15 August 2025

Fewer student shifts this autumn? Plan smarter to keep every roster covered

Autumn shift planning with fewer students – CrewPlanner combines students, flexi-jobbers and agency staff to keep rosters filled.

Summer brought its own challenges — packed calendars, high demand, and long shifts. But at least one thing was on your side: student workers were fully available.

Now, as autumn arrives, that changes. Students swap summer jobs for lectures, cut their hours or pause work altogether. For hospitality, events, cleaning and staffing managers, this means tighter rosters, more last‑minute changes and extra pressure on your core team.

The problem: fewer students during the week.
The solution: smarter planning + CrewPlanner.

Why students matter

Students bring:

High availability during holidays
Lower costs thanks to reduced social security contributions
Fast onboarding for recurring roles

In Belgium alone, students cover 29% of hospitality working hours (The Brussels Times). Over 70% of horeca businesses rely on them to handle seasonal peaks.

What changes in autumn

Autumn isn’t a quiet season — but it is different:

Events become more corporate
Hospitality shifts indoors
Cleaning demand increases ahead of winter
Staffing agencies continue to manage fluctuating requests

At the same time, student work changes:

Class schedules shrink weekday availability
Some stop working temporarily, others reduce their hours

They don’t disappear completely: 59% of students in Europe work during the semester (EUROSTUDENT 2024) — but on average 14 hours per week, compared to 30–40 hours in summer.

Legal limits to keep in mind

Table comparing student work rules per country.

Smart planning tips for autumn

Map your team’s real availability
Track who can work and when – spot gaps early.
Balance your workforce
Combine students (evenings/weekends) with flexi-jobbers, part-timers, and agency staff.
Learn from recent data
Use your latest shift history to predict where gaps will hit this autumn.
Have a last-minute backup
Keep a pool of pre-qualified staff ready to jump in.
Keep students engaged
Even with fewer hours now, they often return full-time during holidays.