High-quality service provision has increased in importance in the developed world. It is the response to the increasing importance of the service sector in the economy. The service sector is also gaining importance in other parts of the world where emerging economies are offering plenty of opportunities in the sector. Within the growing importance of the service industry, the value of personnel or human resources within the sector is also critically important (Shani et al., 2014). The role of service employees is high because they are an undisputed asset in the service industry. The hospitality sector is an important one within the service sector, where personnel or human resources play a vital role in service provision for guests. In the service sector, like the hospitality sector, the work or job of employees is not exactly physical, sensory-motor, or cognitive. Instead, emotional labor demands are dominant in the service industry because intrinsic satisfaction makes a distinctive part of the industry. For instance, the service industry cannot fulfill and come up with the demands of guests if it only presents intellectual or physical labor. Emotional labor makes a difference, among other forms of labor.
Hochschild first introduced the concept of emotional labor in 1979, and since then, the concept has gained the attention of many researchers and practitioners. The concept has gained popularity in the services industry, especially in the hospitality industry, where customer service and relations are vital. In the hospitality industry, the source of competitive advantage is the customer, and the industry has to concentrate on customers to be competitive. Some researchers have noted that emotional labor is the form or representative labor because a person represents services for the organization. In simple, employees or workers have to manage their emotions and feelings to bring perfection in the job setting. Therefore, emotional labor aims at completing the obligation and job description of an employee at the organization. Human resources work at the center of the hospitality industry; therefore, they make a critical part of research and practice in the industry (Writepass, 2012).
Emotional Labor:
There are many definitions of emotional labor. One of the definitions of emotional states that it is the arrangement and management of feelings that develops or makes the attitudes of employees working for the satisfaction of customers (Chu and Murrmann, 2006). In another definition, emotional labor is the process that calls for employees to adopt appropriate emotional behavior for customers (Jung and Yoon, 2014). However, it does not mean that it addressed the true emotions of customers. Another definition states that it is the process of faking and suppressing real emotions to come up with the requirements of the job. It aligns attitudes and behaviors for enabling expected interpersonal behavior so that employees can respond to expectations of customers (Austin, Dore and O’Donovan, 2008).
Some researchers have discussed emotions, as well. According to research studies, emotion refers to the physiological arousal and cognitive appraisal of the situation. Under the situation, the employee tends to display rules and expressions suitable for the job requirements. Emotions have another aspect that they tend to influence the emotions and behaviors of others. Before going deeper into the relationship between the hospitality industry and emotional labor, the following is a discussion on the hospitality industry (Coslovich and Preiss, 2012).
Hospitality Industry:
The hospitality industry is part of the services industry. The hospitality industry is based on services provided to the clients or customers by the employer of organizations in the industry. However, a unique attribute of services in the hospitality industry is that it is based on leisure more than simply providing services to clients. Some people can confuse the term of hospitality with the travel industry. They are related or connected, but there are clear differences between them (Wang and Xie, 2020). The travel industry is about providing services to tourists who arrive at a place for a short period. They want assistance and support according to their stay there. However, the hospitality industry is broader than the travel industry. It offers services to everyone who has arrived at a place for entertainment and enjoyment. That person can be local, or persons arrived at the spot without the purpose of tourism (Revfine, 2020).
One salient feature of the hospitality industry is that it is based on services. Moreover, human resources play a crucial and central role in providing services to industry because it is usually a labor-intensive industry. Customers are highly sensitive to the provision of services and the way of offering these services. Therefore, the industry involved human-oriented services industry activities for customers, and they value these services as well. After the explanation of the concepts of the hospitality industry and emotional labor, the following sections discuss emotional labor in the hospitality industry (EIKMEIER, 2019).
Factors affecting Emotional Labor in the Hospitality Industry:
The above definitions of the concepts of emotional labor and hospitality industry have noted that the concept has an application in the hospitality industry. Therefore, it is vital to consider factors affecting the concept in the chosen industry. There are two classifications of factors, i.e., individual factors and group factors. Both classifications are going to be explained in the following.
Individual Factors:
Emotional intelligence works with emotional labor:
Intelligence is the capacity of someone to act as per the purpose, and it lets the person think rationally and effectively in the environment. It involves cognitive and non-cognitive components simultaneously. Both components are necessary for a successful life. Emotional intelligence includes non-cognitive components or aspects of intelligence. The role of emotional intelligence in the hospitality industry is huge because it lets workers perform job duties as per the requirements of the industry (Lee and Madera, 2019). Research has confirmed that emotional labor finds the effects of emotional intelligence when it has to work along with customers in the hospitality industry. Emotional intelligence is a way for the management of regulations of emotions. Emotional intelligence is a creative method of measuring and responding to personal and other emotions on the job. It also uses information that can help in regulating emotions in the workplace. It makes the context for a person to use the knowledge and information around him and then, to make an appropriate response to emotions. Like communication, emotional intelligence affects the process of identification, sending, and receiving emotions between people. Researchers have found that the ability of emotional intelligence can be better upon exposure through training (Williams and Singh, 2018).
The role of emotional intelligence in emotional labor is vital because attributes of the concept are related to emotional labor. These attributes make it the case suitable for the hospitality industry because the management and control of emotions in the hospitality industry are very crucial. It is not easy to manage emotions and predict them because it is a complex set of fields. However, organizations in the sector have observed the importance of emotional intelligence for the provision of services to clients and guests. It broadens the scope of the field that intelligence makes the scope more powerful and encouraging for different sectors in the business (Lee and Ok, 2014).
Personality Traits affecting Emotional Labor in the Hospitality Industry:
The second chosen individual factor includes personality traits affecting emotional labor. They affect the hospitality industry and the way it gets the new shape. Emotional labor directly links with the human being and his personality traits. There are different personality traits in an employee, but here, only those would be important that are making some impact. Researchers have found positive effects and negative affects among employees (Visser, 2018). Positive effects among employees in an organization can be enthusiasm, a high level of interest, and inspiration. In the presence of these positive effects, there is a little chance of feeling emotional dissonance. Employees can find themselves more engaged and collaborative in the presence of these attributes. While there are some negative effects like feelings of guilty, jittery, or nervousness, and these attributes should not be part of an employee. After considering these aspects of personality traits playing their role in emotional labor, hospitality tends to hire employees having appropriate skills and abilities (Harris, 2012).
Employees having favorable personality traits would be in a position to feel a little stress. They would be more involved in the environment and contextual factors. The hospitality industry can work for the improvement of involvement and engagement of employees. The hospitality industry cannot force employees to act as happy, although emotional labor has the element of faking. However, the industry needs to choose employees coming up with the requirements of the guest. Other personality traits of high interest and inspiration are also vital because they enhance the abilities of employees in serving guests in the hospitality industry. If the hospitality industry does not value its employees on these grounds, it can face hardships and difficult situations (Jata, 2020). The role of personality traits shapes emotional labor, and the industry cannot neglect these traits and features. However, it is worth mentioning here that real examples of organizations in the industry can be helpful. The motivation of employees to have these attributes can be vital (Medler-Liraz, 2014).
Age affecting Emotional Labor in the Hospitality Industry:
The hospitality industry has to consider the aspect of age because it affects emotional labor. Again, it is worth important to relate this section with the discussion at the beginning of this report. The link to emotional labor and industry is there that has a strong connection. Emotional labor is crucial for the industry, so the industry should know the suitable age in this regard. For instance, emotions differ concerning stages in human age. Research has confirmed that maturity brings stability and deep emotions. A mature person can regulate her emotions artfully that goes in favor of older employees in the industry. It is somewhat not present in the employees of young age because they can fluctuate their emotions. However, it is a common practice that the hospitality industry has a younger workforce than the older one. Especially, the industry hires young employees for customer representativeness. It can send the image that the industry does not have outcomes of the research, or it does not know the usefulness of emotional labor at the job. It is suitable for having a young workforce because it generally seems good. However, on the pattern of emotional labor, the industry should hire a mature workforce for better emotion management (Dahling and Perez, 2010).
The concept of deep acting and surface acting can be helpful. Although mature employees can better deep act at the job that makes them emotionally stable, it also has a weakness. They do not have good surface acting, and customers have to believe in employees from the surface. It can cause problems for the hospitality industry. It can be the reason why the hospitality industry is going to have a younger workforce because it can surface act artfully. Emotional labor is the management of feelings, and age becomes a vital factor in the management of emotions (Childs, 2016).
Organizational Factors affecting Emotional Labor:
After the individual factors, the following are organizational factors shaping emotional labor in the hospitality industry. There are two chosen factors, as explained in the following:
Emotional Labor and Support from the Management and Coworkers in the Hospitality Industry:
The importance of emotional labor in the hospitality industry calls for organizational factors to pay their role. It is significant to note that employees should possess deep acting abilities. A low level of surface acting by employees is supportive of emotional labor. Therefore, a hospitality organization should develop policies and strategies to attract and retain such employees. The level of support from the management is in the form of these policies. Human resource management policies have to empower employees in their management of emotions and feelings. Emotional labor is all about management of feelings, and management support can help the organization. Recruitment and selection make the process of substantial importance. Personality traits helpful or aligned with emotional labor have been made clear, and they should be at the center while recruiting and hiring. The employer has to set criteria to make them at the center of the strategy. Similarly, there is an importance of coworkers in the hospitality industry (Shani et al., 2014).
Coworkers make the climate that shapes the organizational culture. Leisure time and organizational citizenship behavior are crucial and effective behaviors of employees in an organization. The provision of incentives and compensation packages is also suitable for shaping the emotional asset of an employee. The hospitality industry has been aware of recruiting and hiring suitable candidates, but the perspective of emotional labor can be new for them. It is worthwhile for them to give it essential so that they can have more satisfied and contented clients or guests. It shows the importance of emotional labor in the hospitality industry, where management and coworkers play their role in shaping it. The industry requires such a workforce that can offer maximum productivity and value. In this regard, this organizational factor can be very helpful (Trougakos, Weiss and Green, 2006).
Training and Emotional Labor in the Hospitality Industry:
As the importance of emotional labor is vital for the hospitality industry, it is the need of the hour for the hospitality industry to train employees. The training should be based on emotional labor and its related factors. The hospitality industry should take two perspectives in mind when it is to adopt training. First, hospitality organizations can enhance the ability of emotional labor among employees if there is training. The ability can increase through training, so it should be the choice for the employer. Secondly, employees can face emotional dissonance. They remain in a state where their genuine and expressed emotions differ considerably. Therefore, proper training can solve this dilemma for them (Lam and Ziguang, 2012).
It is worth mentioning here that the industry is known for having training programs. In the academic sector, students are getting hospitality diplomas and certificates. Many universities are offering degrees that can guide students to choose a career in the hospitality industry. Therefore, training for employees to learn emotional labor should not be a new thing, and organizations should take them into their training timetable as soon as possible. Emotional management skills are appropriate for the industry because the research has indicated its importance (Sperance, 2020).
Management and regulation of emotions are crucial for the job requirements of employees in the hospitality industry. The nature of the industry puts strong pressure on the employees and the employer to have managed emotions so that they can respond to the needs and requirements of their guests. Regulation of emotions and thoughts is crucial because of the very nature of the industry (Salleh and Liyushiana, 2014). Training becomes a factor that can guide the industry towards the right path. It is an organizational factor that should be enhanced ahead. However, employers should consider the emotions and needs of employees as well (Shadid, 2016).
Place of Emotional Labor in the Hospitality Industry:
Emotional labor in the hospitality industry is vital because it is related to employees. Organizations in the industry can enhance their performance using emotional labor. As a result, they can deal better with their clients and guests. There are several reasons why organizations in the hospitality industry have to adopt emotional labor. The most important reason is the service nature of the industry. Any industry having these attributes has to collaborate and interact with human beings. Their guests or customers are human beings, and their employees have to offer services personally (Bratton and Waton, 2018). Employees become a source of competitive advantage for the service industry. In this context, the emotional equilibrium of employees is essential. They manage and regulate their emotions because they have to exhibit normal behavior. Simultaneously, they have to come up with the emotions that are suitable for the nature of the job. Different factors affect their emotional labor behavior in the hospitality industry. Therefore, emotional labor has emerged as having the central importance in the hospitality industry.
Many individual and organizational factors are related to it. For instance, personality attributes are unique for emotional labor. In the same manner, age and emotional regulation are factors that impact their emotional labor level of employees in the industry. They have to ensure a balance between different aspects of emotions. It is a serious job that requires training and organizational level support. Organizational factors have shed light on this aspect of the industry that emotional labor should work in line with the individual and organizational factors. However, there are some concerns related to employees. They can feel stress because their emotions may not be real. Their genuine emotions and expressed emotions must be the difference, and this emotional dissonance can cause stress of other related problems for them. Therefore, it should be the subject of the industry to look into these negative consequences of emotional labor (Hwa, 2012).
The hospitality industry and organizations in the industry should note the importance of emotional labor. For this purpose, they should focus on the regulation and equilibrium of labor. The industry is dependent on guests and customers as they come to tourist sites. Some employees have to offer services to them. It is necessary to offer them emotional support so that better service provision can be possible. The place of emotional labor is distinctive in the hospitality industry.
Conclusion:
The report concludes that emotional labor is specific to the hospitality industry as the industry can get many benefits from it. Employees have to express emotional behavior that is composed and normal. It is vital because guests or customers want to be addressed and feel cared for. Therefore, industry has given value to the concept. The importance of emotional labor in the hospitality industry is above doubt because it directly benefits the industry. The report, however, has not discussed organizations offering an environment suitable for emotional labor. The report recommends companies in the industry to work in this regard because the theory has substantial evidence supporting its benefits.
References
Austin, E.J., Dore, T.C.P. and O’Donovan, K.M. (2008) ‘Associations of personality and emotional intelligence with display rule perceptions and emotional labour’, Personality and Individual Differences, vol. 44, pp. 679-688.
Bratton, J. and Waton, S. (2018) ‘Talent management, emotional labour and the role of line managers in the Scottish hospitality industry’, Worldwide Hospitality and Tourism Themes, vol. 10, no. 1, pp. 57-68.
Childs, S. (2016) Working in London Hotels Is a Stressful, Demoralising Nightmare, [Online], Available: https://www.vice.com/en_uk/article/mvnkga/unethical-london-hospitality-industry-workers [3 May 2020].
Chu, K.H.-L. and Murrmann, S.K. (2006) ‘Development and validation of the hospitality emotional labour scale.’, Tourism Management , vol. 27, pp. 1181-1191.
Coslovich, G. and Preiss, B. (2012) So happy together, [Online], Available: https://www.smh.com.au/national/so-happy-together-20120402-1w8ph.html [3 May 2020].
Dahling, J.J. and Perez, L.A. (2010) ‘Older worker, different actor? Linking age and emotional labor strategies’, Personality and Individual Differences , vol. 48, pp. 574-578.
EIKMEIER, A. (2019) Dear Human: I’m more torn than Natalie Imbruglia, [Online], Available: https://www.smartcompany.com.au/startupsmart/advice/more-torn-than-natalie-imbruglia/ [3 May 2020].
Harris, M. (2012) The art of faking it: What service workers can learn from Disney, [Online], Available: https://o.canada.com/news/1003-disney-fakery [3 May 2020].
Hwa, M.A.C. (2012) ‘Emotional Labor and Emotional Exhaustion: Does Co-worker Support Matter?’, Journal of Management Research, vol. 12, no. 3, pp. 115-127.
Jata, A. (2020) EFFECTS OF EMOTIONAL LABOUR ON BURNOUT OF RESTAURANT SERVICE EMPLOYEES, [Online], Available: http://www.travel-conference.co.uk/commentries.php?paper=345 [3 May 2020].
Jung, H.S. and Yoon, H.H. (2014) ‘Antecedents and consequences of employees’ job stress in a foodservice industry: Focused on emotional labor and turnover intent.’, International Journal of Hospitality Management , vol. 38, pp. 84-88.
Lam, W. and Ziguang, C. (2012) ‘When I put on my service mask:Determinants and outcomes of emotional labor among hotel service providers according to affective event theory’, International Journal of Hospitality Management, vol. 30, pp. 3-11.
Lee, L. and Madera, J.M. (2019) ‘A systematic literature review of emotional labor research from the hospitality and tourism literature’, International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, vol. 31, no. 7, pp. 2808-2826.
Lee, J.J. and Ok, C.M. (2014) ‘Understanding hotel employees’ service sabotage: Emotional labor perspective based on conservation of resources theory.’, International Journal of Hospitality Management, vol. 36, pp. 176-187.
Medler-Liraz, H. (2014) ‘Negative affectivity and tipping: The moderating role of emotional labour strategies and leader-member exchange’, Journal of Hospitality ManagementInternational , vol. 36, pp. 63-72.
Revfine (2020) Hospitality Industry; Everything You Need to Know About Hospitality, [Online], Available: https://www.revfine.com/hospitality-industry/ [3 May 2020].
Salleh, D.N. and Liyushiana (2014) Emotional Labor Training in Indonesia’s Vocational Schools, [Online], Available: https://www.ufhrd.co.uk/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2014/12/Noormaya-Salleh.pdf [3 May 2020].
Shadid, K. (2016) 10 tips on how to grow your business: Reserveout, [Online], Available: https://www.arabianbusiness.com/10-tips-on-how-grow-your-business-reserveout-627028.html [3 May 2020].
Shani, A., Uriely, N., Reichel, A. and Ginsburg, L. (2014) ‘Emotional labor in the hospitality industry: The influence of contextual factors’, International Journal of Hospitality Management, vol. 37, pp. 150-158.
Sperance, C. (2020) Hospitality School 2020 Graduates Confront an Evaporated Hotel Jobs Market, [Online], Available: https://skift.com/2020/04/13/hospitality-school-2020-graduates-confront-an-evaporated-hotel-jobs-market/ [3 May 2020].
Trougakos, J.P., Weiss, H.M. and Green, S.G. (2006) ‘Episodic Process in Emotional Labor: Perceptions of Affective Delivery and Regulation Strategies’, Journal of Applied Psychology, vol. 91, no. 5, pp. 1053-1065.
Visser, H. (2018) ‘Understanding how millennial hospitality employees deal with emotional labour’, Research in Hospitality Management, vol. 8, no. 1, pp. 63-66.
Wang, Z. and Xie, Y. (2020) ‘Authentic leadership and employees’ emotional labour in the hospitality industry’, International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, vol. 32, no. 2, pp. 797-814.
Williams, C. and Singh, S. (2018) How to Minimize the Cost of Emotional Labor, [Online], Available: https://www.hospitalitynet.org/opinion/4088282.html [3 May 2020].
Writepass (2012) Critically evaluate whether the requirement for emotional labour in hospitality and tourism work is ethicalCritically evaluate whether the requirement for emotional labour in hospitality and tourism work is ethical, [Online], Available: https://writepass.com/journal/2012/11/critically-evaluate-whether-the-requirement-for-emotional-labour-in-hospitality-and-tourism-work-is-ethicalcritically-evaluate-whether-the-requirement-for-emotional-labour-in-hospitality-and-tourism-w/ [3 May 2020].
