Wage hike plea for tourism workers
Published:Wednesday | October 5, 2022 | 12:06 AMJanet Silvera/Senior Gleaner Writer
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico:
Amid a shortage of tourism workers to meet the rebound of the industry, at least three Caribbean tourism ministers have said that those in hospitality jobs should be paid better to achieve sector sustainability.
The trio, Jamaica’s Edmund Bartlett, St Lucia’s Dr Ernest Hilaire, and the Cayman Islands’ Kenneth Bryan, who is also chairman of the Caribbean Tourism Organisation (CTO), openly expressed concern about remuneration during an inaugural private-public partnership at the Caribe Hilton Hotel in San Juan, Puerto Rico, on Monday.
Hilaire argued that sustainability did not only span climatic concerns but also focused on an inclusive industry.
He said that his government had developed a pact with the St Lucian tourism stakeholders which was a model for public-private partnerships.
Hilaire was supported by Bartlett, who insisted that the labour market arrangements should be reimagined to make the industry more attractive to workers.
“To do that, we are going to have to look at what it is that we create as the global labour ecosystem. Tourism workers are seen as among the lowest paid in all of our industries. The working conditions are felt to be similar.
“I think we have a new opportunity in this recovery to rebalance those negative notions and to create an industry now that is going to be attractive to our workers and offer them an opportunity for growth and development,” said Hilaire.
Cayman Islands’ Bryan said offering higher wages was the most effective incentive.
“Some of the pay that our people are making in some Caribbean islands is just not sufficient, so maybe governments can strategise with the industry to be more dynamic with their tax structure so we can move money around so it doesn’t become too burdensome on the hotels. But we need to get the money back into the salaries, to the people,” he added.
Chief executive officer of Discover Puerto Rico, Brad Dean, said it was crucial to convince people that they could have a viable career in the tourism industry.
Sandals Resorts International’s Adam Stewart also encouraged governments to incentivise training and development of workers in the sector.
“Give the private sector the opportunity … to go far beyond what we’re doing today, because we’re financially motivated and incentivised to be part of nation building from the ground up.”