MONTEGO BAY, Jamaica – Jamaica’s Minister of Tourism, Edmund Bartlett, has said the tourism industry continues to experience growth in key areas, and that the demand for trained personnel in all areas of the industry is great.
“As we grow our room stock, as we expand the industry and as we bring more visitors to the country, the need for high quality service becomes more and more apparent. Therefore, the need for us to be able to turn out a powerful force of trained, qualified and equipped workforce in the industry is indeed an imperative,” the Minister emphasized.
Mr. Bartlett was giving the keynote address at the Montego Bay Community College Hospitality and Creative Studies Department’s Job Readiness Seminar, which was held at the Half Moon Conference Centre, in Montego Bay, on May 22, under the theme, ‘Career development: remaining on the cutting edge in this global economic downturn’.
The Minister spoke of the establishment of a hotel/school, where the students would be fast-tracked in order to fill the gap of the shortage of qualified workers.
“The vision to establish a School of Hospitality in the West is indeed to fill a gap which definitely exists, particularly for individuals who are already in the industry, and who may not have the academic qualification to be matriculated in some of our tertiary institutions.they can now find a training institution that is a natural fit for them, acquiring special skills in order to move them on to become managers and general managers in the long run,” Mr. Bartlett said.
He told the large group of hospitality students that they are entering an industry that is critical and pivotal to the economic, social and political stability of the country.
“So, to be ready to work in this industry is a serious business and it requires a level of application that you must recognise is even greater than yourself, so you must go out with every fibre of your being to be well prepared to serve this industry, because in serving the tourist industry, you are serving the nation,” Mr. Bartlett said.
Some topics covered at the seminar were: team building and work ethic, effective communication, social graces, career development and civility in the workplace.
