Attracting Talent and Boosting Youth Engagement from Austin to LA
Despite the gains made since the onset of the pandemic, the hospitality industry continues to experience persistent labor shortages. Destination organizations have a chance to engage with the youth in their communities to help close this gap with best practices and strategies for attracting and retaining tomorrow’s tourism workforce.
Key findings from Social Impact of Global Tourism by the World Travel & Tourism Council indicate that hospitality is a leading employer for young people around the globe, accounting for almost 60% of all youth employment in 2021 with 40% of those numbers represented by women. Despite continued recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic, there are staff shortages at hotels, restaurants, entertainment venues, theaters, convention centers, and tourism organizations. In relative terms, one in fifteen US job postings remains unfilled, and one in nine European Union jobs remains unfilled. This represents an estimated 412,000 tourism worker shortage. Further, despite the expansion of the Canadian labor market to pre-pandemic levels of 5.3%, Destination Canada reports in their 2023 Quarter-three snapshot that 116,000 positions remain unfilled, representing 6.2% of all the tourism sector.
Several factors fueling the labor shortage in the US include a decrease in international migration patterns as it relates to the US labor market, working conditions, and a lack of adequate skillsets to perform several jobs within hospitality. Thus, a variety of policy changes and engagement strategies can help destination organizations fill the gap and address these concerns.
Addressing staff shortages within the sector requires a multi-stakeholder collaborative approach to developing a skilled tourism workforce, providing competitive employee benefits, and partnering with academia to help equip tomorrow’s workforce with new and improved skills to operate within the industry. A recent article by Forbes suggests that one of the greatest currencies of our time is not gold, oil, or knowledge but rather talent acquisition.
When discussing strategies like youth engagement and workforce development, it's important to be mindful of cultural differences and adapt the approaches accordingly. Be sure to acknowledge the diverse cultural contexts in which these strategies will be implemented and adapt according to the needs of your destination.
Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board
At the Mobile World Congress in 2021, the Los Angeles Tourism & Convention Board launched its own Career Academy with the goal of increasing equity in career representation by inspiring the youth of historically underserved communities to consider diverse career paths. This initiative was brought on in response to the call of Los Angeles council leaders’ executive directive to help increase recognition of systemically marginalized groups. For the event itself, a dozen high school students from the Ambassador School of Global Leadership attended the inaugural program led by Mayor Eric Garcetti. Each student received a tour of the exhibition hall, met with executive leaders to learn about career opportunities, fostered meaningful connections, and learned about future career day opportunities available within the industry. Over 4,100 people attended the convention, 65% of whom were senior executives.
Moreover, Los Angeles’s Career Academy bridges the connections between students and meeting planners looking to authentically impact Los Angeles. In turn, students learn equity, diversity, and inclusion best practices in aligning corporate social responsibility. While the convention was not hospitality-focused, the bureau brought students together with senior-level executives at technology companies, and this can make the connection between other sectors and hospitality. The academy highlights the connection between youth engagement in choosing career paths and where they see themselves represented. Since one of the greatest strengths of Los Angeles is its diversity, programs like this are essential to helping close the workforce gap and helping to address racial inequalities that exist due to a lack of representation.
“Our career Academy connects high school students from La USD to unique experiences at the LA Convention Center. Where they can learn about careers and opportunities. Directly from inspirational industry leaders and gain a practical understanding of the steps that other people took to reach their career goals and overcome challenges.” - Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass
Visit Austin Foundation
Founded in 2019, the mission of the Visit Austin Foundation (VAF) is to develop and promote education, job training, and career opportunities within the hospitality and tourism sector. The foundation has several key objectives in helping to close the labor shortage gap and increase engagement--particularly with the youth. By offering mentorships and scholarships, the foundation hopes to attract young people to the tourism and hospitality industry, and to educate the public about a wide range of career opportunities within the industry, as well as its economic and social benefits.
One way the VAF has contributed to engaging the younger demographic in a career in hospitality and tourism is by developing hospitality industry learning platforms in conjunction with secondary school systems to promote awareness of the industry as a viable career path and prepare students for careers in hospitality. The VAF, in conjunction with the Austin Hotel & Lodging Association, Austin Independent School District, and Austin Community College sponsors and supports a Hospitality, Tourism & Culinary PTECH High School at Travis Early College High School. This program provides participants the opportunity to earn a high school diploma, an associate degree, and on-the-job training & mentorships while in high school, all at no cost to the student. This allows students to graduate early and prepare for a dynamic career.
Additionally, the foundation has provided resources for providing careers in hospitality including the Austin Tourism Insider Hospitality Training Program. The training program is intended to support the community’s tourism and hospitality employees, including new hires, and residents who are passionate about Austin and hospitality. Through a one-day course, employees learn expert knowledge about Austin’s tourism assets, improve their confidence in making recommendations that help to elevate the visitor experience, ignite their passion for the industry, and build a deeper sense of connection within the community. Furthermore, the VAF helps to support networking opportunities to connect hospitality professionals with their peers in the local industry.
The VAF’s Heart of Hospitality Award & Scholarship is dedicated to supporting local hospitality employees who are pursuing tourism-related education and are interested in growing their careers within the industry. Criteria for selection include hospitality employees who provide outstanding customer service, demonstrate a positive attitude, and display initiative in going beyond regular job responsibilities to enhance the visitor experience.
Scholarships provide pathways for continued education in fields related to the hospitality industry, including organizational leadership, hospitality management, Certified Meeting Planner (CMP) certifications and more.
There are a range of opportunities available for destination organizations that seek to increase workforce engagement. Organizations can partner with academic institutions to help develop tomorrow’s leaders by creating career youth engagement opportunities and raising awareness about the industry’s various career paths. As the industry continues to shake off setbacks caused by the pandemic, destination organizations can find innovative solutions to advance the industry by developing needed skill sets and providing a warm welcome to help others to feel seen and heard.
About the Author
Stephanie is a recent graduate of Johnson & Wales University with a Master’s Degree in Global Tourism and Sustainable Economic Development. Previously, she worked as an Intern with Solimar International assisting Destination Marketing Organizations in formulating Tourism Development strategies for the Samtskhe–Javakheti region in Republic Of Georgia and the Sisian region of Armenia. Additionally, she is the author of a Tourism Research Proposal detailing ways in which Destinations can promote the concept of Sustainability to its consumers for a lasting positive impact. With a background in Tourism Development she is confident in her ability to help Destinations innovate into the future.
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