GOLDEN Colo. Good Times Burgers & Custard chain based here has stopped accepting applications at its stores. —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
Instead, job seekers are directed to the Internet, where their applications are automatically assessed for attitude and availability. Managers then can focus on interviewing only those candidates that are highly rated and predetermined to be a good fit with Good Times’ culture, said human resources director Gary Staton. —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
But while the decision to screen candidates online puts Good Times among a growing group of restaurant operators that are using the Internet to streamline the application process and identify better-qualified candidates, human resources experts warn that the process does have limitations and should supplement, not replace, more traditional methods of employee selection to ensure that a diverse array of applicants has access to job opportunities. —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
For that reason, Staton insisted on finding a screening service that had an alternative to Internet applications. Good Times’ job seekers can also apply by dialing an automated phone service. —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
“I was uncomfortable just using the Internet,” Staton said. “What about people who do not have access to the Internet? What are they going to do?” —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
Industry analysts report that Internet recruiting is up, particularly among quick-service operators that have yet to be stung as badly as casual-dining chains by current drops in consumer spending and traffic. But while Internet recruiting is less expensive and can help screen candidates better, operators still need such traditional recruiting methods as referrals, walk-ins and community outreach to maintain and encourage a diverse workforce, observers said. —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
A recent study of job applicants by JobApp Network Inc., a Troy, Mich.-based provider of application screening and assessment tools for online and telephone, found that minorities and women were less likely to use the Internet to apply for jobs, and more likely to use the phone. —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
More than 80.9 percent of nonminorities applied online, versus 19.1 percent who used the phone, the study found. Among minorities, less than 58.7 percent used the Web, while 41.3 percent used the phone. The study looked at the preferences of more than 26,000 applicants in foodservice and retail. —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
Access to the Internet may still be an issue for minorities, said JobApp researcher Edgar Johns. —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
“The hardest penetration of high-speed Internet access has been in the suburbs, I think largely due to the average higher income in the suburbs than urban areas,” Johns said. “In rural areas, while there might be the income to afford high-speed access, the technology is not there.” —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
Johns cited a 2008 report by the Pew Internet Project that found only 55 percent of U.S. households have broadband Internet access. Households bringing in $75,000 a year were 2.5 times more likely to have Internet access than those bringing in less than $30,000. —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
Internet use is definitely related to income and age, said hospitality recruiter Clive Solomon. Young people, including minorities, with average incomes are the easiest population to reach with online tools. —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
“With those over 60 and lower-income people, we need to look to alternatives to reach these audiences than just the Internet,” said Solomon, a co-founder of the Association of Hospitality Recruiting Executives. —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
The Internet is proving to be an efficient recruiter for operators, however. —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
“More restaurant clients are tightening up their branding and selling their company message more than ever before on postings and company websites,” said Kelly Lobanov, a spokeswoman for the Richmond, Va.-based company. —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
The cost is a fraction of newspaper classifieds, and restaurants are becoming more innovative, using social networks, blogs and video sites like YouTube to reach applicants, said Teresa Siriani, president of People Report, a firm in Dallas that tracks human resources practices for restaurant companies. —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
“That kind of action gets noticed by employees,” Siriani said. “When you communicate to them in a way they like to communicate, it speaks volumes.” —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
The percentage of hourly workers hired through the Internet has grown from 6 percent in 2005 to 14 percent in 2008, according to People Report’s latest Survey of Unit-Level Employment Practices. —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
Foodservice management company Sodexo, which has more than 6,000 clients in the United States, uses the Internet to find management candidates, using not only job sites but also conducting virtual job fairs on social-networking sites. —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
About 36 percent of its management candidates from Internet sources are minorities, said Arie Ball, vice president of Sourcing and Talent Acquisition for Gaithersburg, Md.-based Sodexo. —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
“Still, due to potential Internet access limitations, as well as disabilities that may restrict computer use, Sodexo offers multiple options of posting résumés to our applicant tracking system,” Ball said. “Frontline and hourly employees also are encouraged to complete applications in person at many of our client accounts.” —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
Since Good Times began rolling out its new online and telephone application processes in October, about 40 percent of hourly job seekers are using the phone to apply, Staton said. Good Times contracted with JobApp to do the screening. —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
The restaurant chain already has a very racially diverse workforce, Staton said, and the new process should allow it to maintain that diversity. —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit
“I know a lot of applicants whom we hire do not have convenient access to the Internet,” Staton said. —Looking to deflate a high turnover rate among hourly employees, the 53-unit