[NX] Is Hospitality The New Gig Economy?

[HaveADream]

Perseus Nightclub, the newest entry to Los Santos' Night-life.

 

 

Is Hospitality The New Gig Economy?

Harry Lawson

 

Nightclubs - whether you hate them or love them, whether you hit a hattrick a night or get dragged along once a year when your manager decides she's feeling 'young', they are an essential part of life here in Los Santos, and at that, an essential part of the economy. 

 

But yet, there's a perhaps dark undertone to the industry, and whether you consider the employment and training tactics of 'entertainment companies' as exploitation or an essential price to pay to conduct business, it remains something that is rarely seen outside of hospitality. Employees to a hospitality firm are usually hired, sometimes hours in advance of an opening, and when times get desperate, so perhaps, do their owners. But the question is - does this harm the consumer experience?

 

Certainly, there's an argument to be made that these hiring and training practices - whether it's from bartenders that think a Mojito is a Mexican beer and hand you a Pißwasser, or security guards who've seen rejection after rejection on their Guard Card, there's clearly a correlation between public opinion and how much a company is willing to invest into their labor force. I spoke with Cyprus Mills, co-CEO of AMC Entertainment, about her views. Placing aside the unique corporate structure, she defended her firms hiring decisions and instead spoke about a formalization of her security workforce.

 

 

Cyprus Mills - We give people who are interested in working with us the freedom of choice, we have people who do a shift or two and never come back and we have people who do around four to five shifts a week.

 

In a short interview, Cyprus refuted that contracting bartenders would be of any mutual benefit, stating that the role is only a 'side gig' for people, whereas security is more of a pressing matter and AMC entertainment are formalising contracts to secure the future of their security force. When it comes to their bartending, they take people both with and without experience and run a policy of teaching-on-the-the-job at various venues, including the Grand Rockford Casino, and Perseus Nightclub. While it's uncertain what quality control there is at this level, we spoke to two people from within the industry to get their views.

 

 

"I got a call, thirty minutes later I was pouring cola into an Old Fashioned."

 

One former bartender, who asked to stay anonymous, spoke about their experience as they came into the city, working for a nightclub outside of AMC Entertainment that has now closed. A lack of money but a surplus of time, the bartender called an advertisement asking for an employee, after initially being offered two thousand for a night, they hung up the phone. Shortly after, they were called back, offered double the wage. Their interview/training session consisted of "do you know how to make drinks?" Expecting no follow-up, the employee said yes, and proceeded to ruin cocktails and pour beer with overflowing foam for two hours, with most of their customers either being too drunk or too used-to-it to care. 

 

In many cities, bartenders are able to make great money by being good at their job, with tipping being a staple in our culture, a little bit of flair and confidence can see someone through college and pay close to any corporate job downtown. Of course, that's not to say Los Santos isn't full of good bartenders, it certainly is, employees who care, with a little bit of magic to each drink and a strong focus on customer service, however the issue becomes, if some businesses are hiring everyone, how can you separate the gold from the dirt? And, of course, the problem lies everywhere in our economy, from restaurants to bars to your local Ammunation.

 

Another employee, in the security sector for AMC Entertainment, told News X his recruitment was quite easy due to his prior relationship with the firm, and his previous employment at Gruppe 6, but stressed that recruitment within security is 'well-planned and thought out', with many of the security guards joining up signing up for the opportunity to create a career path with the company. He ended his answer with a nod to innovation and the competitiveness of the market, but is this innovation sufficient to make up for short-falls in staffing? 

 

The New Norm

 

Of course, it's easy for any journalist to sit in a chair and judge hospitality businesses for their shortfalls, with little experience in the industry themselves, but there are very clear and repeating issues within some smaller businesses that are inattentive - not only to the needs of their staff, but to their customers as well. Businesses who rely in the industry to train their staff will only fail as larger businesses continue to dominate the scene and provide the brand awareness and expectation of standards - however high or low they may be, to the market. Often, speculation arises that more should be done to combat the growing monopolies in all sectors of hospitality, for those wondering what could be done, it's simple, train the staff.

 

Edited May 22, 2021 by HaveADream

[arrdef]

Username: TommyG5
Comment: temp work agencies are garbo and any decent club has their in-house staff, cant really ask for expert service if the pays the same as some store clerk while your boss sends you to random parts of town

Edited May 29, 2021 by arrdef