Hotel, leisure and tourism – tapping into potential

Nov 18 2008 by Aranda Garrard, The Journal

IT is widely acknowledged that the hotel, leisure and tourism sector is an expanding and important part of the North East economy. The category supports more than 10% of the region’s workforce and although estimates are difficult because of the massive range of jobs it covers, it is thought that nearly 100,000 workers are employed in the industry in the region.

Paradoxically however, the people who work in the industry are not only some of the lowest paid workers in the region, but also those with the least access to training and skills development. As a consequence, retention is often poor, development and progression is slow and the skills of that workforce remain an untapped resource.

One of the difficulties reported by employers in the region was the high number of vacancies caused by skills shortages and high staff turnover – causing instability in the industry. Since 2004, a major part of the industry’s workforce has come from migrant workers, especially “accession 8” (A8) migrants who, as research has shown, bring with them many skills and qualifications that are not often recognised and developed in the sectors in which they are employed.

In particular, investment in English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) courses for migrant workers can unlock a potential knowledge base that benefits not only the worker but the company too. A lack of English language skills has been identified as the single largest barrier to A8 migrants accessing training and developing their potential in the UK.

It has long since been acknowledged that training and development increases loyalty and motivation in staff and that where companies invest in their workforce, they are rewarded. There is evidence that more migrants are settling in, and therefore contributing to the North East compared to other regions, so it is important that we not only welcome and retain these workers in the region, but that we tap into that pool of knowledge in order to fill the skill gaps that we have to bolster our economy.

In what are without doubt going to be testing economic times, businesses that look to invest in the potential of their own workforce will be the real winners.