New research suggests that using robots to address workers shortages in hospitality jobs such as food service and hotel work could create a negative feedback loop that makes the problem worse.
A survey of 321 lodging and 308 food service employees in the U.S. found that the fear of robots replacing human workers increased their job insecurity and stress — which heightened intentions of resigning.
The anxiety and likelihood of quitting was most pronounced among workers who had experience working with robotic technologies. The concerns applied to low-level employees and managers alike.
“The turnover rate in the hospitality industry ranks among the highest across all non-farm sectors, so this is an issue that companies need to take seriously,” said lead author Chun-Chu (Bamboo) Chen, an assistant professor in Washington State University’s Carson College of Business, in a statement.
There were more than 1 million job openings in the U.S. restaurant and accommodation sector by the end of March, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Clayton Wood, former CEO of Seattle food automation company Picnic Works, acknowledged robot-phobia anxieties. But the level of vacancies are so high in the food service sector, he said, that robots aren’t necessarily coming for someone’s job but rather are doing work that isn’t otherwise getting done. If an employee is worried about the use of robots at one restaurant, he added, they could quickly find a job at another one.
If the concern is that vacancies become worse due to fears about robots and automation, “it’s already a problem,” he said. “Turnover is already huge.”
The turnover rate in hospitality roles have decreased in the past since six months. During that time, 4.7% of employees in restaurants and accommodations quit their jobs, compared to an average monthly quit rate of 5.8% during 2021 and 2022, reports the National Restaurant Association, citing federal data.
The WSU research was published in the International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management. WSU assistant professor Ruiying Cai co-authored the research paper.
The survey defined “robots” as including simpler technologies like self-service kiosks and tabletop devices through to human-like robot servers and automated robotic arms.
“When you’re introducing a new technology, make sure not to focus just on how good or efficient it will be. Instead, focus on how people and the technology can work together.”
Chun-Chu (Bamboo) Chen, Washington State University
In addition to Picnic, the Pacific Northwest is also home to Seattle’s Artly, which manufactures robotic baristas, and Cibotica, a startup from Vancouver B.C. that has developed a robotic system for making salads and other bowl meals and recently completed the Creative Destruction Lab accelerator.
The use of robots in hospitality is limited. Moto Pizza owner Lee Kindell is using a Picnic robot for at least one of his Seattle-area restaurants and reportedly has tested Cibotica’s technology — plus shown an interest in other automation options. A vegan restaurant in New York City launched by the founder of Chipotle has gone further, opening a take-out spot called Kernel that is operated largely by robots.
Chen agreed that automation can be a good solution particularly for tedious, less desirable jobs such as washing dishes or managing hotel laundry, but said there’s still a risk that it exacerbates the sector’s labor shortage. To counter that, the researcher emphasized the need for good communication to reduce employee anxiety.
“When you’re introducing a new technology, make sure not to focus just on how good or efficient it will be,” Chen said. “Instead, focus on how people and the technology can work together.”
Wood experienced the gulf between robotics perception and reality when Picnic was installing its pizza maker at Seattle’s T-Mobile Park a few years ago. Security workers at the sports stadium initially accused Picnic employees of deploying job-stealing robots, he said, but they eventually realized “it was just a big appliance…it was just another piece of equipment.”
The idea of robots and artificial intelligence “as a concept seems scary,” Wood said. “The actual implementation is less threatening.”
