Raymond Blanc: Covid has changed people's attitude to work, for better and worse

The pandemic has changed the UK job market and affected people's attitudes to work, presenting both opportunities and risks, chef patron of two Michelin-starred Le Manoir Aux Quat' Saisons, Raymond Blanc OBE has said 

Speaking to The Daily Mail, the chef said that while the effects of the pandemic had allowed restaurants to rethink outdated working practices and improve conditions in kitchens, there is a risk that the shift will take things too far, to the detriment of the 'spirit of the entrepreneur' that dominates in the country.

Comparing the UK to France, where a 35-hour working week policy has been in place for 22 years - mandating that any additional hours be paid as overtime - he said: "It is a nightmare because we completely murdered the sanctity of work and killed the spirit of the entrepreneur."

"It's really killed our craft in many ways, whereas England embraces liberalism and 48 hours and plus you can sign a piece of paper and you can work 50. Now it's over."

The chef stressed that the shift in attitude presents great opportunities to 'revolutionise' the hospitality sector, allowing it to to reinvent itself and abandon 'cruel' practices such as split shifts, which have indeed been dropped by many businesses in the sector, as well as more and more establishments introducing four-day working weeks.