This article discusses self harm.
As we head into the pointy end of the year the pressure on restaurants and bars amps up, and with it the pressure on hospitality staff.
In response, Acre Eatery in Camperdown and its chef, Gareth Howard, have announced two days of free mental health workshops for hospo workers to be held at the restaurant, on Tuesday September 11 and Tuesday September 18.
Howard previously organised the Kitchen Confidential Dinner back on July 1 to tackle mental health issues in hospitality industry, to which the response was “phenomenal”.
“Work welfare is so big in other industries and still so neglected in our industry,” Howard told Time Out at the time, which was not long after the death of Anthony Bourdain. “The rates of suicide are higher than in a lot of others.”
The free, solution-based relaxation days for hospitality workers will cover meditation, exercise and stretching, panic and anxiety management, Reiki, hypnotherapy and massages. Bookings are available through the Acre Eatery website.
The sessions are free thanks to teachers volunteering their time, and lunch being being sponsored by supportive suppliers. The two days will be quite intimate, with a capacity of up to 50 people on each day, and the option of attending a morning, an afternoon or all day.
Howard says that another free Kitchen Confidential evening will be held in October, this time aimed at bar and catering staff.
Lifeline: 131 114.