Education

A CULINARY CULTURE OF LEARNING

Creating a culture of learning inspires everyone at every level of a hospitality business. Apprenticeships are a proven way that businesses can help develop excellent skills and expertise in the workplace while employees build satisfying careers on the job.

Your workplace could be eligible for a wage subsidy through the government’s apprenticeship support programme.

The Apprenticeship Support Programme is a cross-agency government response to help employers retain and bring on new apprentices, including Mana in Mahi participants, while dealing with the effects of COVID-19.

The Apprenticeship Support Programme is delivered from several government agencies and includes:

• the new Apprenticeship Boost, to help employers keep and take on new apprentices in their first two years of training. • an expansion to MSD’s Mana in

Mahi programme to help people who need additional support to gain long-term work and a formal industry qualification, and better support the employers investing in them. • support for seven existing Group

Training Schemes to help them continue to employ some 1,700 apprentices and trainees. • the new Regional Apprenticeships

Initiative, funded through the Provincial Growth Fund, which will support employers in the regions to take up new apprentices.

Apprenticeship Boost

Apprenticeship Boost is a payment to help employers keep and take on new apprentices.

It means apprentices can keep earning and training towards their qualifications as the economy recovers from the impacts of COVID-19. The payment is made directly to employers.

You can get Apprenticeship Boost if your apprentices are:

• actively training through a transitional Industry Training

Organisation (ITO) or a provider • training for a New Zealand

Apprenticeship or Managed

Apprenticeship recognised by the

Tertiary Education Commission • in their first 24 months of training (this includes any previous apprenticeship enrolment, including any other apprenticeships, with the same transitional ITO or provider).

You can get Apprenticeship Boost for a maximum of 20 months per apprentice, and it’s paid in advance.

How much you can get depends on whether your apprentice is in their first or second year of training:

• First year apprentices can get $1,000 a month. • Second year apprentices can get $500 a month.

You can find more information about the Apprentice Support Programme at www.workandincome. govt.nz

Need help with apprenticeships?

There are businesses that can help you navigate the world of hospitality and foodservice apprenticeships.

ServiceIQ is the industry training organisation (ITO) for the aviation, hospitality, retail, travel, tourism and museums sectors.

ServiceIQ’s focus is on-job training, it works with customers to develop the right resources, trainers, systems and procedures, and the right amount of in-depth training and follow-up to help get ahead and stay on top.

How ServiceIQ can help:

Employers:

• advise you on the right apprenticeship for your business and employee/s. • enrol your employee/s on the programme - design the training plan that works for your employee and your business. • mentor, monitor and assess your employee’s progress through to achievement. • keep you up-to-date on how they are tracking. • provide training and reference material and arrange offsite workshops, if required. • help you to support your employee throughout the apprenticeship.

Employees:

• assess your application to be an apprentice (remember, you’ll need to be working in a relevant part of the industry and have your employer’s support). • plan your training with you and your employer. • mentor, monitor and assess your progress. • provide your training and reference material. • keep your employer up-todate on your progress towards achievement.

You can find more information at serviceiq.org.nz.

education

HOSPITALITY EMPLOYMENT FAQS

The Government has proposed and enacted changes to multiple areas of employment, these changes include an increase in annual sick leave, changes to the Holidays Act and an increase in the minimum wage.

Restaurant & Café magazine asked the Restaurant Association to answer some of the most common employment queries from hospitality business owners about these changes, 90-day trial periods and employment contracts.

Annual Sick Leave Increase

The Government has introduced a Bill to increase employees’ minimum entitlement to sick leave from five days to 10 days per year. The Bill was introduced to Parliament on 1 December 2020 and is currently before the Education and Workforce Select Committee.

Common Questions:

If the proposed increase of annual sick leaves goes through when will it come into effect?

June 2021.

Is the proposed increase for full-time staff only? Or does it also apply to employees on part time and casual contracts?

Currently the bill proposes this be for all permanent staff.

Will the increase in annual sick leave have a cost effect for business owners? If so, what is your advice for owners worried about the extra cost?

We have made a submission that outlines our concerns about the proposal. This will have an impact on the cost to do business. It is important for businesses to review prices and adjust menus. For most businesses it will not be possible to absorb these extra costs (coupled with minimum wage increases).

Minimum Wage Increase

Up to 175,500 workers are estimated to receive a wage boost following the increase. This represents those who currently earn between $18.90 and $20.00 per hour. Across the economy, the minimum wage rise is estimated to increase wages by $216 million.

Common Questions:

When does the minimum wage increase go into effect?

1 April 2021

What is your advice for owners who are worried about the increase in minimum wage? (Particularly smaller businesses worried about making ends meet)

It is important that business review these prices and make adjustments where they can.

90 Day Trial Periods

Common Questions:

What are the rules around 90day trial periods?

Only businesses that employ less than 20 people (so 19 or fewer staff members) can use a trial period. If this is your business, then you will need to have a clause in your employment agreements that outlines this.

You will also need to make sure that this is mentioned in your offer of employment letter and it is clearly communicated that you are using the trial period.

The employer doesn’t have to give reasons for a dismissal during a trial period or give the employee a chance to comment before the dismissal, but it is good practice to tell the employee why they are being dismissed and employers must give a reason if the employee asks for one.

Does a business owner have to use a 90-day trial period?

No, they do not have to use it.

Do all employees have to go through a 90-day trial period? (Full-time, Part-time and casual?)

All employees can be subject to a trial period if the busines has under 20 employees. Casuals are not technically permanent employees; their engagement technically starts and finishes on each ‘assignment’. However, it is common for people to misunderstand this - if someone is working weekly in your business, they are not a casual worker.

What are the key obligations of employers using a trial period?

• The trial must be in writing in the agreement and state that the employee will be on a trial period which isn’t more than 90-days (it can be less) and the agreement must be signed before the employee officially starts. • Must have valid notice period in the agreement. • Must be agreed to in good faith. • If relying on the trial period, the dismissal must take place within the specified 90 days.

What are the key things employees should know about trial periods?

Same as above.

Should an employee sign their contract before the 90-day trial period begins?

It must be signed before they start, otherwise the trial period is not valid.

Employment Contracts

Common Questions:

Where can owners go to get help with employment contracts?

Here at the Restaurant Association, we have industry-specific employment agreement templates ready to use, along with the support and background to assist with any queries or employment problems that may come up.

How important are employment contracts, even for casual staff?

Legally you must have an agreement for all staff and there are hefty fines in place for not having an agreement/ contract.

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COVID-19 GOVERNMENT SUPPORT

Financial support for businesses affected by COVID-19 is available in several forms. To find out what form of financial support will be best for your business you can use the COVID-19 Financial Support Tool on the Government’s official COVID-19 website.

Here’s a brief overview of the support available:

COVID-19 Short-term Absence Payment

A new COVID-19 Short-term Absence Payment has been available since 9 February 2021. It’s to help businesses keep paying eligible workers who: • cannot work from home and • need to miss work to stay at home while waiting on a COVID-19 test result (in line with public health guidance).

There’s a one-off payment of $350 for each eligible worker. Parents or caregivers who need to miss work to support their dependents who are staying at home awaiting a test result will also be eligible.

COVID-19 Leave Support Scheme

The COVID-19 Leave Support Scheme continues to be available.

The payment rates are: • $585.80 for people working 20 hours or more per week (full-time rate) • $350 for people working less than 20 hours per week (part-time rate).

The Leave Support Scheme is for employees who meet certain health criteria (for example workers who are sick with COVID-19 or meet the other eligibility criteria).

To be eligible for the RSP, a business or organisation must have experienced at least a 30 percent drop in revenue over a 7-day period after the increased alert level and meet other RSP eligibility criteria.

The Wage Subsidy Scheme will be in place if there is an escalation to Alert Levels 3 or 4 anywhere in New Zealand, for 7 days or more.

Payment rates will be: • $585.80 for people working 20 hours or more per week (full-time rate) • $350.00 for people working less than 20 hours per week (part-time rate).

Support will be provided in twoweekly payments and total support will match the duration at Alert Level 3 or 4 rounded to the nearest fortnight. As with the COVID-19 Wage Subsidy paid earlier this year, the payment is to support employers to pay their employees.

Resurgence Support Payment (RSP)

A Resurgence Support Payment will also be available from late-February 2021 for eligible businesses throughout New Zealand, if there’s a move to Alert Level 2 or above for 7 or more consecutive days. This one-off payment is to help businesses affected by the Alert Level upgrade with fixed costs.

When the Government activates the RSP, applications for the payment will open for eligible businesses and organisations 7 days after the alert level increase.

When the RSP is activated, eligible businesses and organisations can apply to receive the lesser of: • $1,500 plus $400 per fulltimeequivalent (FTE) employee, up to a maximum of 50 FTEs, or • Four times (4x) the actual revenue drop experienced by the applicant.

The RSP will remain open for applications for one month after the return to alert level 1.

Small Business Cashflow Loan Scheme

Organisations and small-to-medium businesses may be eligible for a oneoff loan with a term of 5 years if they have been adversely affected by COVID-19.

The Small Business Cashflow Loan Scheme provides assistance to firms employing 50 or fewer full-time equivalent employees. The maximum amount that can be borrowed is $10,000 plus $1,800 per full-timeequivalent employee and only one amount can be drawn down.

Loans will be interest-free if they’re paid back within 2 years. The interest rate will be 3% for a maximum term of 5 years. Repayments are not required for the first 2 years.

Applications are open until 31 December 2023.

There has also been an extension to the Flexi-wage scheme.

The scheme helps businesses take on new workers, it is an employment programme that helps job seekers get a job and the skills needed to do that job. Flexi-wage support can include training and in-work support, as well as a contribution to wages. The job must be ongoing, continuing after the Flexiwage has finished.

If you’re interested in hiring someone, and they need support to gain the required job skills, the flexiwage scheme may be able to help with in-work support, training or a wage contribution.

PROMOTING AND SUPPORTING HOSPITALITY EXCELLENCE

The Hospitality Training Trust (HTT) is a registered charity set up to promote excellence in training in the New Zealand Hospitality sector.

To date the Trust has awarded a range of Grants, initially for projects sponsored by the Hospitality Standard Institute and in 2012 to projects proposed by Service Skills Institute (trading as ServiceIQ). From 2013, applications were invited from other hospitality sector participants.

The Trust has funds available for distribution to associations, companies or individuals for projects that will further the aims and criteria of the Trust around building excellence across the hospitality sector.

In 2020, HTT provided a $1.37 million support package for key industry associations. The package was shared by Hospitality New Zealand, the Restaurant Association of New Zealand, Holiday Parks New Zealand, the Tourism Industry Aotearoa, and the New Zealand Chef’s Association — with the individual grants based on membership numbers.

Training grants were awarded to:

Renard Group Limited, $15,500, Business Health Matters - The New Normal, online webinars

DINE Academy Trust, $40,000, DINE Nurture Scholarships

YoungTEC, $10,000, Leadership Day

Vegetables.co.nz/Heart Foundation, $8,230, PD Seminars for Teachers

Turning Tables $2,400, Online training videos and resources

Restaurant & Café will be talking to some of the grant recipients in upcoming issues to see how the grants have helped these organisations, particularly in the wake of COVID-19.

Do you have: a great project you would like to see adopted in the hospitality sector? an outstanding trainee who would benefit from specific training? a project related to hospitality/ tourism/training? an industry COVID-19 recovery project?

Then you could be eligible for funds. 2021 Hospitality Training Trust grant applications close on 18 April 2021. Successful applicants will be announced in late May.

If you have a great project that fits these criteria, you can complete the online application form at htt.org.nz

For further information, or if you would like to discuss your proposal, don’t hesitate to contact HTT on 021 188 3212 or email secretary@htt.org. nz.