As a lifelong service industry employee, I know there's nothing more refreshing than “cutting loose” after a long stretch of work over a holiday. (The evening of New Year's Day 2000 in Sydney, Australia comes to mind, but that's a story for another day…) Since we are more often than not charged with serving others while sacrificing our own time off, major holidays can be more dreaded than looked forward to by the service professional. However, as most of us in the business know, the few days and nights following a holiday is the ultimate time for the service world to blow off steam, go out on the town, catch up on much needed sleep, or just treat ourselves to some well deserved relaxation. In that light, I say we make it formal and create our newest holiday, ThankStaffing!
ThankStaffing should cover the weekend or any three nights following a major holiday. In the USA, Thanksgiving seems an appropriate day to piggy back on with our new holiday, so I'm recognizing it starting today! The three day celebration period gives all of our staff, crews, and managers a window to enjoy themselves and be celebrated for the hard work and dedicated service they've provided through a challenging holiday period. Perhaps there can be an official greeting that lets others in the industry know you are enjoying the ThankStaffing days, and likewise an expression of “I appreciate you” if one happens to be receiving the service of others while dining, shopping, traveling, or being taken care of in any way. It will be like a proverbial “wink and a nod” to recognize we're part of a brother or sisterhood that “gets it.” Maybe a secret handshake would do the trick, perhaps a special cocktail with a fun name, or maybe saying thanks in a unique way would add a bit of camaraderie as well? Obviously the details are less important than the concept. Make it your own.
In a perfect world, we wouldn't have to create a holiday to recognize the work of often behind-the-scenes staff. Ideally we would have built in systems of feedback and reward in our places of employment, and everyone would know that service employees need balance in their lives to recharge and refresh. Perhaps it exists in rare examples, but I have yet to see it as a regular practice and instead see lots of great people working too hard, too long without being seen and celebrated. So let's change that ourselves and usher in an “underground” movement that allows us to see one another sacrificing for other people's enjoyment. Write it on dining receipts, say it at the checkout, make a toast, and bask in the well deserved time off. Happy ThankStaffing!