HOTELIERS WELCOME REPORT ON SKILLS REQUIREMENTS FOR HOSPITALITY SECTOR
Investment in Skills Will Help Drive Tourism Business and Employment Growth
Thursday, 12th November 2015: The Irish Hotels Federation (IHF) welcomes recommendations made by the Expert Group on Future Skills Needs in relation to the future skills requirements of the hospitality sector. In a report published today, the Group highlights the need for additional investment in skills to help drive tourism business and employment growth and identifies a number of important measures to support national employment targets set by the Government.
“Ireland’s tourism and hospitality sector offers excellent career opportunities and enormous potential for further employment growth. The challenge we face is to create a strong framework to meet the training requirements of the sector so that young people, in particular, can obtain the qualifications needed for the huge range of skilled positions available,” says Tim Fenn, IHF Chief Executive. “We welcome the measures outlined in today’s report and look forward to working with SOLAS, Failte Ireland and our industry partners to implement the recommendations and build on the significant progress made to date.”
Mr Fenn notes that the tourism and hospitality sector is one of the most important services sectors in the Irish economy, employing 158,000 people directly and supporting a further 47,000 jobs indirectly. This represents 11% of total employment nationally. Tourism now accounts for almost 4% of GNP and last year resulted in revenues of €6.45 billion within the economy.
ENDS
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