Security
Security of employment, work and income are important foundations of a successful life. The Inquiry considered the degree to which workers in hospitality experienced security at work and found the following key points:
- The accommodation and food services sector had the highest number of employees earning less than the Real Living Wage in 2023 (45.8% compared to 10.1% across all sectors) although this figure is significantly lower than pre-pandemic levels (60.0% compared to 16.8% across all sectors in 2019) suggesting some wage growth over time.
- Despite this, the sector still has the lowest hourly pay of all sectors in Scotland.
- Working hours was identified as a key issue for the Inquiry Group.
- For businesses, issues focused around ensuring sufficient staff availability to cover the hours of work needed.
- For workers, limited involvement in the determination of working hours was exacerbated by the late notice of shifts, being unable to take breaks and still having breaks deducted from pay, inaccuracies of recording of hours worked, and uncertainty of finish times. Workers were clear that receiving appropriate and predictable hours is essential to support both work/life balance and an adequate standard of living.
- The Inquiry noted a growing use of different contract types, including agency work, self-employment and some use of ‘apps’ like Stint. Survey work undertaken during the Inquiry revealed a proportion of workers (13%) without written contracts.
- In 2022, the accommodation and food services sector accounted for around 32.9% of all people on a zero hours contract (ZHC) in Scotland. Views on ZHCs were mixed, with some employers making a clear choice not to use ZHCs in their business and others seeing them as important for dealing with fluctuating demand and seasonality. While some workers valued the flexibility of ZHCs, some also had concerns about the negative consequences of this type of work.
- Tips can be an important top-up to many workers’ pay in hospitality. New legislation, expected to come into force in October 2024, makes it unlawful for businesses to hold back tips or service charges from their employees. This is a positive step for workers and provides a clear and consistent standard for employers.
Precarious work and insecurity at work disproportionately impacts certain groups – younger workers, women, disabled workers, non-UK nationals, ethnic minority workers and those with lower educational attainment.
Security at work is fundamental with issues around pay, hours, contracts and basic employment rights, all core elements of workers’ experience of work. While improvements have been seen in hospitality around payment of the Real Living Wage, there is more that employers can do to improve security at work.
Findings from this Inquiry suggest that employers focusing on providing transparent and predictable hours; and clear information on employment rights to all of their employees is likely to have a significant impact on the experience of fair work in hospitality.