Youths shun cooking careers
WA faces a chef shortage in part because perceptions of the industry have been warped by reality TV cooking shows and young people are reluctant to work evenings and weekends.
A mistaken belief that hospitality does not pay well, the industry’s inability to compete with the mining sector and a lack of government incentives have also been blamed for a 26 per cent fall in the number of apprentice chefs recruited in Perth in the year to December.
The industry estimates WA will need 2000 more chefs in three years but recruitment and training trends suggest as few as 40 new chefs will be entering the Perth labour market in 2017.
Hospitality Group Training general manager Iain McDougall said of 300 apprentices recruited last year just 90 would qualify as chefs, based on a completion rate of 30 per cent.
Of those 90, about one-third would go overseas and another 20 would leave the industry.
He said there was no one factor and no “silver bullet”.
“Across the world it’s a generational change for young people having more of a dedication to a balanced lifestyle and weekend work and evening work is not so appealing because of the way young people have grown up these days,” he said.
“There’s also a perception that the hospitality sector is underpaid, which is not generally the case.
“The other issue is the situation with reality TV cooking shows at the moment.
“They do create an unrealistic expectation of the cooking industry and the food industry, that anyone who can put a pot on a stove, can come into a kitchen and be plating up food within a few weeks of starting their apprenticeship.”
Mr McDougall said an increase in TAFE fees and a decline in Federal Government incentives for businesses to take on apprentices also contributed.
He said part of the solution was to target young people in schools and make them aware of the global need for chefs and the opportunities for travel and employment.
“With the huge demand for chefs around the world in London, America and throughout Europe we’re now in a scenario where people are going to get a job that can last them a lifetime and take them around the world,” he said.
Alexis Watson started her apprenticeship as a 15-year-old and now works 33 floors up at Perth’s C Restaurant.
The 18-year-old was named most outstanding apprentice of the year at last night’s Hospitality Group Training Awards. Ms Watson said she had adjusted to working on Friday and Saturday nights, hoped to continue to study and cook in Perth and one day to own her own restaurant.
“My mum has told me that I’ve always been into cooking since I was little,” she said.
Source: The West Australian, Kate Emery, 1st September 2015
Originally published as: Youths shun cooking careers
