The CERT employment survey of the tourism industry confirms that the sector is in robust health and that its success is set to continue. However, the survey also shows that this particular spawn of the Celtic Tiger is on the way to becoming a victim of its own success and that many in the sector place a low priority on the need to invest in training.
The survey shows that employment in the hotel and guest-house sector is now in excess of 50,000 - an increase of 20 per cent on 1996 when CERT last studied the industry. There are over 33,500 people working in restaurants - an increase of 23 per cent on 1996. If this trend continues, tourism will shortly overtake agriculture as the country's single largest employer. Nearly half the hoteliers surveyed said they plan to expand their businesses in 1999. CERT estimates that should be worth another 9 per cent increase in jobs.
This surge in employment, welcome though it is, brings problems which are already apparent in the industry. The sustained growth has created a demand for skilled staff which exceeds the supply currently available. This has implications for consistency in service and the quality image that is essential to the Irish tourism product. That product is often perceived by our visitors as being expensive. To command the prices we do, we must be able to guarantee a high quality of service.
Service without a constantly reinforced programme of training is not possible. One of the most alarming findings in the CERT survey is that only 34 per cent of hotels and 3 per cent of guest-houses have an action plan for training. Worse, only 20 per cent of hotels and 2 per cent of guest-houses have allocated a budget for training, leading to the conclusion that even some of the hotels with an action plan for training have not provided money to pay for it. In fact only 65 per cent of those permanently employed in the kitchen area of hotels are formally trained.
Staff turnover in the industry is high. The CERT survey shows that of permanent skilled staff in the hotel sector who quit their jobs, 55 per cent stayed within the industry. However, 31 per cent moved to another industry and 14 per cent emigrated. This does not suggest that pay and conditions in the hotel sector are sufficient to retain qualified people. Indeed, when we consider the number of hotels which are family-owned, the true figure for movement out of the sector is probably higher.
The Irish Hotels' Federation has embarked on a Quality Employer Programme, which is very welcome. The tourist industry needs to bring itself into the best practice model of the best practice industrial company. This cannot be done without employers understanding that a share of their profits must be ploughed back into the business to finance the training essential to sustain the business's success.