Hoteliers’ Charter to be extended to all areas of hospitality

The Hoteliers’ Charter will be expanded to embrace all sectors of hospitality within the next 12 months. 

 

The charter, which sees businesses commit to a series of employee welfare principals, was created by 2019 Hotelier of the Year and general manager of the Royal Lancaster London, Sally Beck. 

 

It was devised to provide a means for hoteliers to work together to dispel the notion that their teams work "long hours for little pay" and highlight the benefits of being part of the industry. 

 

In its first year, 500 hotels committed to its principals such as developing team members, respecting work/life balance, striving to end low pay and supporting the mental and physical health of team members. 

 

The charter is now overseen by trade body UKHospitality, which is broadening its focus across the entire industry. 

 

UKHospitality chief executive Kate Nicholls told The Caterer’s People Awards she was focused on refreshing the principals of the charter, including on tipping, and inviting businesses across all areas of hospitality to sign up. 

 

“The Hoteliers Charter was about creating a wraparound commitment to good practise, particularly around what hoteliers were going to do to look after their teams,” said Nicholls. 

 

“[Those signed up] can then have a badge that says I’m a good employer, I’m a better employer and I can be an employer of choice.” 

 

Nicholls said the charter was not easily accessible to smaller, or single-site businesses, in its current form. 

 

It is being updated to make it accessible to all with a Hospitality Employee and Wellbeing Charter running in parallel to the original. 

 

Nicholls said the charter was designed to be aspirational and provide a vehicle for businesses to challenge negative perceptions of working in the industry. 

 

She added: “It’s about getting the message out there and selling the positives [of working in hospitality].” 

 

Alongside the new charter, UKHospitality plans to provide toolkits to support businesses in areas such as sustainability and equality, diversity, and inclusion. 

 

Chris Eigelaar, resort director at the Belfry hotel in Warwickshire, signed up to the charter in 2023 and was named Charter Champion at Tuesday’s awards, held at One Moorgate Place in London. 

 

Among other measures, the hotel has created learning and development platforms to support progression, offers a range of apprenticeships and has introduced flexible working policies. 

 

Eiglaar said the charter had provided the “reassurance and credibility of being in a group of like-minded individuals wanting to do the right thing by their teams and for hospitality”.