- New YouGov research reveals 86% of unemployed parents want to return to work
- However 59% of parents find lack of flexibility the biggest barrier to finding work
- Travelodge is targeting ‘parent potential’ to help fill 3,000 new jobs
- Employment Minister Alok Sharma backs new programme
- 550 jobs needs to be filled immediately
Travelodge, the UK’s first budget hotel chain, today launches a new recruitment programme targeting mums and dads looking to get back into work by offering: jobs with hours that fit around the school run, a work buddy and access to management training.
This programme is designed to help attract some of the UK’s 2 million plus unemployed parents into hospitality, as part of Travelodge’s plans to open 100 hotels over the next five years, which will create up to 3,000 new jobs.
Jobs will be available across the company’s hotels and head office – including roles in reception, restaurants, housekeeping as well as flexible hours in head office roles.
To design this new initiative, Travelodge commissioned a survey with YouGov to gain further insight into the challenges unemployed mums and dads are currently facing.
Key findings revealed that 86% of unemployed parents would like to return to work. However 59% of parents reported that the scarcity of jobs with flexibility around the school run was the biggest challenge to finding work.
Six out of ten (61%) of unemployed parents reported that they have lost their confidence whilst staying at home to raise a family and are apprehensive of returning to work.
Further findings revealed that 41% of parents are eager to work in order to regain their personal identity and not be labelled just a parent. In addition 31% of unemployed parents reported that they are bored at home and want to work in order to exercise their mind and learn new skills.
More than a quarter (26%) of adults reported that they want to work because they miss adult conversation.
Nearly seven out of ten (67%) of unemployed parents reported that they would appreciate the opportunity to climb the career ladder whilst raising their family.
Peter Gowers, Travelodge, Chief Executive said:
“Travelodge is growing quickly and we want to unlock the potential of Britain’s mums and dads as they return to work. Hospitality can offer a great career for parents, with jobs close to home, hours that can match the school run, benefits that suit families and a path into management.”
“We are preparing in earnest for post-Brexit Britain. With thousands of new jobs to fill, we need more new colleagues than ever. We see vast untapped potential in parents who want to return to work. YouGov research shows that many parents want to get back into a job, especially one that can lead to a career, and the first step is often the hardest. We’ve based our new programme on making it easier than ever for mums and dads to work around the school run and climb the career ladder whilst raising their family.”
Alok Sharma, Employment Minister, said:
“These are the type of flexible work opportunities parents up and down the country will welcome, which fit around their family responsibilities.
“With record numbers in work and unemployment at a 40-year low, big employers need to follow Travelodge’s example if they want to fill vacancies. Our welfare reforms are helping, offering flexibility for claimants to work the hours they can to make sure work always pays.”
Travelodge will be offering roles across its 558 current UK hotels, in its forthcoming new hotel openings and at its head office. Positions include: Hotel Manager, Assistant Hotel Manager, Receptionist, Bar Café Team Member, Housekeeper, and Housekeeping Team Member, as well as support roles.
Detailed below is an outline of Travelodge’s five step path to help parents back to work:
- Careers advice on its website to help mums and dads return to work
- Flexible working hours to suit family life
- Full range of company benefits including discounted hotel stays
- Comprehensive training and a work buddy to help get up to speed
- Opportunity to join the Travelodge Aspire management programme
All jobs will have guaranteed hours and comprehensive benefits including discount hotel stays. New colleagues will also be eligible to join the company’s Aspire management programme, which offers comprehensive training on hotel management. This can help new entry-level team members get into a management role at Travelodge within a year of joining the company, offering further significant salary and development progression.
For further details on all positions at Travelodge and to apply, please visit: www.travelodge.co.uk/careers/working-parents/
Travelodge employs hundreds of employees who are working parents and have successfully climbed the career ladder whilst raising their family.
This includes three generations of one family working across different Travelodge hotels in Edinburgh. Also Alison Barr, District Manager for Yorkshire started with Travelodge as a part-time Receptionist and has successfully climbed the career ladder whilst raising her daughter, Katie.
Katie has followed her mum’s footsteps and joined Travelodge as a Housekeeping Team Member and is now the Hotel Manager at Manchester Arena Travelodge. Katie and her team relentlessly supported parents and the emergency services on the night and for weeks after following the Manchester Arena attack in May 2017.
For details of working parent case studies please contact the Travelodge press office on 01844 35 8703.
www.travelodge.co.uk
The YouGov survey was conducted with a sample group of 451 unemployed parents in August 2018.
