NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Touchless menus, QR codes, smiles now concealed by masks and changing protocols are the result of COVID-19 and among the factors shaping the mindset shift in the hospitality and tourism industry.
Raquel Turnquest, education officer, Family & Consumer Science Education Unit, Career & Technical Education Section, Department of Education, recently underscored the need for the shift in The Bahamas.
She said: “The labor force needs to adapt to the environment. When you go to a restaurant these days, there are touchless menus and QR codes, so the employees as well as the patrons need to be up-to-date with technology and change. Training should be geared to address touchless technology.
“In The Bahamas, we are known for being a friendly people. You can’t really see the smile behind the masks. We like to hug; that’s something we don’t necessarily do anymore. We have to comply with health protocols, which are always changing from week to week, depending on what is actually happening in the country.”
During a recent panel discussion, tourism experts touched on challenges in labor supply and staffing, post-pandemic complications emerging in tourism and hospitality businesses, the importance of hospitality/tourism-specific training and how vocational training can be helpful to grow a multi-skilled workforce.
The virtual webinar, jointly organized by the Organization of American States (OAS) in partnership with American Hotel and Lodging Educational Institute (AHLEI), was designed to introduce new industry-driven and competency-based programs for vocational institutions to assist hospitality and tourism businesses and governments to address the current labor market challenges and skills gap.
Participants were: Carla Portalanza, tourism destination marketing consultant; Frank Comito, CEO and DG, Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association; Carol Rose Brown, director, Jamaica Center of Tourism Innovation; Dr Shelly-Ann Whitely-Clarke, analyst, Recruitment and Liaison Services, Jamaica Center of Tourism Innovation; Elizabeth O’Brien, AHLEI, National Restaurant Association Solutions, academic markets product manager; and Turnquest.
Richard Campbell, chief, Office of Tourism, OAS, moderated the event.
To address the skills gap, Turnquest recommended strengthening of partnerships with the hospitality and tourism studies field and the hospitality and tourism studies program.
“We need mentoring embedded into our programs, internship opportunities for high school students embedded into our programs and scholarship opportunities for students who cannot afford to pay for international certifications. Those students have something to bring to the table,” she said.
Approximately 100 high school students in hospitality and tourism studies received scholarships to gain ALHEI certifications through the OAS in April.
Turnquest continued: “If the students are afforded the opportunity, they will step up to the plate. We have scholarship opportunities for college students, internship opportunities for persons away in college, but there are high school students who need to get constant interaction.”
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