CUSTOMER STORY
Providing fair and safe access to money for hospitality staff
The cost of living is rising rapidly across the globe. As a result, employees need a safe, reliable and easy way to access money when needed. This is a challenge faced by many hospitality businesses. This blog tells the story of how Orka Pay supports Stepping Stones Leisure by providing flexible pay to their hospitality staff. Providing Earned Wage Access to hospitality employees helps Stepping Stones attract and retain talent and increase productivity at work.
A historic business with a modern approach
Stepping Stones Leisure is an ambitious business in the coastal town of Ramsgate. It consists of the Royal Harbour Hotel and three restaurants: Little Ships, Travellers of Italy and their new french bistro, Madame Jeanne. They can employ up to 40 people between these sites in the high season. As a busy and fast-moving business employing temporary and part-time staff, they have historically experienced challenges with people asking for advances in salaries. The company used to provide flexible pay for hospitality staff via manual transfers before they discovered Earned Wage Access for hospitality staff.
Tim White, the Operations Manager at Little Ships restaurant, remembers the process of paying advances as labour-heavy and describes this as a challenge faced by many hospitality businesses:
“Casual workers can often wait more than a month for their pay packet. Understandably, they would be asking for pay advances. We had to manage this quite tightly at the time as it involved lots of paperwork and chasing people. Orka Pay completely resolved that.”
“Casual workers can often wait more than a month for their pay packet. Understandably, they would be asking for pay advances. We had to manage this quite tightly at the time as it involved lots of bits of paperwork and of chasing people. Orka Pay completely resolved that.”
“Casual workers can often wait more than a month for their pay packet. Understandably, they would be asking for pay advances. We had to manage this quite tightly at the time as it involved lots of bits of paperwork and of chasing people. Orka Pay completely resolved that.”
Tech to the rescue
Stepping Stones accessed Orka Pay through their existing workforce management system, RotaCloud. They wanted to try the solution when they discovered it lets employees withdraw up to 50% of their earned wages.
“When I discovered Orka Pay, I thought it looked much better than our current solution! Not only is it completely automated, but it also gives the employee the privacy to manage this on their own time and whenever they need to – at no cost to the employer,” says James Thomas, the founder of Stepping Stones Leisure.
Orka Pay allows hourly-paid staff members to access up to 50% of their wages, where they pay a transparent fee on any withdrawal over £50. They don’t need to involve their employer or even ask. It’s available to them whenever and wherever they need it, providing flexible pay for hospitality staff.
A popular benefit
Tim explains that Orka Pay and the Earned Wage Access it provides hospitality staff has become popular as a benefit for employees.
“Lots of people use it. They find it useful and helpful. It removes the stigma of having to ask your employer for a loan. It’s anonymous, and no one needs to know. We mention it during the recruitment process, as being able to access your money right after working a shift is quite a benefit.”
Stepping Stones Leisure wants to be a fair and responsible employer, so any solutions they use must be ethical, and Orka Pay fits the bill.
“Another thing I like about Orka Pay: it’s not money lending. It’s a much safer and more modern solution. Rather than going to a loan shark, unscrupulous people or asking family members, you’re accessing your own cash.” says James.
New problems require new solutions
Living is bound to become more expensive over the next year. So far, we’ve seen unparalleled increases in lending, overdrafts and a record drop in savings.
Providing employees in the hospitality sector with a safe and easy way to access money could make a massive difference to their well-being and how they think about work. With solutions like Orka Pay, you can help your staff stay in control of their finances and empower them to manage their money in a way that suits their lifestyle by providing Earned Wage Access to hospitality staff.
If you want to offer Orka Pay to your employees, book a free demo with our sales team.
