, retail etc.) who hire students and want to champion best practice in student employment. The Good Student Employer Charter has been launched to support businesses in building positive and lasting relationships with their student-workers. Signatories of the Charter become part of a network of student-friendly employers, industry organisations and education providers. The aim is to support businesses and help them benefit from a more engaged student workforce, while meaningfully improving the experiences of young workers at the beginning of their careers.
Reboot – Hospitality Workplaces Navigating Technological Change
Hospitality employers are increasingly seeking technological solutions to address staff shortages, achieve cost savings, and increase productivity. However, little is known about how these changes are affecting workers, and what can be done to minimise sector-specific workforce challenges. Funded by the British Academy and taking a multi-method approach to gather data from workers, employers and key stakeholders, this study examines the ways in which technology is transforming hospitality workplaces and how workers exercise agency in order to anticipate, mitigate and manage workforce implications. It aims to equip policymakers, industry, employers, unions and worker groups with evidence on how digital transformation is reshaping hospitality work and power relations in workplaces, and provide policy and practice recommendations to ensure all stakeholders benefit.
EnCourAGE – Understanding Experiences of Older Hospitality Workers
This project seeks to generate policy and practice guidelines to support the industry, businesses and employers in recruiting, retaining, and supporting the needs of older workers. Due to the growing ageing population and significant labour shortages in the hospitality sector, attracting and retaining older workers is increasingly becoming important. The study aims to extend understanding of the motivations and barriers to employment for older workers in the hospitality and tourism sector and to develop a useful framework on how to better support older workers and encourage them to enter and stay in the industry for longer periods.
iCare – International students’ experiences of seeking service sector work in the UK while studying.
This project focuses on understanding the working experiences of international students. Of particular interest are the intersectional challenges international students encounter while searching for jobs and the ways in which they navigate the challenges of finding work. Due to the cost of living crisis, students increasingly work while studying but little is known about the specific challenges and needs of international students. The project seeks to provide practical guidelines for universities and student unions on how to better support international students who seek work, and guidelines for employers on how they can make their recruitment practices and working environments more inclusive for international students.
