Hospitality Hiring Insider: The hospitality recruitment trends of Q1 2025

Caterer.com’s Hospitality Hiring Insider provides a detailed view of hospitality hiring trends from Q1 2025. It’s packed with the key stats, employer insights, and expert tips you need to shape your hiring strategy.

In this Q1 2025 update, we explore how hospitality hiring has evolved since the end of 2024, including changes in candidate behaviour, job posting patterns, salary trends and more. Whether you’re planning for summer peaks, hiring to grow, or simply looking to stay competitive in a busy market, this report is your go-to guide.

As ever, it’s not just about what the data says. It’s about what you can do with it. Throughout the report, we highlight the top takeaways to help you turn insights into action and strengthen your strategy for the months ahead.

Here’s what the Q1 2025 Hospitality Hiring Insider covers:

The most up-to-date view of UK hospitality hiring trends
In-depth insight into job postings, candidate behaviour and regional patterns
Salary benchmarking by role, location and sub-discipline to keep your offer competitive
Practical tips to sharpen your recruitment strategy and stand out
First-hand insights from hospitality employers including Harts Group, The Lancaster Landmark Hotel Company and Jumeirah hotels
Expert advice from Be Inclusive Hospitality on building a more inclusive, representative workforce

Let’s dive into some of the highlights.

Candidate activity is on the rise

Let’s start with the big headline: candidate interest surged in Q1 2025. The average number of applications per vacancy (APV) hit 75.3, up from 52 in Q4 2024 and the highest we’ve seen in over a year. That’s a 47% increase quarter-on-quarter.

Searches on Caterer.com also remained strong, with nearly 1.8 million made in Q1 alone. Mondays saw the highest traffic, reinforcing just how important timing is when posting or boosting job ads.

If you’ve been feeling the pinch when it comes to candidate attraction, now’s a great time to capitalise on this momentum. The people are out there, and they’re actively looking.

And with inclusion playing a bigger role in candidate expectations, there’s also a growing opportunity to connect with a wider, more diverse pool of talent.

But competition is heating up

While candidate interest is strong, employers are busy hiring too. Over a third of hospitality businesses plan to ramp up recruitment in Q2. This far outpaces the all-industry average of 24%.

What does that mean for you?

It means more employers competing for the same talent pool. And it means your roles need to stand out, whether that’s through clearer job ads, stronger benefits or faster hiring processes.

The businesses that win are visible, responsive, and offer something candidates can’t find elsewhere.

Entry-level roles are attracting huge interest

Looking at Caterer.com data, one trend stands out: front-of-house and entry-level roles are seeing exceptionally high engagement.

Waiter/Waitress and Kitchen Porter roles received over 200 applications per vacancy, more than double the sitewide average. Bartender, Room Attendant and Catering Assistant roles also saw huge spikes in views and applications.

This is a big opportunity. With more people exploring hospitality as a career, businesses that invest in training and development at entry level will be well-placed to build a loyal, long-term workforce.

It’s not just about filling roles. It’s about creating a future talent pipeline.

Chef and kitchen roles remain highly competitive

While entry-level roles are flying, demand for experienced chefs remains highly competitive.

That said, Chef, Sous Chef, and Chef de Partie positions accounted for more than 220,000 applications in Q1. Pay for these roles is also on the rise, with Head Chef and Kitchen Porter salaries up by around 70p per hour since Q3 2024.

This reinforces what we’ve heard time and again from employers: retaining and developing skilled kitchen staff remains a top priority.

Employers are moving faster

Speed is becoming a real differentiator.

In Q1, 42% of hospitality employers made hires within three weeks, significantly faster than the UK average of 4.6 weeks.

It’s a reminder that fast, streamlined processes can give you a serious edge. If your application or interview process is clunky, you risk losing great candidates to businesses that move more quickly.

Flexibility, transparency, inclusivity and culture are key

What are candidates looking for?

The same things we’ve seen rising in importance over the past year: flexibility, career progression, clarity, and an inclusive workplace culture.

Phrases like “competitive salary” no longer cut it. Today’s talent wants to know what they’re signing up for. Whether that’s set shifts, development programmes, or real work-life balance, they want to see what your business is really like, not just read about it.

This is where your employer brand matters. The more visible, transparent and people-focused your messaging, the more likely you are to attract (and keep) the right candidates.

A strong focus on inclusivity, and inclusive benefits, is also crucial. In this edition, Be Inclusive Hospitality shares practical steps you can take to create a workplace where everyone feels seen, supported and valued.

What are employers doing differently?

In our “Caterer.com Catch Up” series, we spoke with employers including Harts Group, Jumeirah Hotels and The Lancaster Landmark Hotel Company to hear how they’re adapting. Here’s what they shared:

Transparency wins trust. Clear job ads with defined pay, expectations and career paths make a big impact. Harts Group, for example, attributes much of their 414% rise in applications to clearer communication and stronger employer branding.
Speed matters. The Lancaster Landmark Hotel Company reduced its time to hire by streamlining interviews, empowering managers to act quickly, and making job ads mobile friendly.
Retention is a long game. At Jumeirah Hotels, a new academy-style model is helping entry-level chefs grow into senior roles over time, reducing turnover and building loyalty.
Hospitality is a career: tell that story. All three employers are doing more to promote progression, connect with schools and colleges, and make hospitality visible to younger audiences.
Culture counts. From inclusive policies to team wellness days, internal culture is playing a bigger role in what today’s candidates are looking for.