Caymanian jobseekers flock to tourism job fair

Caymanian and permanent resident jobseekers attended a job fair held at the Westin hotel Thursday in a bid to find work within the tourism industry.

The Tourism Job Fair featured 15 employers from across the tourism sector, including restaurants and hotels, who are looking to match people with vacant positions that need to be filled as visitors begin returning to the islands following the border reopening last month.

The fair was organised by the Department and Ministry of Tourism, the Cayman Islands Tourism Association and Workforce Opportunities and Residency Cayman.

Richard Tyson, manager of tourism development services at the Department of Tourism, said that by 3:30pm, well over 150 people had already attended the afternoon session, with several others coming to interviews during the morning sessions.

He said there were plans to hold more job fairs, with another being hosted in the new year.

Prior to Thursday’s fair, people had been told to register online beforehand, but walk-ins were also accepted throughout the day.

‘Build up the industry’

Asked if there was any particular field in which attendees were expressing an interest, Tyson said, “I wouldn’t say there was a single preference… I’ve seen people say food and beverage is great; there’s a lot of interest in pool and beach as well; and culinary has some people interested as well.”

He added, “We just want to build up the industry in general, and that’s what we’ve focussed on.”

Tyson said the majority of people who visited the job fair on Thursday were registered with WORC, and he encouraged anyone who was looking for a job to do so as well.

More than 3,000 displaced workers, who lost their jobs or had to work drastically reduced hours after the borders closed in March last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, are currently receiving a monthly $1,500 government stipend.

Government officials have indicated that they hope most, if not all, of those individuals will be able to return to work now that the borders have reopened. In a bid to place those people in jobs, stipend recipients have been required to register with WORC, which, along with the Cayman Islands Tourism Association, has been trying to match out-of-work Caymanians and permanent residents with suitable jobs within the industry.

Looking for work

Interviewee Kaylone Warren, 21, who spoke to the Compass after seeing some of the employers at the fair, said he had only found out about it “at the last minute” so did not have time to print out his resume. Nonetheless, he spoke with a number of businesses and said he was hopeful of finding a position.

He said he was looking for “any type of work to get back on my feet”, after his contract for his previous job as a sale representative finished last month.

Warren added he had received some positive feedback from potential employers, and “hopefully, I’ll hear something tomorrow”.

Another interviewee, Krysten Martin, a graduate of the government’s Passport to Success training programme, was also among those applying for jobs on Thursday. She said she interviewed with Wyndham Reef Resort, Kimpton Seafire, Westin and Tukka.

“I felt very positive about the experience,” she said, adding, “I am looking for [a position as] tour guide or front of house.”

She hopes her people skills and her ability to disseminate information to others will be helpful in enabling her to break into the tourism field.

Sashane Wilson, 20, who has been out of a job for about a year, spoke with representatives of some of the major hotels at the fair.

“I was actually looking for receptionist-type work but most of it was for servers, bartenders, and pool and beach attendants,” she said.

However, she said she’d had some recommendations for positions at a couple of the major hotels and was hopeful she would find work.

Looking for workers

Ron Hargrave, who owns the Tukka restaurants in West Bay and East End, said he had seen lots of job candidates during the morning and afternoon sessions, and witnessed lots of potential and positivity.

With a pile of resumes in front of him, and waiting to interview the next jobseeker, Hargrave said, “It’s been really good, really positive. It’s nice to see and to be a part of this,” adding that he intended to go through the applications over the weekend and make calls to the successful interviewees on Monday.

Once contracts are signed, he said, those people could be on his staff and payroll as early as next week.

He said he and other tourism and hospitality businesses were keen to have Caymanian employees. “From a tourism industry point of view,” he said, “it’s more beneficial for us as business owners to have Caymanians working for us, because they literally can start straightway, there are no [work-permit] charges.

“The focus has never really changed. The tourism industry in Cayman wants Caymanians to be on the front line to showcase their home. Nothing’s changed. We just need people to come who want to get involved.”

Hargrave told of one young jobseeker he had seen at the fair who had a dream of being a chef. “I explained to him that when I first started, at 14, I started washing dishes at Pizza Hut. And he said ‘I’m prepared to start in the dishwashing area,’ and I said ‘Well, let’s do it.’ That’s where you need to start. It’s not about walking into a job and being in a position when you don’t know that position. You have to start and work your way up.”