As reported before by my friend Sam Taliaferro, here is another area where we could use some help, perhaps from all those graduates looking for jobs back in the States. There will be plenty of openings here as all the hotels open for business over the coming years.
12,700 new hotel rooms and few skilled workers
I have posted about this challenge before, but an article in the paper today brings the issue to light with a few more details. First consider that Panama will be nearly doubling its number of hotels over the next few years. These businesses are already struggling with finding the human capital required for these many new hotels and restaurants. They are in need of over 15,000 workers in hospitality and as this article points out, Panamanians ar e deficient in their language skills.
MINERVA bethancourth
mbethancourth@prensa.com
The hotel industry is concerned about the lack of manpower that will require projects to be built in the country.
The president of the Panamanian Association of Hotels (APATEL), Sara Pardo, expresses its concern at the forum on “Investing in Infrastructure and Human Capital as Engine of Economic Growth.”
In the next three years will enable 12 000 700 new rooms and it is estimated that hotels need about 15 000 employees, including waiters and waitresses.
Pardo noted that the main weakness observed is the English domain, which is a disadvantage to Panama to other countries like Costa Rica, which is already demanding the use of three languages.
Although some government agencies advance training initiatives, Brown believes it is necessary to start more programs across the country.