Unprecedented challenge – Tourism school needed!

While claiming that a number of resorts have been facing an unprecedented challenge in locating skilled persons to work, Leader of the Opposition Andrew Fahie has renewed calls for the establishment of a tourism training school in the British Virgin Islands.

He said the National Democratic Party government should meet with tourism stakeholders to help make the necessary arrangements.

“We must get all our tourism stakeholders to come together with Government to develop a tourism training school/center for every aspect of the tourism industry, so that the people in the Virgin Islands can be trained to the standards being demanded of our Maria’s, Oil Nut Bay, Guana Island, Long Bay Hotel, among all the others…”

“It is a fact that the majority of the BVI workforce is directly or indirectly employed in tourism-related jobs. Today, most of our resorts are experiencing unprecedented challenges. Some of those challenges include locating skilled persons to work,” Fahie said.

He further stated that, if the tourism school is established, only certain specialists should be brought into the territory without their employers first seeking to recruit from the proposed training institution.

“Once they (belongers of the BVI) are trained at this tourism/service training centre, then we must ensure and agree that each of our tourism establishments will hire from this pool of persons to fill vacant jobs, with the only exception being certain areas of specialty,” Fahie further said in his Territory Day address.

He continued: “This [training school] will significantly reduce the number of work permits being requested for in this area, while increasing meaningful employment for the people in the Virgin Islands – and raising standards.”