Good cafe staff a dying race?

[deleted]

Well that's the thing, ACG. I would happily have worked warehouse for as long as needed, if not for the ageism. That just said to me, 'we will clash as employer & employee' and that it wouldn't work out. My work ethic is fine, but I can't work for people whose views are too far skewed from my own. mellowyellow... I'm a lot more passive-aggressive than that c:

askthecoffeeguy

wow - if that's the case it sounds like you wouldn't want to be working for them anyway curious to know though who the city's top cafe owner is, and what sort of warehouse they are running i would have to say that i'm pretty familiar with melbourne's top coffee establishments, bu i don't know of any with a separate warehouse facility all i can say is good luck and keep looking and the right opportunity will eventually present itself P

[deleted]

mym, to re-enforce the point... Have you been inquiring for work at places you wouldn't drink coffee from? Aim high and be persistent. Go to the best places (if they're advertising or not), talk to the owner or manager and offer to work a couple of trial shifts for free "just in case you do need someone later". Keep your head down, learn, and though I know you said you weren't - no one likes a rockstar, cos they're usually a hack on the inside. Good luck. And for the topic at hand, was there ever a good supply of hard-working baristi in Melbourne? We ALWAYS had trouble finding new staff, especially from advertising. The best staff we found were always people we knew from other places that were moving on. Obviously good pay and benefits (like the staff drinks etc.) helped to keep staff, but the best ones were still hard to find. What's the etiquette on poaching staff? (I'm in London and I'm not thinking about poaching your staff!! Just curious) -Jason

askthecoffeeguy

all's fair in love and coffee wars ;D

[deleted]

I was hesitant to name any names, as I do feel the age thing was understandable (employers must always look to not disrupt the dynamics of their team too much, yes?).. if a bit unfounded. (Sydney, by the way) I've been around a little bit, it seems Sydney has quite a lot of people trying to get work as Baristas. Unfortunately, everybody thinks they're that $30/hr barista... Actually, a hospital just advertised a barista gig for 22/hr. It sounds rather nice...

askthecoffeeguy

no worries billy - i was just wracking my brains trying to think of a melb joint that fited your description, and couldn't come up with anything! good luck with the job hunting cheers, pat

taz

I think Australia in all industries are lumbered with labour. Compared to Europe, Australia really has both poor customer service and very low productivity which is a shame.

askthecoffeeguy

maybe so but compared to many parts of europe we have much better coffee and far superior customer service

Lee_and_me

I thought I could add this here instead of starting a new thread... we are currently seeing a full time barista in Wollongong NSW. Here is our add for the Saturday paper... Barista required to join the team at a new caf

[deleted]

Isn't the staff problem not just in cafe's but in the whole service industry as whole? After starting out in hospo when I was 18, then moving to retail (young and foolish) the comparisons are the same. Managing stores I always found it difficult to attract good all-round staff, with a good work ethic, that could handle xmas/weekend trade. I don't always think its a money thing either, in fact I'm finishing my office sales job shortly and trying to get back into hospo(anyone want to take on 29 year old ex chef-that wants to work front of house??-Im polite, well groomed and want to learn a lot more about coffee-my via venezia at home just doesnt cut it!)

taz

Yep! The work culture is lazy. You see it in offices as well where people would rather lounge around drinking their instant whining about nothing instead of putting their backside down and doing work which you are being paid to do.

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