Career Options
Welcome mat out for hospitality staffRestaurants and hotels have traditionally relied upon young people to fill a long list of jobs. LINDA WHITE -- Special to the Toronto Sun |
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But as that age group continues to shrink and the demand for hospitality and tourism workers continues to grow, employers must think outside the box and target untapped labour pools.
"Employers can't use that 'one size fits all' approach any more," says Jon Kiley of the Canadian Tourism Human Resource Council (CTHRC). "For the past six years, we have been predicting increasing labour shortages and trying to get that message out to employers. Demographics in Canada are changing."
Fifteen to 24-year-olds make up 35% of tourism employees, but just 16% of the total labour force, Kiley says. Hospitality and tourism employers are struggling to recruit enough workers, with accommodation and food services hardest hit.
2.2 MILLION JOBS
The industry is predicted to grow from 1.65 million jobs in 2005 to 2.2 million jobs in 2025 -- a potential increase of 33%. "Shortages are really pronounced across the board," says Rosanna Caira, editor and publisher of Hotelier and Foodservice and Hospitality magazines.
"By 2015, we will need an additional 200,000 workers in an industry that has traditionally relied on younger workers and more transient workers as they go through school," she says.
Western Canada, in particular, is struggling to keep its head above water. According to the Canadian Restaurant and Foodservices Association, restaurant operators in Alberta are coping with an estimated shortfall of 11,000 employees in the foodservice industry alone. The Winter Olympics, to be held in Vancouver and Whistler, B.C. in 2010, will add to the pain.
Laws regarding temporary foreign workers have been relaxed in some areas but that's just a band-aid solution, Caira warns. "We need to make our industry more attractive with more flexibility, better benefits and in some cases better wages ... That might make some people look at the industry differently."
At the same time, employers must consider non-traditional labour pools, including baby boomers. "Some aren't ready for full-on retirement and will be looking for something to do, whether it's a few hours a day or a few days a week," Kiley says. "Many have had stressful careers and are looking for something different." He lists aboriginal communities, newcomers to Canada and people with disabilities as other potential labour pools.
Thanks in part to TV shows that showcase the "celebrity lifestyle" of chefs, colleges are gearing up for an influx of students eager to fill labour shortages. "Shortfall in enrolment means shortfall in graduates, which means a shortfall in the workforce," says Alister Mathieson, dean of the School of Hospitality, Recreation & Tourism at Humber Institute of Technology & Advanced Learning in Toronto.
"Enrolments in hospitality and tourism programs are currently exceptionally strong," he says. "I think young people and parents are seeing there are significant opportunities in hospitality. That is a turnaround from the doom and gloom of post SARS, 9-11 and the beginning of the Iraq war ... It has essentially taken six years of recovery for colleges and universities to get back to enrolment levels experienced prior to those events."
Enrolment in Humber's hospitality, recreation and tourism programs, for example, will be up 20% this fall over last year's enrolment. About half of those students come directly from Grade 12, while the bulk of the remainder has racked up one to three years of work experience following high school.
"Our graduates are a far more mobile group than they ever used to be," Mathieson says. "They're going out west and working internationally. It is a global industry."
linda.white@rogers.com
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