The Kiwi hospitality industry needs 30,000 more staff for the summer season, according to the Restaurant Association.
This number is in line with what hospitality recruitment firm Barcats has estimated.
Marisa Bidois, chief executive of the Restaurant Association, said thousands more staff were needed to help restaurants, cafés, and eateries through the next three to four months over the busy summer period.
“Estimates show we are around 30,000 workers short,” said Bidois.
Bidois said Immigration NZ had told the Restaurant Association there had been an increase in applications to fill gaps in hospitality, but that was yet to flow through to people in venues.
“Those people haven’t necessarily arrived yet, and we don’t know how many people will be coming.
“We’re optimistic that we might see more people coming through next year to help ease some of the pressure that is currently on our businesses right now.”
Bidois said staff shortages were hampering growth across the industry and with significant events such as the Fifa Women’s World Cup next year, the industry needed as many staff as it could get, fast.
Hospitality in some regions had been particularly stretched by a lack of staff, including Queenstown and Lakes District, she said.
Some businesses had responded to staff shortages by reducing their hours of trade.
“It’s important that we have sufficient staff, so we can give our visitors a great hospitality experience when they come to New Zealand. We need the staff to be able to capitalise on increasing visitor numbers, otherwise it is a missed opportunity.”
The hospitality industry turned over about $13.4 billion in the year to September, surpassing annual revenue pre-pandemic.
However, with inflation and food prices now sitting at a 14-year high, there remains a question mark on just how much recovery there has been in the sector.
According to the latest Restaurant Association hospitality report, the 2022 industry turnover was up 15 percent on the $12b recorded in 2019 before the onset of Covid-19.
About $6.6b was spent at cafes and restaurants last year, a record annual result for the sector.
The fast food and takeaways sector was most in demand. In the year it made $3.8b, up $517 million on the previous year. Pubs, taverns and bars also experienced a strong bounce back in sales at $1.7b, up $375m on the previous year, while clubs and catering services had been slower to recover.
Before the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic and hospitality faced mass disruption and closures, the industry turned over a combined $12b in 2019.
