LPM Restaurant & Bar prioritises employee wellbeing with a 4-day work week

Four-day work weeks have taken the world by a storm as companies prioritise employee wellness, and LPM Restaurant & Bar has now implemented this standard for their UAE operations team. After trials at the Abu Dhabi restaurant running from August to October 2022, LPM Restaurant & Bar has reviewed its internal processes and has officially introduced their four-day work week for their UAE restaurant employees.

The project spearheaded by LPM Restaurant & Bar’s Middle East Director of Operations Alexandra Audon becomes the first official implementation of a four-day working week across the hospitality industry in the region.

The motivation behind the project has been the well-being of LPM Restaurant & Bar’s employees, putting their work life balance at the forefront to keep everyone focused, motivated and well-rested. Team members are now able to organise their shifts to have three days off at different times of the week, and this way they can create a schedule that best suits their needs.

The four-day work week was officially introduced after LPM Restaurant & Bar Abu Dhabi conducted a trial to measure the impact it would have on its 67 employees. After adjusting to the new change, the team began to react positively to the flexibility they were given. Furthermore, the service culture changed dramatically for the better, their customer engagement had improved due to their staff having extra time to relax, which led to more meaningful interactions with their guests. The trial period was a success due to the forward thinking of the managerial team as well as the adaptability of their staff members.

“In a four-day work week, I feel much more motivated and there’s less pressure when I work my hours. I also now have the opportunity to spend more time with my family as well as to study and learn for activities I have outside of work,” said one of the restaurant’s front of house staff.

“Globally, the hospitality industry is seeing a lack of interest from Millennials and Generation Z, and it can be challenging to attract new talents for a job that requires sacrifices such as working late nights, weekends, and during holidays such as Christmas. This is why we have decided to adapt to this new mentality and find a way to have a greater work life balance for everyone,” Audon said.

“In order to adapt to trends and opportunities, LPM Restaurant & Bar has slowly been investigating how to introduce the same four-day work week across our different locations. The equation is not always easy due to labour laws that require certain hours to be worked, but we are doing our best to accommodate the requests of our employees and the company to keep our staff happy and motivated,” shared Nicolas Budzynski, Global Operations Director of LPM Restaurant & Bar.

The goal of LPM Restaurant & Bar is to set a new standard that makes working in the hospitality industry more balanced. Through the new structure of the four-day work week, the restaurant aims to see better results when it comes to attracting new talent and retaining them by offering the flexibility employees are seeking.