Hospitality is now the workplace of choice for over 50s with more than 165K joining the sector in 3 years

Did you know that people over 50 now make up 34% of the hospitality sector’s workforce?

Image of the bar tender making a cocktail

More than 165,000 workers over 50 have joined the hospitality sector in the last three years, according to research we recently conducted for the latest edition of our Hospitality Hiring Insider.

Our research also reveals that people over 50 now make up over a third (34%) of the sector’s workforce!

How hiring over 50s has become a top priority

More than four in five (84%) hospitality businesses have now introduced age diverse policies and benefits, making themselves more appealing to this often-neglected demographic. These policies range from re-entry or returner programmes (49%), age inclusive diversity and inclusion training for all staff (23%) through to flexible scheduling to accommodate individual needs (21%).

Whilst hospitality has suffered with a labour shortage for some time, we have found that the sector has been quick to adapt to attract previously untapped talent pools. Age diversity is the top priority for a lot of hospitality employers when it comes to improving the diversity, equity, and inclusion of their workforce and the vast majority (77%) of hospitality employers say they see over 50s as important in solving the sector’s labour shortages.

Organisations like Fuller’s, The Wolseley Hospitality Group and Compass Group are amongst those leading the way in building age diverse workforces and attracting over 50s talent.

Why over 50s are joining the hospitality industry

Four in five (72%) hospitality employers agree that the cost-of-living crisis is inspiring more people over the age of 50 to take on new jobs to boost their income. However, nearly 3m people over 50 in the UK would consider a job in the hospitality industry – and the most common drivers for this actually extend beyond just financial reasons. The hospitality sector provides this age demographic with opportunities to keep physically active and build social connections, with a wide variety of job roles that often offer flexible working hours.

Through our research we found that the most common reasons over 50s workers might consider a hospitality job are:

To make people happy (32%)
To supplement their pension (29%)
To fill their free time and/or to avoid boredom (25%)
For the social benefits/social workplace culture (25%)
To keep active/for fitness benefits (20%)

Over 50s bring valuable skills to the workplace

The Hospitality Hiring Insider highlights the value that older workers can bring to hospitality brands, and how this demographic can actually improve productivity in the workplace.

Two in five (39%) hospitality businesses recognise that employees over the age of 50 can bring better customer experience skills to a role compared to other age groups. Other areas that older workers are considered to be more skilled in than other age groups include – strong work ethic (37%), problem solving (35%), business knowledge (33%) and the ability to remain calm in difficult situations (31%).

Decision makers have also noted enhanced experience level within the workforce (43%), improved skill diversity (40%) and improved employee retention (39%) as a result of having an age diverse workplace.

“We know that age diversity is a top priority for hospitality employers when it comes to improving the diversity, equity and inclusion of their workforce. Hospitality businesses are paving the way for other sectors with the introduction of truly age diverse policies and hiring approaches, and the rewards are clear to see. This is a strong and innovative sector and employers within it continue to evolve in order to succeed, despite the many challenges of the current trading environment. 

“Employees over 50 offer a wealth of experience and transferrable skills, which enhance the overall customer experience and foster a positive workplace culture. With the UK experiencing an ageing population, and the hospitality sector still seeking to fill 118,000 open vacancies (ONS), this growing talent pool is a clear and ready source of new hires and the team at Caterer.com work closely with customers every day to help them attract and retain them.”

Kathy DyballDirector at Caterer.com

Tracy Riddell, Senior Programme Manager for Age-friendly Employment at the Centre for Ageing Better, said: “It is really encouraging to see so many hospitality employers making a commitment to age-inclusive practices and policies. The growth in the number of older workers over the past three years demonstrates a level of commitment by employers to the recruitment and retention of workers in their 50s and 60s that will better support this sector, filling crucial vacancy gaps. 

“Going forward, we want age-diversity practice becoming common practice industry-wide. Any employers who want to become more age-diverse will find support and information through signing up to our Age-friendly Employer Pledge. They will be joining more than 230 other organisations and companies, including Joseph Holt, Compass Group and Imperial London Hotels, which have signed up within the programme’s first year.”
Tracy RiddellSenior Programme Manager for Age-friendly Employment at the Centre for Ageing Better

Source: Caterer.com commissioned the following research through Opinium: 2,000 UK adults between the period of 8th September 2023 – 12th September 2023 and 100 hospitality hiring decision makers between 7th September 2023 – 13th September. In February 2020 there were 2,026,580 employees in the industry (ONS). According to our research, on average 28.7% of those employed were over 50, equating to 581,628 individuals. Therefore, there are an additional 165,239 within the sector now compared to pre-pandemic.

Hospitality Hiring Insider – Age Diversity in Hospitality

For more valuable insights and information on the benefits of implementing a more age diverse workforce into your brand, plus actionable tips on how to get started, download the latest edition of our Hospitality Hiring Insider.