Working Conditions - does your club need investment?

You would think that these days a warm place to eat your lunch, to dry off when the weather is bad or to do some paperwork wouldn’t be too much to ask, but BIGGA’s research has found that all-too-often, that isn’t the case!

In a statement from BIGGA they wrote:

Our thanks go to Pitchcare for drawing attention to this important issue, which we’ve been working on for several years as part of our campaign to improve governance at golf clubs and promote fair wages and appropriate, modern working conditions.

In 2022, BIGGA undertook a workforce and salaries survey that gathered 1,373 responses from turf professionals across the United Kingdom. We followed this up in 2023 with a joint survey in collaboration with the GCMA,

PGA and the home unions and this reaffirmed much of our findings. There is therefore significant evidence that investment is required at golf clubs.

30% of clubs don’t provide an office, drying room or changing facilitiesfor their greenkeepers which, in the context of this year’s persistent wet weather, is quite shocking.

29% of clubs don’t provide greenkeepers with kitchen facilities where they can put the kettle on or warm their lunch after time out in the cold.

Only one in five golf clubs has single sex changing facilities for its greenkeepers and worryingly,

2% of survey respondents told us their golf club provided no welfare facilities for the greenkeeping team at all.

This needs to change, for several very important reasons:

• If you wouldn’t work in those conditions, how can you ask someone else to do the same? If nothing else, there’s a moral obligation to make sure your team has adequate welfare facilities and there are genuine health and safety concerns that must be addressed.
• To achieve the highest standards of course presentation, today’s greenkeepers are increasingly using modern technology that relies on good internet provision and must be kept clean and well-maintained. Without this, golf clubs are limiting what their greenkeepers can achieve.
• If we are to attract the next generation of greenkeepers then we need to provide an attractive value proposition. We can’t change the weather, but we can provide somewhere warm and dry to come back to after a day’s hard work on the course. Likewise, if more women are to come into the profession, we must provide somewhere safe for them to change out of dirty workwear. If this isn’t available, people will pack their bags and switch to a more welcoming industry where they feel more appreciated.

Of course, there are golf courses that are leading this transformation, where maintenance facilities are warm and clean and used by a greenkeeping team that appreciate their employer’s commitment to their own welfare. But there are also venues that haven’t embarked on that journey yet and so BIGGA has relaunched the survey for 2024, to see if things are moving in the right direction. We’ll be publishing the results later in the year.

At every level of the golf industry, BIGGA advocates for better working conditions and salaries that reflect the expertise and training of today’s greenkeepers. From speaking in front of Parliamentary groups to communicating with members, we raise awareness of the need to invest in staff if the long-term health of the golf industry is not to suffer.

GMA statemement

A safe working environment is essential to a well-functioning team with strong staff retention. But managing all the different elements that feed into a ‘safe working environment’ is challenging, with a number of things to consider.

For those responsible for managing a facility, whether it’s a community cricket club or an educational setting, ensuring you provide the right blend of safe facilities and good work life balance is the best way to ensure a positive working environment. Only by being critical when analysing your own environment can you understand whether investment is needed and, if so, how much.

The first and most important thing to consider should always be safety. Safety is of the upmost importance to your staff when creating a good working environment but it’s also critical for other people using your facility, be they players or visitors. When it comes to retention, facilities that don’t maintain the highest levels of safety run the risk of losing the confidence of staff and can either lead to a workplace accident or poor staff retention. Ensuring the correct safety needs are maintained can be a valuable area for investment, so understanding the law around health and safety is essential.

For those that manage facilities, you need to understand what’s required of you as the individual who is responsible for the health and safety of your employees. If your facility relies on the good will of volunteers, then strictly speaking you are not an employer. This does not, however, release you from your duty of care to all those who may be adversely affected by your acts or omissions. Put simply, you may not be classed as an employer, but you have a duty of care to ensure the safety of all who come into your jurisdiction. This may simply be members of your club, children playing on the grass, or a dog walker making their way through the area whilst your facility operates grounds maintenance machinery. For this reason, you are advised to follow guidance drawn from health and safety legislation.

The first place to start is by carrying out a risk assessment of your activities, identifying any hazards and measuring the risk before putting the relevant controls in place - industry specific risk assessments and safe systems of work documents are available on the GMA website. We recommend concentrating on five main areas; machinery and equipment, chemicals and hazardous substances, communication with staff, maintenance of buildings, structures and grounds on the facility, and finally other parts of the operating environment, like toilets, hand washing facilities or drinking water. This is just a brief overview, so you can find more detail on the  GMA Toolkit: resources.thegma.org.uk.

Once you’ve carried out all the relevant assessments and identified potential hazards, you now know where you ought to consider investment. Not only are there legal requirements to ensure adequate safe working conditions, but the confidence of your staff will often be impacted by the standards of safety you uphold – in short, if your facility is poorly cared for and poses potential risks to staff, they’re going to be less committed to you as an employer and are more likely to move on. Whilst there are a number of areas to consider when looking at investing in working conditions, the importance of health and safety can’t be underestimated.

It’s the small things

Michael Mann, Course Manager at Walton Heath Golf Club discusses how his supervisor team adopt the ‘small things’ in their approach to successful management.

Michael started: “We’re very fortunate here at Walton Heath. The greenkeeping facility is purpose-built and we have a lovely area where we have meals provided by the Club. The expectation is that the team work in all weather conditions therefore, it is only appropriate they are supplied with a nice area and food every day.”

Michael sees it as a necessity for clubs to supply suitable working conditions for the team: “It’s important to have an area which is clean, dry and warm. We invest in those areas so that everyone feels looked after. No matter how good waterproofs are, nobody likes to go out in the pouring rain. At least if the team know there is an oasis of calm in the middle of the day, where they can come to relax and dry off, it definitely helps with morale.”

He reflected on the importance of investing in working conditions and staff welfare: “In this industry, I know that venues have a vast array of budgets however, staff welfare should be a main priority. I imagine, if you need new equipment, but are managing a tight budget, the temptation is to invest in that area rather than staff facilities. Clubs must also look at the health and safety perspective and provide a safe, clean environment.”

Michael elaborated on the legal side of facility management: “You have to be compliant and provide a safe environment for people to eat. For example, our designated dining area is a no work clothes space. Food and clothes storage must be separate. Despite pesticides getting fewer and fewer, we do use them occasionally, so we always make sure we are clean when we step into this area.”

Walton Heath is trying to boost the mental health and wellbeing of staff. “We give our staff enough uniform so that they are able to get changed if required and be as comfortable as possible.”

From a personal perspective, Michael wants his team to feel looked after, even if it is minor changes: “We try and keep the place clean and tidy. The Club have a cleaner who comes in on a day-to-day basis and we aim to always have something for the guys to eat. That might be something small like a couple of loaves of bread and some cereal and milk, but those trivial things are appreciated by the team. The department leadership team work hard to create a positive environment; we try and organise out of office activities - which sometimes can be as little as having a game of rounders out on the local recreational ground. We want the staff to feel wanted and part of a team.”

The Club have looked to keep on top of the facilities with recent renovations and regular maintenance: “This building was purpose built in the mid-90s. We carried out a refurbishment project about seven years ago, which was when the clothes and the food areas were made separate.

For example, we have an instant boiling water tap for the team to make hot drinks that is just about to be replaced. That’s been serviced multiple times, and it has just come to the end of its life. We always keep on top of things like that.

Working conditions affect Team morale

We spoke to Peter Leather (above left) and Mike Dobson (above right) from Liverpool FC, who both agree that working conditions is the main thing to consider when employing staff.

Mike started: “The importance of working conditions is massive and it’s amazing how everything can affect your team.” Peter added: “It is one of the main things to consider when you are bringing people into the club. We have a lot of different age groups and personalities and need the facilities to allow everyone to merge.”

Mike expanded: “If the environment you are working in every day isn’t up to a good standard, it will certainly have a negative impact on your mood. The environment we provide is reflective of what people think of us as professionals. The team here look after the facilities and respect it.” Mike looks at the importance of social space: “If you don’t have an area to go and sit and chat with your colleagues about the challenges you have faced throughout the day, you will never get to know each other and gel as a team.”

Small changes can go a long way to motivating the team and Mike commented: “If the club puts a fresh layer of paint on the walls here in the mess rooms, it freshens things up and gives people a lift. You also have to consider the health and safety side of things; accidents can happen when handling hazardous liquids and the team need somewhere to wash off safely and quickly. Basic wash-down facilities are so important, but something that is lacking in so many clubs.”

Gender equality

“It is about making it a welcoming environment for everyone, regardless of gender or personalities. For me, when we are looking at recruitment, as long as someone wants to work hard and the CV speaks for itself, then it does not matter.”

The importance of mindset         

When discussing the pressures of the industry and adapting to the challenges, Mike said: “There are so many factors that we can’t control in the industry, but we can make a difference with the team spirit. You will never alter some aspects of the industry, but if you can make it a nice place to work, then that’s a bonus.”

Peter alluded to the effort-for-effort approach: “That also affects sickness levels. We have a good record here because people want to be at work. They don’t just want to be here because of the status of the club, they love coming to work and enjoy being here as part of a team. You can be at work more than you’re home with your family, so it needs to be a good environment.”

Despite the grounds team working across four separate sites, it is an ethos of all for one and one for all. Mike explained: “We’re on the same training ground facility, but we’re run separately; we have The Academy as one entity and then the First Team training ground is another. We are at separate ends of the training ground in different buildings, each with its specific team. We all get on well so there is never an issue for us to go over and give a hand and vice versa.”

Peter went on to highlight the importance of checking on each other: “We always know if one of our team are feeling down and we encourage all members of the team to always say ‘are you OK’ to each other. We offer excellent mental health support within the club, and it’s important to spot when people are having a down day and check in with them… everyone is entitled to have a bad day and need some support.” 

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How to convince the Committee

Course Manager at Saltford Golf Club, Darren Moxham told us how he managed to convince his committee to invest in the facility management.

What advice would you give to other greenkeepers who are looking to improve welfare facilities?

Welfare facilities tend to be an ‘out-of-sight, out-of-mind’ part of the club. If your facilities need an upgrade, I advise inviting the committee/club owner to visit your welfare facilities, so they can see it for themselves. Letting them see the less-than-desirable facilities is better than words or photos.

Can you tell us a little bit about what you did to get the funds?

We took the opportunity to invite Committee members to our welfare facilities, when a landfill project was taking place at the club. We knew finances were okay at the time, so it was a good time to ask for an upgrade. The club also invested in a container, which we used as a restroom when the upgrade took place. We still use the container today because it has heating and lighting.

The difference the upgrade made was a huge one in terms of team morale. Reps and visitors still come in and comment about the welfare facilities, which reminds me of how they used to be. I think our facilities are still the exception, rather than the rule.

How much funding did you receive and what benefit has this had on you and your team?

I think the upgrade to the welfare building was approximately £17,000 (+5 years ago). The whole building had stud walling installed, a new kitchenette, a new bathroom, new flooring, a drying room, new heaters, a hand wash facility, double glazing, loft insulation and the external walls painted. The staff do a good job keeping it tidy, but we also have a cleaner who visits twice a week.