High Calibre Staff For New Hotel

Press, Volume CIV, Issue 30803, 15 July 1965, Page 7

High Calibre Staff For New Hotel

The 112-bed White Heron Lodge at the entrance to Christchurch Airport would completely change the whole concept of hotel staffing in New Zealand overnight when it opened in mid-Sep-tember, said the manager (Mr R. Cooney) yesterday. More than 50 inquiries had been made in the last five days for the hotel's 80 staff vacancies, he said. The staffing of the hotel, said Mr Cooney, would be similar to the most advanced hotel countries of the world, such as Switzerland, where hotel staff were famous for service. To encourage staff of exceptionally high calibre, wages and conditions far beyond those anywhere else in New Zealand would be offered. “We want to hire a work force that will still be with us in 20 years,” he said. “And we are prepared to pay for it.” Enlightened Indicative of the hotel’s enlightened outlook towards staff, said Mr Cooney, was the introduction of an 8-hour straight shift, with two complete dining-room staffs to give service over 16 hours daily. Mr Cooney said that, so far as he knew, an 8-hour shift was rare in the New Zealand hotel industry. For the workers, this would mean less hours for the same pay. Another enticement to attract the best quality staff, said Mr Cooney, was the offering of “dry-pay.” This, in effect, meant that staff would be given their meals and would in addition be paid a full meal allowance. A further encouragement, he said, was the engagement of the most highly qualified management possible. Swiss Chef

Already an experienced Swiss chef from Dallas, Texas (Mr L. Doebele), had been engaged to supervise the 20-

person kitchen staff. In America, he was a real top-

liner. His wife, as the diningroom manageress, would give New Zealand waitresses expert training, gained from a lifetime of dining-room management in the United States and Europe.

Asked what would be the most significant feature of the service in the White Heron, Mr Cooney said: 'The room service.” A team of expert waiters, he said, would be giving some 35 guests breakfast in bed every morning. An adequate staff would provide full-room service of the type in great demand overseas. Many reservations had already been made for overseas tours up to March next year, said Mr Cooney. A party of 75 members of the American Thoroughbred Horse-Breeders’ Association, coming early in November, had booked the hotel’s large conference room for a banquet. Daily Rates The daily room rates for the hotel, said Mr' Cooney, would range from £3 15s for single-bed rooms. Executive suites would run from £9 upwards. All rooms had vision, bath and/or shower. Children under five years would be accommodated free, whilst those over five and under 14 £1 a day extra to the room rates of their parents or guardians would be charged. Mr Cooney said that the room rates did not include meals, which would be a la carte in dining-rooms and coffee shop. The final decision on staff to be hired, he said, would be made in about two weeks, by which time all applications should have come to hand.

Office Ransacked. The front door of the premises of Unit Concrete, Ltd., at Chaneys Comer, Belfast, was forced on Tuesday night and

the office ransacked. It is not known if anything was stolen.