According to Hospitality Magazine finding and hiring reliable and skilled workers is one of the greatest challenges facing business owners in the hospitality sector. The industry has experienced unprecedented growth (more than 10% a year) creating huge demand on the jobs market. As Anne Cazar, assistant director of tourism and hospitality at TAFE NSW says, “we’re just not attracting enough people to meet the increase in the market”.
Chef and Restaurateur Nino Zoccali, who operates two Italian restaurants in Sydney, couldn’t agree more; ‘there’s a huge shortage of skilled labour in our area’ says Zoccali, who cites changes to labour laws, and the growth of the hospitality industry since the GFC as contributing factors.
In New South Wales in 2014, only 1,489 people commenced commercial cookery apprenticeships. This is compared to 1,580 in 2013 and 1,670 in 2012. HTN is now working hard to correct this trend with the innovation of new skills programs like TotalChef Aspire.