Student employment in hospitality and tourism: insights from a recent study

Abstract

Students' motives for working are primarily economic, though the proportion of the student body engaged in paid employment in this study is less than 50%. There is also evidence that this varies between students. Students in the final year of their programme were much less likely to work part time, and students in the further education (FE) sector were more likely to be engaged in paid employment than students at university. Students are attracted to work in hospitality organisations because jobs are plentiful and the work is generally appealing. Bar and restaurant work, in particular, allow students to work in contexts that have overlaps with their social life. The demand for labour at times when they are available, or when they can fit in two or three shifts around course work commitments increases the attractiveness to students. The impression created by this study is one of marginality from the student's perspective. Although economic considerations are indeed paramount as stated above, there is little sense of paid employment being an essential and key concern for students, particularly in the university sector. The impression created was that paid employment, was nice to have but not necessarily essential for most of these respondents. Perhaps most worryingly, students are not being developed as employees in most of the establishments concerned. Their work remains largely, routine and unskilled and they are supported with minimal amounts of training, are poorly paid, and are rarely promoted into supervisory or management positions.

Keywords:

• student work
• casualisation
• routine unskilled work
• hospitality work