Thibaud Hue, edited by Gauthier Delomez 10:05 a.m., June 01, 2022

According to estimates by the Union of Hotel Trades, between 220,000 and 250,000 jobs remain to be filled in cafes, hotels and restaurants in France.

In Île-de-France, for example, 13,600 servers are missing.

A lack of seasonal workers which slows down activity in the sector, like this Parisian restaurant where Europe 1 visited.

REPORTAGE

At noon, the waiters at Le Mesturet restaurant in the 2nd arrondissement of Paris are sweating.

Maëlys is out of breath when she wipes glasses behind the bar: "We are understaffed, so I find myself doing the bar, the cash register and helping my colleagues. It's hard and there are even times when you wonder if you're going to hold on mentally."

As summer approaches, between 220,000 and 250,000 jobs are still to be filled in cafes, hotels and restaurants in France, according to the Union des métiers de l'hôtellerie.

In Île-de-France alone, there is a shortage of 13,6000 servers, or 50% more than last year.

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In reality, the establishments are unable to recruit, which is why the teams are overwhelmed and some close their doors a few days a week to survive.

This is the case of the manager of this Parisian restaurant, Alain Fontaine, who decided to close on Saturday noon and on Sunday.

A decision, for lack of manpower, which cost him dearly: “It is a loss of turnover of 400,000 euros over the year. If I wanted to reopen on weekends, I would need five additional positions. We saw from the first confinement that there was a recruitment problem”, he explains at the microphone of Europe 1.

How to attract seasonal workers again

Not paid enough, too wide hourly amplitudes... Young people are turning away from the sector.

In an attempt to be more attractive, the boss has relaxed the working conditions of his employees.

"We removed the cut. Those who want to have their morning for their life, they have it, those who want to have their evening for their children, they have it", he says.

"Before, it was like that and not otherwise. Today, we wonder what we can do to work together. I don't want us to be considered as convicts of work. we change our image", recounts the manager.

>> Find Europe Matin in replay and podcast here

Alain Fontaine foresees a difficult year but only thinks of one thing: to bring together a full team for the 2023 Rugby World Cup in France.