How Smart Rostering Can Help UK Hospitality Businesses Offset the Wage Increases In 2025 

The UK hospitality sector is set to face significant payroll challenges in 2025 as the National Living Wage (NLW) increases from April. This rise, along with the expansion of the NLW to include 21- and 22-year-olds, means higher payroll costs for hotels, pubs, and restaurants across the UK. 

UK Pay Increase (Source: UK Government)

While wage increases are essential for employee welfare, they also present financial pressures for businesses already dealing with rising operational costs. To remain profitable without reducing staff or compromising service quality, UK hospitality businesses must find cost-saving solutions. One of the most effective strategies is smart workforce rostering. 

The Impact of the NLW Increase on UK Hospitality Businesses 

For UK hospitality leaders, the upcoming wage increase brings several challenges: 

• Higher payroll costs – Increased wages mean higher expenses across all staffing levels, including maintaining pay differentials for experienced workers. 

• Rising operational costs – Inflation and business rates continue to strain profitability. 

• Staff retention challenges – With more businesses offering competitive pay, retaining skilled hospitality workers is increasingly difficult. 

With these challenges in mind, optimising workforce rostering is no longer optional—it’s essential. Alkimii Rostering helps UK hospitality businesses streamline scheduling, monitor payroll costs in real time, and reduce inefficiencies that drive up wage expenses. 

How Smart Rostering Offsets Payroll Costs 

Reduce Overstaffing and Minimise Labour Costs

One of the biggest cost drains in hospitality is overstaffing. Without real-time visibility of labour expenses, businesses may schedule more employees than needed, increasing payroll costs unnecessarily. 

With Alkimii’s payroll monitoring, businesses can: 

• Track wage spend in real time to stay within budget. 

• Use data-driven forecasting to allocate staff based on demand trends. 

• Adjust rosters dynamically to match peak and off-peak periods. 

Optimise Scheduling with Automated Roster Creation

Manual scheduling can be time-consuming and prone to human error. Alkimii’s roster creation tools allow managers to: 

• Use shift presets to speed up scheduling. 

• Drag and drop shifts for easy adjustments. 

• Copy previous schedules to maintain consistency and save time. 

With smart automation, businesses can focus on delivering excellent service rather than spending hours on workforce planning. 

Improve Attendance and Reduce No-Shows

Staff shortages caused by last-minute absences or no-shows can lead to increased overtime costs. Alkimii’s shift search function helps businesses: 

• Quickly find replacement staff based on availability. 

• Analyse attendance trends to address absenteeism proactively. 

• Ensure compliance with UK working time regulations to avoid scheduling conflicts. 

Enhance Employee Engagement with Mobile Accessibility

A transparent and flexible scheduling system can improve employee satisfaction and retention. Alkimii’s mobile app gives employees real-time access to their schedules, reducing miscommunication and shift disputes. 

• Easily communicated shift updates. 

• Self-service access to upcoming schedules. 

• Improved team communication to streamline shift swaps. 

Align Payroll with Demand Through Workforce Data Insights

Understanding when and where to allocate staff is critical to controlling labour costs. Alkimii’s workforce management solution integrates payroll data with rostering, helping businesses: 

• Identify peak and quiet periods to adjust staff levels accordingly. 

• Monitor payroll costs as rosters are created, preventing overspending. 

• Make data-backed decisions to improve workforce efficiency. 

Future-Proofing UK Hospitality with Smarter Workforce Management 

As UK hospitality businesses navigate the 2025 National Living Wage increase, adopting a smart rostering solution like Alkimii can make a significant difference. By automating scheduling, monitoring payroll in real time, and improving employee engagement, businesses can offset wage pressures without sacrificing service quality or profitability.