Hospitality in Australia

Treatment of staff in hospitality is really shocking here.

I am writing this post because My husband has been a chef for 15 years and since moving to Australia is having real problems getting a decent career position, and wondered if anyone else has felt this in hospitality in Australia.

He was working as a Head Chef for a Australia wide company Ecco Hospitality

and was on a casual contract. He got “Let go” via email! which is so unprofessional - I cannot believe.

Not even the decency to make a phone call! Its like being dumped up text - what is this High school?

They also would not give a clear reason why they are letting him go.

they just said general performance. So there was no specific event that lead my husband to be fired.

There is no staff development at all. If there is room for improvement you should let your staff know so they have the opportunity to improve and become what you want them to be. You should invest time into you workforce.

I get the impression that within hospitality it is all about the low wage rather than the quality of staff.

Chances are he found someone who would do my husbands job for less pay so he replaced them.

Be warned when taking causal contracts they really don’t care about your life, they just want work done for as cheap as possible.

I can't compare as I'm still in the uk ....but surly in 15 years he's come up against the same in the uk?!? It's the same here we are treated like **** 4 days out of 5 and casual contracts are always the same. I've worked all over the uk and Europe for the last 15 years and sometimes things are good other times they are crap! I'm sure he'll find something he gets on with.....

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I Hope so. Yeah we had some crap employers in the UK, but not as bad as they are here.

We have been here 4 months and has worked two places. The above mention and previously, a crazy women who owned two cafes, where he worked on a casual contract, but she always said it will go perm.

She would text my husband all the time- I mean about 20 times a day. all through the night even and even when she was in the same room as him. The texts were a train of thought about cutlery and micro herbs.. And it just caused confusion as my husband was unsure if she was just rambling or if she wanted him to do something..

She Lead him on with the promise of a permanent contract but was never clear about the hours days etc. So when he asked for more hours and something more perm she said, "your not a Yes man, I only hire yes men" and that was the end of that.

No we never had such strange experiences in the UK.

What location are you ?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Just because you have had a bad experience does not mean all of Australia is the same!

But at least the minimum wages here are better than in UK. One son on casual here at a cafe gets $26 an hour min. More on weekend and penalty. Other son has casual job in bar/ restaurant in UK gets £8 an hour no matter when he works.

All the waiting and bar staff in Aussie cafe son works at are casual but chefs and supervisors/ managers are on proper contracts.

Decent Chefs are harder to come by so owners give them proper contracts, although might try them out first.

The world over people buy cafes and restaurants who really do not know what they are doing and have no experience in business or managing staff.

Im sure he will find somewhere but it may take time to get a good job.

We are in Brisbane,

That is true wages are higher and cost of living is lower no doubt.

And yes you are right maybe its just two bad eggs.

Hopefully things will improve..

I actually think it's the contract rather than anything else. If an employer isn't prepared to offer a trained chef a proper contract and not a casual one then I'd be steering clear of that company. Chefs are very sought after still and keeping a good one is very difficult, I've heard this mentioned time and time again and see Chefs positions offered time and time again here.

I would agree that it may be the contract - companies don't invest in casual employees.

Treatment of staff in hospitality is really shocking here.

I am writing this post because My husband has been a chef for 15 years and since moving to Australia is having real problems getting a decent career position, and wondered if anyone else has felt this in hospitality in Australia.

He was working as a Head Chef for a Australia wide company Ecco Hospitality

and was on a casual contract. He got “Let go” via email! which is so unprofessional - I cannot believe.

Not even the decency to make a phone call! Its like being dumped up text - what is this High school?

They also would not give a clear reason why they are letting him go.

they just said general performance. So there was no specific event that lead my husband to be fired.

There is no staff development at all. If there is room for improvement you should let your staff know so they have the opportunity to improve and become what you want them to be. You should invest time into you workforce.

I get the impression that within hospitality it is all about the low wage rather than the quality of staff.

Chances are he found someone who would do my husbands job for less pay so he replaced them.

Be warned when taking causal contracts they really don’t care about your life, they just want work done for as cheap as possible.

Well it has not really changed in the 18yrs we have been here, my daughter a trained chef similar problems as you at the start and at the end of last year, in-between was a smoko chick and then in catering which were both better hours and generally better bosses. since start of this year back to chefing again and has just been asked to take on the role of head chef............for the foreseeable future........whatever that means.

good luck for the future.

Two of my boys worked in hospitality. One of the places hired and fired chefs and restaurant managers all the time. All were on a casual basis so they could get rid of them if they felt they were under performing. The other son became an apprentice chef for a guy who use to work with Gordon Ramsay unfortunately one day he turned in to work and everything was locked up it turned out that morning they had declared bankruptcy. He worked at Maccas for a while but that was $8 an hour back then.

There always seems jobs available for chefs but it seems very high turnover.

Two of my boys worked in hospitality. One of the places hired and fired chefs and restaurant managers all the time. All were on a casual basis so they could get rid of them if they felt they were under performing. The other son became an apprentice chef for a guy who use to work with Gordon Ramsay unfortunately one day he turned in to work and everything was locked up it turned out that morning they had declared bankruptcy. He worked at Maccas for a while but that was $8 an hour back then.

There always seems jobs available for chefs but it seems very high turnover.

Same the world over though....I very much doubt this is a problem with location it's the industry!

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I totally agree and you know its ordinary people who want cheap food and a cheap coffee and never leave a tip that are the problem with hospitality. Also they look down their long nose at people who serve. Well most of those that are serving probably have more education than those they serve. Its the realm of students and people training to be other things. Chefs get to own restaurants and then forget their roots and treat their staff terribly, pay them peanuts and expect a smile. I could go and on about this because its one of my bug bears along with negative gearing in Aus. I put hospitality workers and tenants in the same basket, people who are expendable and only needed to make people rich.

I totally agree and you know its ordinary people who want cheap food and a cheap coffee and never leave a tip that are the problem with hospitality. Also they look down their long nose at people who serve. Well most of those that are serving probably have more education than those they serve. Its the realm of students and people training to be other things. Chefs get to own restaurants and then forget their roots and treat their staff terribly, pay them peanuts and expect a smile. I could go and on about this because its one of my bug bears along with negative gearing in Aus. I put hospitality workers and tenants in the same basket, people who are expendable and only needed to make people rich.

What an odd comment. I'm not sure if you are blaming the thick customers or greedy chefs!

When you spend time and money studying to become a Chef, because you choose Hospitality as a career. Get treated like a dispensable bit of oil in a money making machine time and time again, it becomes tiresome. We are now focusing on ways of moving away from the kitchens, but it is hard when you are 35 and that is all you have done.

When you spend time and money studying to become a Chef, because you choose Hospitality as a career. Get treated like a dispensable bit of oil in a money making machine time and time again, it becomes tiresome. We are now focusing on ways of moving away from the kitchens, but it is hard when you are 35 and that is all you have done.

Could you set up your own place?

When you spend time and money studying to become a Chef, because you choose Hospitality as a career. Get treated like a dispensable bit of oil in a money making machine time and time again, it becomes tiresome. We are now focusing on ways of moving away from the kitchens, but it is hard when you are 35 and that is all you have done.

Agreed. But my husband is 45 so unless we bite the bullet and get our own place not sure what he'd do [emoji17]

He had a fantastic head chef job in uk for 11 years working for a reasonable, fair employer and has worked as head chef here for 18 months. Money is about the same as he was getting in uk but less of a commute so that's a bonus.

It's a nice venue and he was really happy there until the new boss decided they'd be open all Christmas (previous year with different owners they closed public hols) and not pay anyone penalty rates. Plus they're refusing replace a sous chef that left so OH hasn't been able to take any leave he's owed. Not unusual for chefs during busy times, I get that, but it's resulted in us having to cut a trip short on one occasion and me having to take unpaid leave on another when we had no childcare and I had no leave left. Both times this was for leave on days the restaurant is usually closed and are just kitchen prep days and he'd booked the time off well in advance. They'd then subsequently 'forgotten' and booked a private function in last minute. He's is happy to do the double shifts and work extra during summer (we're regional and it goes quiet here in winter so his hours will be better then) but to not even get what's legally yours is more than disappointing [emoji35]

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk