Hospitality Guide to Recruiting Workers Aged 50+

Click here to download the guide

The UK is undergoing a large demographic shift. However, broadly speaking, the hospitality sector is falling behind when it comes to attracting and employing an older workforce.

The Centre for Ageing Better reports that by 2025 there will be an extra one million workers over the age of 50 in the UK. This section of the workforce can begin to address the vacancy rates of around 10% that continue to persist within the sector, with hospitality vacancies roughly 50% higher than they were pre-pandemic (ONS).

This guide has been developed as part of a taskforce between UK Hospitality and The Phoenix Group, established through the Government's Over-50s Ministerial Taskforce. The aim of the taskforce is to increase the number of over-50s in the UK workforce by exploring the issues and barriers which currently discourage workers aged 50+ from securing employment within the sector.

The guide identifies myths associated with this age group in the workplace and explores solutions to the barriers which prevent the sector from supporting older employees in their day-to-day working lives, as well as those which hamper the recruitment process.

Understanding generational differences is crucial, as this is often the first hurdle faced by many employers. This guide sets out a best-practice approach for businesses in the sector to capture this untapped talent pool of workers with years of skills and experience behind them, enabling businesses to create more diverse and harmonious teams.

Amended for Northern Ireland by Hospitality Ulster in partnership with Tourism NI.