Brexit uncertainty leaves hotel chain struggling to hire staff
Millennium & Copthorne say the uncertainty surrounding Brexit is hitting its London hotels, which are having difficulty hiring enough EU workers.
The hotel chain said it relies heavily on EU workers, which make up more than half of its staff at hotels in the capital.
It said this was one of the reasons for a 28% drop in its profits to £106 million last year. Other factors were the increase in minimum wage levels, competition from Airbnb and the US-China trade war.
In the fourth quarter of 2018, the hotel chain’s profits dropped 76% to £7 million.
In a statement, Millennium & Copthorne said: "Concerns about Brexit have affected the Group’s UK hotels especially in London, where the hotels started to face difficulties in recruiting EU workers which currently comprise more than half of the London workforce."
Revenue per available room in London dropped 7.4%, although that was partly due to the closure of its Mayfair hotel for refurbishment.
Across the group as a whole, revenue per available room fell to £81.57 last year from £82.78 in 2017.
"The hospitality industry faced a range of geo-political and global economic headwinds in 2018, many of which look set to continue in the current year, including US/China trade relations, Brexit and increasing minimum wage levels in many jurisdiction," said chairman Kwek Leng Beng.
"The shortage of talent – from rank and file to senior management – is intensifying with many new hotels being built around the world, not to mention the growth of Airbnb and serviced apartments."
Linsey McNeill
Editor Linsey McNeill has been writing about travel for more than three decades. Bylines include The Times, Telegraph, Observer, Guardian and Which? plus the South China Morning Post. She also shares insider tips on thetraveljournalist.co.uk
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