Shortage of Butlers Has World's Wealthy Facing a Crisis

The world's richest people are facing a crisis of unprecedented proportions: a chronic shortage of butlers.

The demand for a new generation of Jeeves and Hudsons — from London to Dubai and, especially, from the Hamptons to Malibu — is so high that it is being counted in the tens of thousands.

"If we doubled the number of butlers, they wouldn't be without work," said Charles MacPherson, vice-chairman of the International Guild of Professional Butlers. Robert Watson, managing director of the Guild of Professional English Butlers, agreed. "What they mostly want in the Hamptons and elsewhere is an English butler," he said. "It's that very English calmness in the face of adversity."

The boom in demand for butlers — female and male — has been building over the past decade and is attributed to the increase in the number of dot-com millionaires.

A butler — or household manager, as they are increasingly known in America — can expect a salary in Britain of about 30,000 pounds (or about $60,000), although some in America are getting up to $500,000. The highest paid is reputed to earn $3 million — with board and lodging thrown in, of course.

There are estimated to be up to 5,000 butlers in Britain, and Mr. Watson said there remained a reluctance among people to choose it as a career.