The portfolio, which includes the five-star hotel, Grove of Narberth, Michelin-starred Beach House Restaurant and Coast Restaurant in Saundersfoot, is to transition towards its new working structure over the coming months, with the team set to move to new contracts from January 1 2022.
The 25-bedroom Grove of Narberth hotel and Fernery restaurant in Pembrokeshire and rest of the Seren Collection is owned and operated by Neil and Zoe Kedward.
As part of this change in working, staff will be rota-ed for four days, and paid for any extra days worked, but those who wish to continue on their existing five-day week will be allowed to do so, building on the provision of more flexible working practices across the group.
Seren will also introduce a profit share scheme in 2022, where each team member will be eligible to share equitably in the ongoing success of the business.
In 2016, the Grove was amongst the first hotels in the UK to introduce a 4-day working week for chefs, where extra days worked are paid. The group said that achieving this in its standalone restaurants however had been a ‘much harder challenge’, due to affordability and the impact of high seasonality and tight sector margins.
Managing director, Neil Kedward, said: “We’re humbled each day knowing that our success is deeply linked to our special team, who individually and collectively create the incredible experiences and memories that guests take away with them. We know how much valuable time they commit, and how their exceptional skills and loyalty to our venues help make it all happen. We’ve always been passionate about rewarding this commitment and the extraordinary level of professionalism in our teams by offering the best remuneration packages for the sector in Wales. But we need to go further, and so for us, there has never been a better time to make these transformative changes.”
