Employment Trends in the Hotel and Catering Industry in Great Britain

As in other service industries, the outstanding feature of recent increases in employment levels in the hotel and catering trades has been the extensive utilisation of part-time labour, accounting for 95 per cent of new jobs between 1971 and 1981. Growth of part-time employment in the industry reflects changes in the patterns of employers' labour demands. The simultaneous growth in unemployment emphasises the permanent role of part-timers in the industry. Reductions in working hours associated with part-time employment provide a means of controlling wage costs, whilst carrying implications for employees' rights and benefits under employment and social welfare legislation.