Last week, I went to the cinema to watch Boiling Point; and after watching it, I need to share my experience with you all.
The film is set inside one of the trendiest restaurants in London, where the manager had purposely overbooked customers. Like a fly on the wall, you follow the Head Chef Andy around as he tries to run his restaurant amid the day to day torments of his personal life.
Boiling Point begins with a visit from a health inspector, and takes you through the day to day stress a Head Chef and hospitality team experience
From challenging customers, a nut allergy, staff not showing up, missed supplies ….
It was filmed and acted so well that you literally thought you were there. It’s also very realistic and shows the day-to-day stress and pressures hospitality teams cope with.
I could feel myself get stressed as just watching the scenes, and could tell my heart was racing fast; as it is so realistic and captured the essence of what often happens – staff issues, demanding customers, supply shortages etc…. But always experienced with a ‘smile on your face and customer charm’ as many hospitality staff have to do.
With all that, it will not come as much of a surprise that hospitality professionals are more at risk than the national average with 4 out of 5 experiencing high levels of stress and mental illness.
In a profession that operates 7 days a week, diminishing resources that result in turnover rates far above average, and little to no training in leadership or health and wellbeing, the demands on hospitality teams are high and the impact to mental health are startling…
- 84% of hospitality workers experienced mental health issues within their career
- 46% would feel uncomfortable talking about their concerns
- 62% of staff do not believe the hospitality sector takes care of its employees
Hospitality employees work tirelessly to give service to others,
So much so that often they neglect their own mental and physical well being. Covid hasn’t t helped, causing an implosion and staffing crisis which has contributed to mental health problems.
This is why initiatives like The Burnt Chef Project are so critical for the industry. The project is a non-profit social enterprise that was launched in May 2019. It is fully committed to making the hospitality profession healthier and more sustainable. Their mission: to eradicate mental health stigma within hospitality for everyone.
It’s a cause that since discovering, I’ve been very passionate about. Research shows that 8 out of 10 hospitality professionals report having experienced at least one mental health issue during their career… 1 in 4 people will experience a period of poor mental health within their lifetime.
The ultimate mission is to ensure a healthier, happier, and more sustainable hospitality industry and I recommend all hospitality owners and chefs get behind this important project.
You can find out more about the amazing work of The Burnt Chef Project here
