Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Almost 1,000 apply for receptionist job in Manchester

When a Manchester restaurant advertised for a receptionist on Monday, the owners were shocked to received almost 1,000 applicants in a day.

They had only expected about 30 people to be interested.

The UK's hospitality sector has been savaged by the coronavirus crisis, with many bars, restaurants and hotels struggling.

"It really is quite sad to see the amount of people that are looking for a job," the company said.

"On Monday we placed an advert for a receptionist role for our 20 Stories restaurant in Manchester," Carol Cairnes, director of people at the restaurant's owner D&D London, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

"The next day, James, our head of talent, went to look at applications and was amazed to find that in less than 24 hours we had 963 people apply."

Normally for such a role they'd expect at that stage to receive about 30 applications, she said.

"Going through the candidates who applied, we could see there were a lot of very talented and highly-qualified people that applied for the role, including some restaurant general managers."

Hospitality jobs have proved highly-sought-after as thousands of roles have been slashed by restaurant groups.

In the last two weeks, popular chains such as Pizza Express and Azzurri have kick-started restructures of their businesses that are likely to lead to more than 2,000 job losses and hundreds of restaurant outlets closing.

Social-distancing rules have also led to businesses reducing staff numbers, as they have re-opened with less space, meaning they can cater for fewer customers at a time now.


Over-qualified applicants

Other businesses have reported similar experiences this week.

Emily Pringle of Alnwick-based fragrance company Notes of Northumberland told the BBC that she received 583 applicants when she advertised a 16 hour-a-week retail job.

"Most of the applicants were massively over-qualified," she said.

"It's a very sad sign of the times. A large number of people have been educated to PhD level and applying for our job, which is telling about the current state of the job market."

In Swansea, Sarah John, founder of Boss Brewing, said that her firm had advertised for a bar manager two days before and were surprised by the number and quality of applicants.

"We would normally only get five or so responses, but have had 35 people apply already and the calibre of applicants is really high," she said.

Most of the applicants had worked at reasonably well-known businesses, but have either lost their jobs, or are still furloughed and worried about their future, she added.

"There have also been quite of a lot of people who said they would be happy to relocate to work," she said.

"We're in Swansea and have had applications from people from as far as Manchester, Leeds and Cornwall."


Vacancies have halved

Meanwhile, when a London pub manager posted an advert for a £9-an-hour bar job last week, he was so overwhelmed by the response that he took to Twitter to report it.

Mick Dore, general manager of the Alexandra pub in Wimbledon, said: "I don't want to alarm anyone about the economy or anything, but I advertised two bar jobs at 16:30 on Thursday. We've had well over 400 applicants. Gulp."


He added: "We'd normally get a dozen or so sensible replies."

Research by the Institute for Employment Studies this week found that the total number of live job vacancies across the country now stands at 433,000.

That's less than half of the number in February, indicating that there's a long way to go in the recovery for the UK job market.

"Without doubt, this is now the toughest jobs market in a generation, and there are no signs yet of a significant recovery," said Tony Wilson, director of the Institute for Employment Studies.

AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Vatican hosts first Catholic LGBTQ pilgrimage
Apple Unveils iPhone 17 Series, iPhone Air, Apple Watch 11 and More at 'Awe Dropping' Event
France joins Eurozone’s ‘periphery’ as turmoil deepens, say investors
France Faces New Political Crisis, again, as Prime Minister Bayrou Pushed Out
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
The Country That Got Too Rich? Public Spending Dominates Norway Election
EU Proposes Phasing Out Russian Oil and Gas by End of 2027 to End Energy Dependence
More Than 150,000 Followers for a Fictional Character: The New Influencers Are AI Creations
EU Prepares for War
Trump Threatens Retaliatory Tariffs After EU Imposes €2.95 Billion Fine on Google
Tesla Board Proposes Unprecedented One-Trillion-Dollar Performance Package for Elon Musk
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Big Tech Executives Laud Trump at White House Dinner, Unveil Massive U.S. Investments
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
‘Looks Like a Wig’: Online Users Express Concern Over Kate Middleton
Florida’s Vaccine Revolution: DeSantis Declares War on Mandates
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
"The Situation Has Never Been This Bad": The Fall of PepsiCo
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
The Fashion Designer Who Became an Italian Symbol: Giorgio Armani Has Died at 91
Putin Celebrates ‘Unprecedentedly High’ Ties with China as Gazprom Seals Power of Siberia-2 Deal
China Unveils New Weapons in Grand Military Parade as Xi Hosts Putin and Kim
Rapper Cardi B Cleared of Liability in Los Angeles Civil Assault Trial
Google Avoids Break-Up in U.S. Antitrust Case as Stocks Rise
Couple celebrates 80th wedding anniversary at assisted living facility in Lancaster
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
"Insulted the Prophet Muhammad": Woman Burned Alive by Angry Mob in Niger State, Nigeria
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Druzhba Pipeline Incident Sparks Geopolitical Tensions
Cost of Opposition Leader Péter Magyar's Economic Plan Revealed
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
Eurozone Inflation Rises to 2.1% in August
Russia and China Sign New Gas Pipeline Deal
Von der Leyen's Plane Hit by Suspected Russian GPS Interference in an Incident Believed to Be Caused by Russia or by Pro-Peace or by Anti-Corruption European Activists
China's Robotics Industry Fuels Export Surge
Suntory Chairman Resigns After Police Probe
Gold Price Hits New All-Time Record
UK Fintechs Explore Buying US Banks
Greece Suspends 5% of Schools as Birth Rate Drops
Apollo to Launch $5 Billion Sports Investment Vehicle
Bolsonaro Trial Nears Close Amid US-Brazil Tension
European Banks Push for Lower Cross-Border Barriers
Poland's Offshore Wind Sector Attracts Investors
×