Michelin-starred chef Mike Robinson has revealed that he will no longer be offering weekday lunch service at his restaurants in a bid to save his staff from exhaustion.
The UK-based restauranteur, whose establishments include London‘s Michelin-starred pub The Harwood Arms, The Elder in Bath and The Woodsman in Stratford-Upon-Avon, expressed concerns that people often leave the industry because they are left feeling extremely worn down from the long working hours.
‘The most important thing we have in our restaurants is our staff,’ he said, speaking on the Biting Talk podcast. ‘If you’re working lunch and dinner, five days a week you’re exhausted on your two days off.’
The restauranteur went on to say how he thought it was about time he implemented a positive change.
Michelin-starred chef Mike Robinson (pictured, in 2009) has revealed that he will no longer be offering weekday lunch service at his restaurants in a bid to save his staff from exhaustion
‘By necessity there’s a tradition of people working crazy hours in restaurants,’ he explained. ‘And I think it’s time this changed.’
In the hope of making improvements to the wellbeing of his hardworking staff, Robinson has offered his employees the opportunity to work between 45 and 55 hours a week.
It’s a much more appealing working day in comparison to the average 70 hours others in the industry endure.
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‘I want the talent pool we have to stay with us,’ he said. ‘They can get the hours they want to work and get the right work/life balance.’
The restauranteur’s establishments include London’s Michelin-starred pub The Harwood Arms (pictured), The Elder in Bath and The Woodsman in Stratford-Upon-Avon
Robinson went on to explain that he decided to call time on weekday lunch service at his restaurants two weeks ago.
He added that he is now able to ‘put the focus on quality and effort in the evening and have longer evening services.’
And according to the chef, the positive reaction has been well received by all.
‘Customer satisfaction is higher, our staff are so happy and you’re only ever as good as the people you work with,’ he explained.
‘If we want to get the restaurant industry booming again the one thing we have to do is look after our staff.’
Source: Food Recipes and News
