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A chef is a trained cook who plans and prepares food using various cooking techniques. They are culinary experts who are also experienced in developing new recipes and organised staff. According to Ariza-Montes et el. (2018), in certain situations in the luxurious hospitality industry, occupational stress is experienced by chefs. This topic has been further discussed while understanding the reasons behind it. The relevance of the case has been further discussed in the chapter.
As per the view of Cui et el. (2021), occupational stress has adversely affected the overall performance of chefs within the luxury hospitality industry. The hospitality industry is the fastest growing industry globally compared to the other sector. Occupational stress among chefs, one of the leading human resources of the industry, can make the performance worse and dissatisfy the customers, and lower service quality. Moreover, it may damage individual development, affect social life, and harm physical health. Research has been done on occupational stress faced by the chefs in the luxurious hotel industry. While analysing the topic, it has been revealed that physical violence and abuse are the main reason for stress. They faced the crowd and a noisy environment, which affected their physical and psychological conditions by the luxurious industry’s work pressure. The chefs need to follow strict norms of hospitality, and the senior chefs show aggression in their creative work, which became one of the reasons for creating pressure within junior chefs. In order to reduce stress levels, the industry must increase employees that relieve work pressure. Hospitality Industry faced challenges due to occupational stress that decreased 65% of the applicant per role compared to last year. The hospitality sector struggled to find new talented employees, and they faced an issue in reappointing new employees and reskilling their workforce. Three thousand five hundred fifty-five jobs were listed in the hospitality sector in 2020, where 1068 jobs were filled. Only 30% of the overall job roles for the chef are served in the UK. In this pandemic situation of COVID-19, it has been seen that employees are getting low levels of job security in many of the hotels in the UK, so they are choosing other industries.
According to Nair et el. (2021), occupational stress may adversely decrease their confidence level. It has been suggested that the UK hotels must recruit 11,000 chefs by 2022. The number of chefs shortage in many hotels in the UK is an issue, leading to the increasing rate of chef turnover. Fewer chefs students stay in UK hotels, and few senior chefs work in the sector. The aggressive behavior, changing nature, and the pressurised environment leave the chefs’ profession. At the same time, it has been seen that on service of food, one-third of people believed that progress is slow in hospitality sectors which brings risk in career life. The hospitality sector provides less salary with a high workload pressure, and stress at the workplace results from leaving these hospitality sectors. As per Leung et el. (2022), the hospitality Industry must adopt strategies in recruiting process to attract employees to mitigate issues of job burn-out while fulfilling the requirements of work-life balance.
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Terms |
Definitions |
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Job stress |
Job stress is the physical and emotional harmful response that develops when the job requirement does not meet the capabilities and resources of the workers. |
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Work-life balance |
Work-life balance refers to balancing career demands and works and work that maintains a healthy work environment and prevents burn-out in the workplace. It also increases work efficiency and better productivity. |
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HRM (Human resource maangement) |
HRM is the practice of selecting and hiring, and managing a company’s employees. They strategise and make plans for success in their business and guide and instruct the employee effectively to achieve an organisational goal. |
The research aims to understand why there is increasing job stress among chefs in the luxury hospitality industry. Chefs are under the most tension due to the apparent speed and precision to complete their tasks, which may further impact their overall work-life balance. Therefore, the study also aims to comprehend how the hospitality industry may provide a secure environment to the chefs while focusing on their mental health requirements and creating a healthy work-life balance.
It is essential to create a list of research objectives to evaluate the research process and the topic, which is further.
According to Razzak et el. ( 2021), the hospitality Industry has faced significant issues, including high demands and leaving workers and supply chain problems that may reduce economic development. Many Hospitals sectors after the Corona restriction face problems in finding the chefs and staff for their hotels. Hospitality Industry faces issues with hiring and retaining staff that can affect their business in low productivity. Many hospitality sectors hire workers from outside the UK to fill the employee gaps, which help to run the business. In a busy and noisy environment, it is difficult for the chefs to maintain the new techniques to present food to the public that dissatisfied the customers compared to other hospitality sectors. The stress of competition may hamper the work performance of the Chefs and lower service quality. As per the view of Kotera et al. (2021), in a post-pandemic situation, it is challenging for the hospitality industry employee to come in contact socially, which affects many luxurious hotels lowers their economic productivity as these luxury hotels require many employees numbered to operate. Still, many chefs are changing their industrial sectors due to stressful environments. According to Giousmpasoglou et al. (2022), it is essential to provide good service and time to the guest that demands a higher rate of staff maintenance. Job demands and resources are evidence of occupational stress in the hospitality industry. Job resources that include a physical, social, and organisational side to achieve the business goal result in work pressure and load to chefs in many hospitality sectors. Job demand and job resources may result in job role conflict. As per Cerasa et al. (2020), the Chefs in the hospitality industry are responsible for managing people, planning menus and budgets, and fulfilling business goals. The pressure of many duties may affect work performance and occur job conflicts that may result in emotional exhaustion. The work environment in the hospitality industry has poor time management, including a lack of control in the work schedule and no time for breaks to finish the tasks. As per Peters et el. (2019), low status and low-skilled jobs in the hospitality industry may affect the dissatisfaction among the employee, which became one of the critical factors for stress development. The employee chooses to other organisations due to their physical and mental exhaustion in the hospitality sector
Hospitality Industry is the dynamic and third largest sector of employment in the UK. The working environment in this industry is stressful due to high job demands and job resources that result in many people are choosing other sectors. According to Lippert et el.(2021), any new workers demand a better work-life balance that reduces stress in the hospitality sector. Stress in hospitality may cause a mental and physical state of a person. The industry needs to needs on the pressures of the work. It reduces the workload for business growth. From the post on social media, including Instagram and Facebook, the feedback about the service quality in hospitality creates pressures in the workplace. The industry should recognise the employee’s stress and reduce it by providing mental health training, offering skill training, and promoting better work-life balance. As per Owusu and Nkyi (2021) view, the industry helps the employee in every possible way and satisfies them by giving rewards and bonuses for their excellent work. If the industry wants the people to stay, they need changes in the management process and maintain an effective schedule for work. As per Machado et el. (2021), the sector must recognise and encourage the chefs’ creative work to focus on staff flexibility.
Chapter 1 provides a brief description on the topic of “ Occupational stress in Chef’s profession in the luxury hospitality industry”. While getting into the research, a brief introduction has been given along with the research background. In this background, it has been discussed that many chefs leave their job due to stressful working environments that lower the industry’s productivity. Moreover, in chapter 1, the aims and objectives of a research question have been framed. The research rationale has discussed different issues faced by the industry due to the shortage of chefs. The significance of the research has shown some strategies to reduce the work pressure.
The primary topic of this research paper is job stress in the hospitality industry. People need to know some basic information about job-related stress. It is a working environment-related mental and physical problem. Employees face these types of issues in their working place. Therefore, it is a prevalent and harmful mental, emotional and physical response that people face in their workplace. It affects the health of the employees and also on the work. But, always stress is not a bad thing also. It is a kind of challenge as well. It also helps people to learn something new boost themselves for work. But, the negative stress and the impact are prevalent factors nowadays. The harmful types of job stress can also destroy people’s work lives and careers. So that, people should be cautious about this matter. Due to this job stress, sometimes people face physical illness, such as headaches, sleep destruction, short temper, under or overeating, anxiety, and mild chronic disease. Sometimes, accidents also occur due to job stress (AISSA and SASSI, 2019). As well as if a person is working in somewhere they have to face these types of situation or stress. Due to this stress, low work productivity and less accuracy may occur for an employee or employer.
Luxury hotels are the hotels that provide the luxurious experience of accommodation for the guests. The hotels which are generally 4 or 5 stars are considered luxury hotels. The luxury experiences are thus associated with the premium pricing of the services and the products. Therefore, it can be stated that this adds value for the people while upgrading their services and quality in exchange for its pricing. The luxury hotel is valued at USD 174.9 billion in 2020 (Mordor intelligence, 2020). Moreover, hospitality is stated as the act of kindness which refers to welcoming the guests and looking into fulfilling their basic needs in a hotel. This is regarded as a broad group of businesses that provides a varied number of services to the guests and the consumers as per their pricing. The industry is broken down into varied areas such as food and beverage, accommodation and tourism and travel in a coherent manner. Some of the target audiences in the case of luxury industries are tour groups, business travellers, small groups of people with conferences and also individual tourists. The chefs in these hotels go through a varied number of problems which run from effective communication, customisation of food and others.
Expectancy theory
Expectancy theory relates to the state of motivation of an employee that is earned from the margins of outcome gained in regards to the service delivered to an organisation. Based on the viewpoint of Lloyd and Mertens (2018), providing effective rewards to the employees in respect of the services is an important concern for enhancing their engagement and satisfaction towards their service. However, in the case of every hospitality organisation, every employee is only provided with fixed monetary salaries against their services. However, it is observed that servicemen like waiters and bell boys gain substantial benefits from the tips provided by the clients for their services. This measure also creates a sense of expectancy by the chefs as they are not rewarded in any form as they tend to gain minimal exposure before the clients. Henceforth, a sense of interest in service is lost by the chefs working with highly prestigious hotels as the administration fails to meet their expectation of earning rewards against their quality services.
Motivation–hygiene theory
Motivation hygiene theory relates to the state of motivation to retain fine employees concerning the state of recognition and appreciation delivered to them for their services. According to the statement of Wang et al., (2019), motivation theory tends to reflect a balance between the state of motivation of an employee concerning the responsibilities and the scope of opportunity of growth in their workplace. Luxury hospitality organisations tend to present their services in an integrated manner underneath their brand image rather than providing effective recognition to the employees such as their chefs or the servicemen. Apart from that, the clustered nature of the industry does not provide the adequate opportunity for promotion to the chefs without any relatively high experience. It is also observed that the hotel managers only tend to provide recognition to the chefs when asked by the respective clients to press them for their efforts. Hence, the sense of achievement and recognition among the professional chefs of the luxury organisations are seen to be diminished, which tends to increase their job dissatisfaction regarding the services.
Job characteristics model
The present model highlights that the nature of the task is a major virtue that describes the motivation of the employees in a work environment. As stated by Carpenter et al., (2018), if the work seems to be monotonous the state of motivation energy of the employees for executing the task is gradually observed to be limited. In such circumstances, the employees failed to deliver the adequate state of concentration and enthusiasm that is required for completing the task. In the case of luxury hospitality organisations, the chefs are expected to prepare every delicacy with equal amounts of accuracy in terms of its taste and presentability. However, as each chef in the aforementioned organisation tends to deliver the same nature of service without any radical changes or experimental opportunity in the preparation of food items the level of stress duly increases due to the monotonous nature of the job.
When a person enters a professional world, people have to face job stress. In this case, to remove or omit these factors, people need to motivate them to survive in the professional field. The word motivation is multi-dimensional. As per CAIN et al. (2018), it helps people spread positive vibes where they suffer from any problem. For reducing the job-related stress factor, some good motivation for overcoming stress is genuinely needed. In the hospitality industry, the issue primarily arises due to long time working hours and lack of leave facilities. In general, the basic strategy for motivating employees for working in a particular organisation like a hospitality industry HRM (Human Resource Management) should play a vital role.
The HRM department should take this responsibility to motivate their employees for work.
Communication-
In this case, the communication process is essential. For example, if a chef of a luxury hotel suffers from job stress, they should inform the HRM department. If the communication between the chef and HRM department is not good, then the employee cannot express anything to them. As a result of that, the stress problem will increase (CHENG-FENG, 2020).
Training-
The HRM department should provide relevant and proper training to the employee joining this organisation. If a chef joins a hotel and cannot get adequate training according to their job profile, they cannot provide the proper services for the organisational consuming customers. Later, that will create job stress for not performing well.
Salary-
The primary demand of every person is to get a good salary according to their work (CHUNG et al. 2021). If the salary structure is not good, that creates job stress for the employee.
Working environment-
For doing anything, a proper environment is much needed. An appropriate working environment is essential for an employee to work anywhere.
Along with that, there are so many motivational factors that can motivate an employee like a chef working under a luxury hotel, and parallelly he is suffering from job stress (FERNÁNDEZ-SALINERO et al. 2020). Some motivational factors are described below.
Firstly appreciation is a very prim thing to motivate anyone anywhere. In this case, if the chief chef or the organisation is not properly appreciating the chef for their work, employees cannot motivate themselves for further work. If this appreciation process is not continued, it may create job stress for employees, in this case, for the chef. According to HSI-TIEN CHEN and WANG (2019), an organisation should always disclose everything to their employees how much the employee should know for working under that organisation. If a chef does not know its policies, they can create any mess. Always communication plays a vital role in any case. In this case, employees and management team should maintain a healthy relationship in working premises. Though the management team is a pillar of any organisation, the employees and the management team should communicate properly to run their business successfully (ISFIANADEWI and NOORDYANI, 2020). Along with that a proper job security, future opportunities also can make an employee satisfied. With the help of all of these factors, if an employee can motivate them, people will increase their interest in work.
Hospitality is regarded as one of the most stressful industries as it often includes irregular and long hours of job, this can aid in developing stress for both the employees and the employers. Moreover, this can mainly be seen in the pursuit of part-time workers of students in the hospitality industry which is one of the major sources of pressure for the employees. Messy and chaotic stations lead to major stress in the case of chefs (Filipkowski et al., 2019). Managing the stress, in this case, becomes difficult due to the outer environment. Additionally, it is also seen that in most cases kitchens are not untidy and unorganised which also leads to major stresses. Improper efficiency and training in the case of junior chefs leads to their experimentation and thus can be regarded as lowering the result. Therefore, proper training and support from the main chef and seniors can aid in organising the work properly while reducing the stress level effectively. On the other hand, Holden and Sunindijo (2018) highlighted that long working hours are also the main reason that relates to the increasing stress level among the employees. As long as the hospitality industry is considered, chefs are seen to work for more than 10 hours long subjected to the presence of customers. These long working hours and no benefits against the added services are a major reason that leads to the increasing stress level among the employees.
Leadership is also an important subject that helps in managing the levels of stress in an organisational environment. As mentioned by Calinaud et al., (2021), hospitality organisations tend to follow an autocratic style of management where the managers acquire a very dominant position. This measure tends to reduce the efficiency and participative behaviour among the employees gradually increasing their stress and preventing them from delivering enhanced performance. Some of the managers in the luxury hotels are also seen to be highly oriented towards the customers and least care about the wellness of their employees. In such a scenario, showing a disrespectful attitude towards the chefs regarding any complaints from the customers is also seen as a very natural phenomenon occurring currently. This also results as a factor which is responsible for the depreciating positive among the employees mainly the chefs as well as leads towards the fluent increase of stress margins. As contradicted by Prasad et al., (2020), lack of technology is also a subjective matter that leads towards the increasing stress level of the employees. In some cases, due to the heavy cost of implementation, the luxury hotels prevent the implementation of upgraded machinery and kitchen equipment. The lack of automated machines like high-power convection grillers and smoke emitters tend to increase the time in preparing the dishes which is further counted as a flaw in employees' efficiency. Hence, dissatisfaction among the chefs stands to be prominent that also increases their levels of stress in the work environment.
Stress is considered a high negative circumstance that prevents an individual from sustaining a healthy living. According to the views of Chandola et al., (2019), stress is the major cause of health-related concerns like increasing blood pressure and lack of concentration in the workplace. As per the scenario, of luxury hospitality organisations quality of service is the major point of concern that also contributes to reflecting the brand image of the organisation. Hence, in such circumstances, chefs with higher levels of stress and lower standards of concentration are often prone to conduct mistakes related to their service. On the other hand, Ajayi et al., (2018) argued that increasing levels of stress are an immediate cause for increasing levels of body pain which gradually lowers the productivity of the employees. It is observed that the majority of the chefs tend to serve their hotels for a very long duration of time. Luxury hotels are also observed in some of the niche segments of clients that purely highlight a premium taste in the case of foods. Hence, pressure on a single category of chefs that specialises in some of the niche categories of food items is also considered to be high. Hence, increasing stress, as well as the depreciation of work-life balance among the employees duly, affects their margins of productivity duly. Additionally, improper hours of sleep, as well as irregularity in food habits, are also seen as some of the major problems faced by the chefs. Due to the successive imbalance of lifestyle, state of exhaustion and increasing anger issues are very common for the chefs that are working with luxury hospitality organisations.
In the case of mental imbalance or negative effects of stress on the mentality of the employees, depression, intensive anxiety and irritation are also some of the measures that are noticed majorly. As per the opinion of Dinçer et al., (2018), depression is a major cause behind major issues like trouble in decision-making and also provides a sense relating to the loss of energy. In the case of chefs of luxury organisations, stress is mainly observed from the managers that tend to extract more productivity from their employees. This tends to reduce the state of motivation among the employees as well as promote the state of hopelessness among the chefs which is again a sign of depression. Moreover, due to an increasing state of stress, the nature of irritation regarding the services tends to increase gradually which also causes an increase in the state of anger and conflict in the work environment. Hence, luxury hospitality organisations tend to lose their quality of service which relatively defames their brand image due to depriving levels of mental health and increased stress among the chefs. On the contrary, Toscano and Zappalà (2020), stated that stress also causes anxiety that also isolates an individual as it negatively impacts the mental ability of the person in terms of forming social connections. As per the chefs in the luxury hotels, they are also exposed to the scope of communicating with the customers and presenting their food accordingly. Hence, due to increasing stress levels and decreasing ability of communication they are usually seen to file for executing a fluent conversation. This results in a lack of customer satisfaction from the end of the hospitality organisations which is duly raised due to the effect of stress and lack of management protocols for employee empowerment.
Emotional intelligence is a personality behaviour that helps an individual to enhance the state of self-awareness concerning their capabilities and abilities to manage the responsibilities. According to the views of DeIuliis and Saylor (2021), self-awareness in the professional environment helps to influence the work culture according to the positive skills of the employees which also contribute to gaining effective recognition for the performance. Concerning the ships of the luxury hospitality organisation, emotional intelligence helps to enhance the decision-making factor of the individuals that enables them to influence their managers to a great extent. This measure also highlights the point of creating better opportunities for growth in terms of monetary incentives for their added performance delivered to the organisation. As argued by Buil et al., (2019), a personal trait is also a subjective behaviour of an individual that helps them to deploy their leadership and motivational aspects for sequential management of responsibilities.
Implementation of an effective leadership style by a chef in a reputed hotel or restaurant gradually enables them to execute their operations and responsibilities promptly. This measure not only helps them to enhance their quality of service but also contributes to increasing the professional image as an employee. Workplace stress has affected practically every profession, from the highest levels of management to those who are directly involved in production. Workplace stress has a negative impact on both physical and psychological health. Over time, stress has been described in a variety of ways. It is a situation in which any individual is presented with a possibility or demand connected to something they want, and the consequence is judged to be both unpredictable and essential.
Stress can be either acute or persistent. Chronic stress has been connected to the development of medical problem, along with such main causes of death as heart disease and cancer. In terms of morbidity, social and vocational degradation, and mental disorder, the cost of stress is considerable. Stress is something that almost everyone goes through at some point in their lives. When people are overworked, have significant deadlines to meet, or have insufficient time to complete all of their tasks, they may experience stress. In situations where there is a risk of failure or personal humiliation, some people are more prone to stress than others.
Emotional intelligence also empowers an employee to enhance their skills of communication for the formation of an integrated work environment. As noted by Shafie et al., (2018), communication is an important aspect for a professional that helps them to enhance their social cognitive behaviour and improve their presentability. In the present scenario, the application of emotional intellectuality by the chefs is gradually observed as a measure of communicating with their colleagues and reducing their stress level to a great extent. On the other hand, Tai and Kareem (2018) argue that emotional intelligence helps an individual to understand the intensity of a situation and react accordingly. This measure highlights the scenario of enhancing the organising capabilities of an employee that aids to improve their productivity as well. In the case of luxury hospitality brands, chefs are highly pressured with numerous activities related to food production and management. In such a situation evaluating the scope for investing the time based on the intensity of work is a relevant measure that can help to reduce their stress. Additionally, the use of emotional intelligence also helps in formulating optimised job distribution processes and thus favours the aspects of delivering effective relaxation to the other chefs.
Job stress is a part of professional life for a working person nowadays. Suppose anybody wants to overcome this factor, people have to maintain a proper work-life balance. As an employee of the hospitality industry or as a chef, the person should keep some following factors to get rid of job stress. The chef has to respect the organisation. The person should think that if the person serves foods correctly, the organisation receives success, which helps them succeed independently. As per JASI?SKI et al. (2021), the chef should also respect cooking ingredients and kitchen types of equipment. As a chef, the person has to bring cooking ingredients from different people such as fishermen, cheesemakers, grocery shoppers, and some distributors. The chef has to maintain a good relationship with all of should respect them. Though a chef is cooking in a luxury hotel, people regularly use expensive equipment in the kitchen. The chef has to respect and take care of those pieces of equipment on their own. Lastly, the chef should appreciate the customers, only for them chef comes to the hotel makes some good food and decorate that nicely.
Along with that, some good practices can maintain a good and healthy work-life behaviour. Such as, the manager of the hotel should conduct some discursion frequently with their employees. Sometimes that should be arranged by interpersonal communication. Though the hospitality industry has to be active 24 hours a day for their customers, mentors should make a proper schedule for their employees during the weekend and holiday season (JONG-YI et al. 2018). However, they can take a rest after finishing their work. The pressure of working for a long time often helps employees learn more about their work. But employees should keep in their mind that they have to take a proper break after they finish their work after a long time if any employees are not confident or have no idea about the work they have to talk help from their senior. Most importantly, the employee should set a goal for success in their lives (KWAN-WOO and YOON-HO, 2020). The work-life behaviour and work-life balance depend on the age of employees sometimes and rely on their marital status.
Age group |
Marital status |
Number of employees |
|
21-30 years |
Single Married |
14 26 |
|
31-40 years |
Single Married |
20 30 |
|
41-50 years |
Single Married |
7 5 |
|
51-60 years |
Single Married |
3 5 |
|
Total |
Single Married |
44 66 |
Though it is a 24 hours duty according to the age group, the number of employees is decreased.
With the help of personal and professional life, the work-life balance is made. In professional life, the job and career play a vital role and depending on that, the work-life balance is work.
In this case, some stress factors of a chef are, though the chef is working in front of hot and cold regularly sometimes it is a cause of their work-related stress, to overcome that situation the chef needs to take a break from their work. Chef needs to go outside the kitchen to bring fresh air to reduce their stress level (LEON and T?N?SESCU, 2018). The chef always should be calm, and quite otherwise, they cannot control or survive in this hospitality industry. Nextly as a chef, the person should be clean and organised—everything they have to do in an organised way. Chef has to maintain the quality of foods, which is the most critical factor. If they keep the excellent quality of food, the work-life of a chef will balance properly. Efficiency is always required. If a chef does their work efficiently, they can save time and get the job done without any meaningless effort.
On the other hand, sometimes the work-life balance also depends on these factors. Flexible work options can reduce the chances of job stress also (MIN, 2021). Apart from family care, sometimes dual career assistance also helps balance the work-life for an employee.
According to research, globally, approx. 44% of women and 36% of men want to quit their job due to this job stress because sometimes people cannot tolerate it. As a result of that, some family-related and economic problems arise. Approx. 60% of the absence of employees in working days per year is a vital cause of job stress as well as it is a principal reason for health, family, and economic problem (PEI-LING TSUI, 2021). This job stress comes in some different ways. Sometimes heavy workloads and long working hours may cause job stress.
Sometimes, employers’ unnecessary and unrealistic demands also create job stress. Organisational changes also cause these types of stress. Due to this factor, employees, management structure, the working area can change, making stress. And the most important factor is communication. If the interpersonal communication between employee and employer is not good, that can create a situation where the employee faces stress.
As anhospitality industry employee, mainly in the cookingdepartment, the chef has to face some problems.
Competition-
In the hospitality industry, every chef tries to decorate the food by their style from where the competition start. Very chef decorates their food and always tries to give a unique touch on that it increases the level of competition among the chefs.
Customers’ expectations-
Nowadays, social media helps people to think uniquely. Customers see so many food-related posts on social media, and they also expect that their foods also will decorate like that. But for this type of decoration, the chef needsd extended time (WANG and SEIFERT, 2021). It is very much time taking. Still, chefs always try to fulfil the expectation of their customers to get good feedback from them.
Staff recruitment-
Try has so many departments in the hospitality industry, so the organisation frequently appoints staff. Although it helps the organisation, it increases the level of competition among the organisation’s other employees.
Sustainability-
Nowadays, ‘Going Green’ is a significant challenge in the hospitality industry. Tourists aretrying to know whether environmental ingredients make the possible elements in their hotel or not.
Technology-
Nowadays customers’ are visiting so many hotels in different countries, so they know what kind of advanced technology is used in the hotel. So if the hotel is not using any latest technology, customers’ can understand that. So it makes the competition more challenging than before.
Particularly chefs, they regularly face some challenges due to their workplace in a central kitchen.
Blockage and some bad smell in the kitchen sink-
Chefs are frequently facing this kind of issue in the kitchen. Drain get a block with some food residue and some other ingredients. It creates a bad smell all over the kitchen. It destroys the environment of the kitchen.
Stuffy air passing system-
Though a chef always works in a kitchen, the stuffy ventilation system makes the person sick anytime.
Grassy surface-
In a hotel kitchen, there is a regularly cooking process run. The cabinet and the kitchen wall get oily and grassy by the cooking oil and gas. It makes the cooking area dirty (YOUSAF et al. 2020).
Storage problems-
It is a widespread problem in kitchen areas. There, an insufficient storage problem is widespread.
Damage cabinet-
Their cabinet is primarily used for storing foods, spices, or utensils in a kitchen. Due to damage, the chef cannot tell us that cabinets create a problem for the chef to keep the kitchen-related things.
Insufficient light-
Another common problem is the lack of lighting in the kitchen area. Light is anessential factor while a chef is cooking. The chef needs to see the food correctly. If their light is not sufficient, chefs have to face some problems.
Working in a professional kitchen needs huge stress to be dealt with. Chefs have admitted that they have busy work schedules and have to deal with a lot of things which puts them in huge strain and thus needs to have the ability to handle the same accordingly. Some of the possible reduction of stresses are as follows:
The right equipment - In every sector of the job right equipment can aid in better workings. As per the words of Bonenberg et al., (2019), knives to cookware, ovens and fridges, kitchen utensils and other appliances need to be efficient and safe which can aid in perfect results from time to time. This can aid in lowering the stress level of the chefs as perfection in work influences the person to work more and better coherently and equivalently.
Keeping everything clean and tidy - Organising the kitchen aids in better management of things in the hotel while developing a comfortable environment as per the same. Moreover, it is an important aspect as much as cleaning the mise en place. As stated by Robinson (2021), wearing clean clothes and aprons while using dish towels helps in maintaining cleanliness and is one of the most effective ways of reducing stress within the kitchen. Clean bins and the areas aid in organising the mind differently thus leading to lessening the stress level of the chefs. Right sealing of the containers and labelling the work in an organised manner along with throwing away the food in the proper place aids in keeping the space cleaner.
Comfortable surroundings - Working in a large kitchen is a dream of every chef along with the usage of the latest appliances and equipment. However, most of the chefs end up working in huge crowded areas which are poorly ventilated and are hot and uncomfortable. Therefore, the concerned atmosphere leads to increased stress levels in most cases. Specific design if the kitchen aids in minimising the stress level of the chefs while working in the same environment leads to better results of the food. This can also influence the chefs to work better as they do not have to worry about the sharp corners, protruding hoods and naked flames.
Asking for help and having fun with colleagues - In a crowded environment, the chefs need to know the way of asking for help and the perfect time for the same. This can relieve tension and can bring in effective healing in the case of a professional kitchen. Moreover, it can also be seen that collaborating with colleagues and doing things together can aid in developing professional kitchens and a better work environment coherently. Effective teamwork can aid in deep-seated love for food while cooking and can also get applause from the guests for the food.
Knowing the stressors - the chefs need to analyse their stresses while finding their speed of services and the hardest that they can cope with. This can be the first step of stress management for every person. Moreover, messy and chaotic stations can also lead to stress and in this case, the chefs need to clean their space which can help take the situation under control. This can also help them to focus on keeping everything in practice. Furthermore, taking in deep breathing techniques can also help in calming the concerned situation along with its physical response.
Based on the above literary content of the study it is prominent that stress among the employees especially the chefs in highly decorated hospitality organisations is very high. This is solely experienced due to the lack of effective management style and leadership that is maintained in the hospitality organisation. It is observed that every organisation at such a high scale tends to maintain a customer-centric approach while failing to empower and appreciate its staff. These categories of organisations tend to be mainly approached for the foodservice and in such cases, the responsibilities over the employees stand to be at a top-notch. In multiple scenarios, empowering the employees mainly the chefs is also neglected even though these employees are seen to work beyond their expected margins. This tends to enhance their state of stress and prevents them from maintaining effective job satisfaction from the environment. The lack of communication and motivation provided by the managers along with the reducing work-life balance are some of the issues faced due to improper organisational management. This measure can be gradually improved by enhancing the nature of the work environment for the employees keeping in mind their social life balance.
In order to complete the study, researchers can utilise the technique outlined in this chapter, which includes a variety of tools and processes for locating, selecting, collecting, and analysing data. Additionally, it aids researchers in ensuring the study's validity and reliability while connecting acceptable methods to the study's underlying theories and theories to the accepted processes. An evaluation of successful ways that can be employed to provide accurate results has been provided in this chapter to finish the study.
When performing the study, it was necessary to use an appropriate, defined, and relevant framework to develop opinions and hypotheses. According to Melnikovas (2018), using the Research Onion Framework, which strives to collect evidence to answer the research questions, is an efficient approach to acquiring data. The structure is advantageous to an exploratory research framework since it facilitates the process of reasoning. According to Haydam and Steenkamp (2020), the investigators can complete their study while satisfying the objectives of the investigation and getting the best possible outcomes while collecting and evaluating data. It was necessary to adopt this structure in order to produce successful results, as specified in the study's specifications.
Research Process Outline |
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The approach for research here |
Deductive |
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The method of research |
Mixed method |
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The design for the research |
Descriptive |
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The method undertaken for this research |
Qualitative as well as quantitative |
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Data collection process |
Secondary as well as Primary data collection |
Philosophy of a research highlights the process of executing the different stages of a research that needs to effectively completed for successful accomplishment of a study. As noted by Cr, (2020), setting a philosophy for a research helps a research to identify a overview about the diffrernt methodological approaches that needs to be undertakes for effective completion of the study. The present context of the study is executed with the implementation of positivism philosophy of research that will help the researcher to execute the study with a flexible approach. The implementation of the aforementioned philoshy empowers the ability of the research to implement both quantitative and qualitative information based on the suggestive analysis of information.
The mentioned philosophy is also an approach that helps the researcher to reduce the limitations concerning the use of information. As noted by Hoda, (2021), use of positivism philosophy helps a researcher to identify and represent the patterns of information and craft the process of data representation. The ability to represent the data according to a personalised pattern helps a researcher to implement their own observation and understandinhg with better flexibility. Thus the generalisation of information according to the need of simplifying the presentation of information in also enhanced. The use of interpretivism philosophy is neglected by the researcher for reducing the use of subjective analysis of information. This measure enabled the researcher to reduce the use of biased views and opinions in the study that duly enhanced the quality of data representation. Additionally Erez et al., (2021) stated that, realism philosophy is the approach that directs the researcher to gain independence from the real-life thoughts of human experience. Therefore, the use of realism philosophy is also rejected for implementing the subjective viewpoint of human minds as per the real-life scenarios.
Since this research is dependant on qualitative and quantitative research methods, a deductive research approach will be used among abductive, deductive and inductive research approaches. When most people think of scientific study, they think of procedures based on deductive reasoning. This is what the vast majority of people think of. When conducting research, a researcher looks back at prior work, investigates existing theories, and then assesses hypotheses that arise from the analysis of existing ideas, all of which are called preliminary findings. According to this concept, deductive reasoning is focused on reason from a specific scenario to a more general condition (Wardani and Kusuma, 2020). When a theory or case example demonstrates a causal relationship or correlation, it is feasible that the theory or case example is valid in a wide range of situations. A deductive design, for example, might look into whether or not a particular relationship or link holds in a broader range of cases than the one under consideration in the current study. The technique to study that most people connect with empirical science is a deductive one. The researcher looks at what others have done, reads existing theories about whatever occurrence they are researching, and then puts those ideas to the test.
On the other hand, deductive researchers research in the opposite direction as inductive researchers, following the processes that have been laid out for them. Using facts, for example, students might begin with a social theory that interests them and then investigate the consequences of that theory; in other words, they might progress from a more general to a more particular level of analysis. The deductive research method investigates a well-known theory or phenomena and determines whether it is valid in specific conditions. "The deductive approach most generally resembles the route of logic," it has been said. Starting with a theory, the logic allows for a new assumption. This theory is put to the test by having it confronted with experiences which either corroborate or refute the theory. For those who prefer the deductive approach, hypotheses formulated in response to a theory's propositions constitute the basis for reasoning. As per Casula et al. (2021), unlike inductive reasoning, deductive reasoning is more concerned with generating inferences from premises rather than making direct statements about those premises. Hypotheses are a vital component of the research process when using a deductive technique. In contrast, inductive investigations do not deal with hypotheses during the research process when using an inductive approach. Therefore, using the procedure can help researchers understand the relations between job stress, chefs and the hospitality industry, which can help determine how much tension can be reduced.
Descriptive studies are critical methods of investigation because they allow researchers to gather sufficient information regarding the research problem, such as when, what, and how answers might be discovered and where they might find them and how they might be discovered. Descriptive research is an effort to investigate and describe a topic while also offering extra information. This is where study fills in the gaps and expands about what's going on in more context. Descriptive research is the process of looking at things in the dark. If the researchers are conducting this type of research, it can be beneficial to look for qualities such as intensities, patterns, relationships, and classifications, among other things. Both qualitative and quantitative techniques are employed to characterise the problem in a manner appropriate for the subject matter of the investigation (Siedlecki, 2020). At the same time, descriptive research tries to give an accurate representation of the research questions. The descriptive analysis method was selected for this research since it helps in the collection of helpful information about the subject and the production of superior outcomes.
The most often used research methods are qualitative and quantitative methods of investigation. In this instance, qualitative analysis is the most appropriate technique for conducting the research. Following Allan (2020), qualitative research can include text, multimedia, photos, and sound recordings, among other things. Grounded theory as well as theme evaluation, among other methodologies, can be used to examine this sort of data. Research that relies on interpretation and reality rather than on a single method is known as qualitative. The goal of qualitative research is to comprehend a better understanding of the events that take place. Quality research is to learn as much about a person's, community's, or culture's social reality as possible from those who are the topic of the study or who are immersed in it through interviews, focus groups, and other forms of observation. With the help of this method, it is possible to study people in their natural habitat. Qualitative approaches are more descriptive than quantitative methods, and they are used in research. It aims to explain the why and how of a specific event or behaviour in a particular situation (Aspers and Corte, 2019).
On the other side, quantitative research is the collection as well as analysis of statistical data, and it is a branch of science. Statistical analysis allows individuals to discover patterns and averages, anticipate the future, look for causal relationships, and then expand the findings to encompass a larger group of people. In order to construct theories and hypotheses from data, it is necessary to employ statistical techniques. As a result, a systematic theme analysis has been carried out to understand the issue and reach a conclusion.
The process of data collection is the method of accumulating information based on the subjective topic of the study. In the present context of the study, use of mixed methods that includes both secondary and primary data collection and analysis technique have beed used for supporting the process of data collection. The primary research goal is to find a solution to a specific problem that calls for an in-depth evaluation of the study matter (Largan and Morris, 2019). Primary data represents the use of quantatitve information that is used in the form of numeric information and is collected from real-life participants. For proceeding with the process of data collection in primary order, the method of survey is applied by the researcher for collecting the information from real-time participants. As noted by Sutherland et al., (2019), implementation of survey is a research method that helps the researcher to promote the use of unbiased information and increase the quality of research to a great extent. The main advantage of using primary information is the process of representing the information in a graphical format. This measure helped the researcher to represent the information with better preciseness for better understanding and engagement of the audience with the study. Due to the increasing extent of pandemic, the researcher also identified the process of online execution of survey for collecting the raw data from the paricipants.
The use of close-ended quesionnaires are used in the current context of the study for supporting the process of primary data collection. As noted by Coman et al., (2020), close ended questionnaires is the process of identifying the views and opinions of the population in a short and quick manner. The application of close ended questionnaires helped the researcher to gather ample responses from the participants and indentify the opinion of the chefs regarding the ups and downs faced in the industrial scenario. The researcher also ensured that the participants of the survey can gradually complete the process within 10mins due to the openness of the questions highlighted by the researcher. Apart from that, the survey is based on the challenges that are faced by the chefs during their worklife practices. This method also assisted the researcher to identify the possible solution for enhancing the job satisfaction for the chefs and conclude the research in a optimistic manner.
Secondary data analysis is a word that refers to the evaluation of existing data by someone else, and it is used to describe this process. Beyond the fact that secondary analysis saves time and money, it also helps researchers analyse study difficulties utilising vast volumes of data that are often comprehensive of underrepresented areas, allowing them to better understand the subjects under investigation. "Secondary research," as the name implies, is a compilation of findings from the previous study. Secondary research, as contrast to primary research, relies on information gleaned from primary research sources to reach its findings (Sherif, 2018). The implementation of secondary research in the context of data collection is identified from the process of accumulating the information from external research and data journals concerning the present topic. Evaluation of existing data sets that are available from different websites and online articles are also used in the existing study for giving a better direction to the research and improve its relevance.
Quantitative analysis of information is used in the present context of the study for analysing and interpreting the information that are accumated in the primary format. As noted by schmiedel et al., (2019), use of quantitative data analysis helps the researcher to identify the variables and information along with its strategic importance in a study. The use of quantitative data analysis techniques is used by the researcher for its virtue of subjective importance and the ability on focussing over an information minutely. The present data analysis technique is also a measure that helps the researcher to indentify the frequency of information and underpin the importance of each variable in a precise format. This technique is also considered as a time effective technique that allows the researcher to categorise ample information from a large pool of data in the most compact format. Quantitative analysis technique also allows the researcher to represent the information with the use of statistical images and diagrams for simplistic representation of information. It is gradually observed that simplistic representation of information helps to reflect better understanding of information for the audience and allows them to show better state of engagement with the study.
The researcher also implemented the use of qualitative data analysis technique that helps the researcher to highlight the depth of information in a comprehensive manner. As opined by Colonna, (2020), use of secondary data analysis helps to focus on the details of information thereby enhancing the relativity of the study. The application of secomdary data analysis gradually helped the researcher in deriving a coherent understanding from the accumulated research journals based on the hospitality industry. The mentioned strategy of analysing the secondary information also enabled the researcher to focus on the behaviour of the population based on differnet industrial context. Hence, highlighting a comparative overview about the behaviour of the chef’s along with the traditional organisational practices in the work environment was practiced by the researcher. Additionally, use of secondary data analysis helped the researcher to extend the work of other researchers thereby creating an openness of information. This measure helped the researcher to emphasize on explaining the factors that impact to increase the job stress for the employees and reduce their satisfaction for the services.
The process of sampling represents the methods that are used for the selection of data sources from which the information of research will be accumulated. In the present scenario, the researcher enabled the process of sampling for both quantitative and qualitative data collection processes. The use of simple random sampling is practised for supporting the selection of participants that will contribute their effort for the process of survey which is the primary data collection process. As per the opinion of, simple random something enables a researcher to select the participants in a randomised manner for reducing the involvement of biased opinion in the context of research. With the use of the aforementioned process of sampling the researcher selected the professional chefs associated with luxury hotels for accumulating their opinion about the work life and management process in the hospitality organisation. The researcher enabled the selection of 60 professional among which only 50 respondents agreed to share their opinion for the present survey.
The research also applied convenience sampling for supporting the process of data collection in the form of secondary sources. According to the views of, convenience sampling enhances the flexibility of the researcher to select the data sources according to their content and their relevance in the present study. The use of convenience sampling also empowers the researcher to select the articles that were strictly focused on the work life of the hospitality industry and its internal process of management. This method enables the researcher to highlight the professional lifestyle of a chef in the luxury hospitality organisations as well as determine their challenges in career development. Convenience sampling is also considered as a cost-effective method as it helps the researcher to identify the journals from a single location with the use of technological devices. This method gradually ensured the completion of the study within the allocated resources which gradually enhanced the image of the researcher in the context of analysing and identifying information.
All of the publications have a wealth of information at their fingertips, and they all came out after 2017. The journals are peer-reviewed as well as focused on a particular area of research.
For the sake of exclusion, any journals published before 2017 have been removed, as have any with publicly available summaries or duplicate publications.
Validity and reliability were used to assess the research's overall trustworthiness. They tell researchers how accurate a method, operation, or experiment is at measuring something. The stability of measurements is the focus of the reliability test (Hayashi et al. 2019). Reliability is the ability of a technique to provide consistent outcomes. The evaluation's dependability depends on whether the same result can be obtained consistently over time using the same methodology. Validity is the ability of a method experiment to assess a variable accurately. Data analysis validity shows how well the research results match the real world, including individual differences and the intellectual and cultural context in which the data was obtained.
Since ethics is so important in research, it was maintained throughout. The 2018 Data Protection Act stipulates that all research data be protected. Throughout the process, data confidentiality and security are maintained. During the investigation, all data were managed with the highest confidentiality (Taylor and Pagliari, 2018). Moreover, the authorities were notified of the data collection's nature from the start of the research’s design. Also, informed consent was taken from the participants, and they were permitted to leave the survey if they wished not to continue. The study exclusively used genuine data that had not been altered in any way.
The lack of time hampered the research's development. Aside from that, acquiring appropriate data for analysis is challenging. Also, due to COVID-19 and financial pressure, study had to be concluded within a limited time. Primary research faced challenges as it was difficult to conduct one due to a lack of interest and the busy schedules of chefs.
The chapter assesses the approaches deemed appropriate for the investigation. The study inquiry used a deductive strategy, mixed-method, and qualitative as well as quantitative research approaches to get results. Secondary as well as primary data were also collected to improve the study's overall quality. The results' validity and dependability were also preserved, and ethics requirements were fulfilled.
The chapter brings in a composite understanding of the quantitative (survey) primary data along with the secondary (thematic) research process. The concerned methods help in implementing the detailed perception of the growth opportunities and issues faced by the chef in luxury hotels. Concerning research surveyed 50 chefs out of 60 from the luxury hotels industry in the UK.
Findings
What is your age?
The above graph shows 20% of the respondents were within the age group of 20-25 years, followed by 46% of the 26-30 years age group which is the majority. Moreover, it is seen that 34% of the respondents were above 30 years of age which reflects that higher indulgence of 26-30 years and above 30 years within the concerned group.
Do you agree that chefs in luxury hotels have high work pressure?
The above graph reflects that 78.78% of respondents have agreed that the luxury hotel industry has high work pressure, whereas only 22.22% of respondents have disagreed with the concerned issue within the UK luxury hotel industry.
How far do you agree that changing demands of consumers are making the chefs more stressed out?
The above graph reflects that 34% and 36% of the respondents have agreed to the aspect of stress due to changing demands of consumers. 6% of the respondents were neutral and 16% and 8% have disagreed and bly disagreed with the above fact.
Do you agree that stress level impacts the organisational performance and work-life balance of chefs in luxury hotels?
From the above figure, it can be seen that 84% of the respondents have agreed to the fact that stress level impacts the performance within the organisation and the work-life balance accordingly. Only 16% have disagreed with the same within the luxury hotel market, showing their minority stance.
How far do you agree that the internal environment of the workplace can affect the performance of the chefs?
As shown in the above graph, 50% of the respondents were supportive and bly agreed that the internal environment affects the performance within the workplace. Only 6% and 24% bly disagreed and disagreed respectively for the concerned issue within the luxury hotels in the UK.
How far do you agree that training can lower the stress level and is essential in the concerned industry?
In the above graph, 50% and 36% of the respondents have bly agreed and agreed that training can be effective for the employees in the concerned field. Only 4% of the same bly disagreed and disagreed respectively for the concerned issue within the luxury hotels in the UK.
Discussion
From the above findings, it can be noted that the chefs in the luxury hotel industry have major stress in their work. From the first question, it is found out that the majority of the chefs are within the age group of 26-30 years. As in the luxury hotel industry, the chefs need to be highly experienced therefore, the concerned age group has a high predominance in the same. In the second question, it is seen that chefs go through high work pressure as most of the respondents have agreed to the concerning fact. As per the words of Belardi et al, (2021), chefs have high work pressure along with stressful work hours, low rates of payment and little growth rooms. The chefs also need to face high public demands and the changing demands as per the same effects the performance of the chefs heavily. Moreover, the hot environment and stressful working time regulations lead to the chefs feeling stressed. In the third question, the respondents are asked about the changing demands of consumers and their effects. This facet has also been discussed in the literature section through the emergence of high work hours and the needs of consumers in the UK hotel industry.
Furthermore, in the fourth question, the work-life balance and the organisational performance have been stated. The concerning shifts in consumer demands have led to numerous innovations in the food sector (Han et al., 2018). Moreover, the chefs are trying their best to cope with the demands and needs of the consumers. Thereby, it can be stated that understanding the requirements of the individuals and making food accordingly can be of high stress. Lastly, as discussed in the literature review part, the work environment highly affects the work structure and performance of the employees. The concerned respondents have highly stated that the internal work environment is an important factor for the chefs as working in such areas is stressful. As opined by Min and Hong (2021), the inefficiency of the chefs also leads to high dysfunctionality in the internal environment which also increases the stress level of the employees. Therefore, from the above findings, it can be stated that the internal environment is an essential part of social reputation and popularity which also aids in the future career of the chefs equivalently.
Training is another important aspect in the concerned industry as this can help in the smooth flow of work. From the above findings, it is seen that training can help in putting in better skills and thus can ensure better usage and specialisation of the work. This also helps in increasing the performance of the employees effectively. Training of employees increases their compliance along with ensuring the effective usage of tools consistently and successfully (Ozkeser, 2019). Thus this aids in successful interaction with the consumers and effective interaction for analysing the requirement of the same. Therefore, a friendly and comfortable internal environment can aid in developing the overall perspective of the chefs and better performance altogether. From the above study, it can be stated that chefs need to be positive while helping each other in the work. This can develop a positive work culture and can thus help in reducing the stress of the employees coherently. This can also help in improving the business and the work performance of the concerned organisation.
The predominance in the employee stress is recognised in the hospitality sectors through restaurants and luxury hotels that are especially extended through hostility, the shift in the social working hours, lack of job stability, continuous mismatch of the work request and other factors. As opined by Abdien (2019), work-life balance in the hotel staff is the basic issue that intricates the prosperity and fulfilment of the needs within the workplace and nature of the hotel and the restaurant leads to lower the level of the organisational behaviour. The phrase "If you can't stand in the heat, get out of the kitchen" showcases the difficulty and distress in the hospitality sector for the chefs that cannot be ignored. Moreover, working in such an environment is not a sustainable option as the burnouts of the industry can lead to difficulties in the work-life balance of many individuals in the luxury hospitality sector. Stress in the luxury hotel sector has got a spotlight as it is affecting the mental health and well being of the people and are demanding millennials and centennials for a better work-life balance (Madrigal and Smith, 2021). This is also leading to affect the recruitment and the retention procedure leading to a clear recognition of the pressures of the employees.
Some of the major signs of stress in the hotel industry include a high rate of turnover of employees, a decrease in the level of performance of an employee, a high number of employees quitting the job and the participation of employees for a short period in a job. As stated by the words of Rajan (2020), the major factors leading to stress in the hospitality industry are the heavy workload and the long hours of working along with tight deadlines and job insecurity. After the outbreak of Covid-19, sustainability in the job sector is another major challenge that the employees are facing in the majority (BigHospitality, 2021). Moreover, the chefs in the present day are also having fear of infection and a high charge of psychological exhaustion. From the point of view of the employers, the process of hiring is a stress which is leading to major stress in the case of chefs in the luxury hotel business. Organisational policies, role clarity, interpersonal relations and managerial support effectively leads to an increase in the stress level of the employees within the hospitality sector. Thus, improper time management and making mistakes leads to disruption in the workplace.
Improving emotional intelligence can assist in the management of stress and building b relationships and achievement of goals within the workplace in the UK. As per the words of Vo-Thanh et al., (2020), affecting and assessing the relationships and situations can help in managing the stress, emphasising others while building b relationships within the concerned sector. Emotional intelligence can also aid in assessing the requirement of the organisation which can help in coping with the pressures, stress and demands for negotiating and navigating the conflicts effectively. The individuals differ dramatically in response to the stress and problems along with their temperament which disposes of low and high levels of tolerance and stress. Moreover, the conflict within the organisations are also reduced and the smooth flow of business effectively aids the development and growth factor responsively (Khosravi et al., 2021). From different types of personality traits, it has been found that the concerned thing highly correlates the general personality factor and regulates the emotional sphere of the personnel and it is seen that high EQ level of leaders aids in reducing the team stress while building a better relationship and improves the job satisfaction level. Therefore, with the help of the concerned skill, both employees and consumers can be analysed along with the betterment of the business coherently.
Change is one of the guest expectations and is the biggest problem in the hotel industry. Changing demands of the consumers along with irregular long working hours are decreasing the performance of the chefs in luxury hotels. Operational challenges are some other issues that the business personnel in the hotel industry face. The chefs face poor working conditions, discrimination, low and unequal treatment leading to the increased amount of depression and anxiety in them. Moreover, from the studies, it has also been seen that service management and ambience is the price point of the individuals in this sphere. As per the words of Renuka and Maiya (2019), customer expectations and competition in the market are the major challenges that chefs face. In addition to it, sustainability of the same is another factor that is challenging the individuals in their growth scale. Holidays are working days for Chefs while work-life balance becomes a tough job for them. In the case of luxury hotels, providing services as per the needs of the consumers are demand and necessity. Therefore, getting food orders outside the menu is harmful to them. As there is always an emergency in this sector, therefore, the deterioration of health is a major factor that needs to be looked upon in this industry.
Furthermore, long shifts of working and improper work environments lead to increasing the dissatisfaction level of the employees and the consumers in a coherent manner. However, being a chef is a passion while becoming a leader and growing in the field is a much more challenging task for individuals. Improper utensils and technologies in the kitchen with large working areas are other challenges that the chefs have to face in their day to day life. As opined by Gold (2020), lack of storage area, damage in the cabinets and insufficient lighting also leads to improper food and thus hampers the efficiency of the chefs. This also leads to depression and anxiety in them. Time management and teamwork also lead to problematic situations for the chefs which need genuine practice for them. The challenges within the concerned sector can be mitigated by improvising systematic work culture and proper technologies which can increase the efficiency of the chefs while increasing their satisfaction level.
4.3.5 Impact of stress over the performance and productivity of the employees
Stress is considered a subjective mental status that prevents an employee from delivering their ultimate potential in the workplace. High-stress levels among the employees tend to congest their minds and limit their thinking abilities for the betterment of their services (O'Sullivan, 2020). Cognitive abilities for the development of skills is an important measure that it's been taken by the employees for gaining substantial growth opportunities in the associated industrial sector. The increasing levels of stress over the employees are also an immediate factor that resists their participative behaviour in the work environment. Stress is also evaluated as a factor that intends to reduce the coordination of the employees in the workplace as well as increases their irritation for the services. As services in the hospitality industry are organised in a well-integrated manner hence the lack of coordination affects the service quality of the organisation and also impacts the professional image. This measure stands to depreciate the potential of the employees, especially the accuracy of the chefs in luxury organisations. Mercan et al., (2020) stated that the precision and efficiency of the chefs in the hotels enables them to manage the fluent demands of the customers sequentially. However, increasing levels of stress also prevent them from implementing the practices of time management which in turn reduces the taste and quality of food as well as negatively impacts the experience of the customers.
The stress factor of the employees also tends to increase the complexities for their respective managers. As noted by Abbas (2020), organisational managers are responsible for managing and regulating the performance of the employees and are also accountable for the reduced efficiency of the employees. Hence, with increasing stress levels among employees, the managers also tend to increase the rigidity in workplace management which indicates the higher state of disengagement among the associated workforce. Apart from that, stress among the chefs in the luxury hotels is also observed due to long work hours that tends to affect their work and social life balance. In a wider perspective, reduced work-life balance among the employees is considered as a negative factor that reduces their capabilities or initiating conversation and maintaining the integrity of communication. The poor mental state of the employees is also an essential concern that is experienced due to the lack of concern for the development of the workplace concerning the management of human resources (Khuong et al., 2020). This measure duly results in increased absenteeism among the employees which in turn hampers the consistency of supply chain management and operational management within the hospitality organisation. Therefore, preserving the brand age of the organisation with the lack of employee support is also addressed as a challenge that is majorly experienced from the increasing scale of stress among the employees. An organisation like luxury hotels also face major difficulties in catering for the demands of the customers in compliance with the innovation strategies in the food department in a coherent manner.
4.3.6 Strategies of chefs for coping with the challenges in the luxury hotel industry
Strategic management in the hospitality industry requires the implementation and creation of goals that are focused on the concerned industry and helps in improving the status of the organisation. As stated by Lahiri et al., (2020), the strategies are created by the board of management and are based on the owners and the availability of the resources within the organisation. Target market can be fixed which can aid in the development of segment and seller experience which also helps in maximising the channel manager and the partners in the local businesses. Therefore, the chefs can tie up with local markets and take the resources from the same which can help in bringing better resources and free availability of materials accordingly. Making priorities can help in reducing stress while cleaning up the workspace can help in better work patterns. Moreover, this can also bring in scheduled breaks as per the requirement of the chefs. Due to irregular and long work hours, the chefs are unable to have proper sleep, exercise and diet. Therefore, the chefs must make schedules and take proper diet and sleep as this can help in the proper management of stress in the workplace.
The chefs can also treat themselves as diners and can find a hobby that can help them to cool down in times of stress. Caffeine can also be cut down which can help in reducing sleeplessness. As per the words of Thomas-Francois et al., (2020), chefs can ask questions about the p
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