Article by Christina Trumbach
Hundreds of Caymanian and permanent resident job seekers attended the Tourism Job Fair on Thursday, 9 December at the Westin Grand Cayman Seven Mile Beach Resort.
Pre-registered job seekers numbered 267, with 74 walk-ins registering at the event for a total of 341.
Hospitality related businesses were interviewing at the event for over 200 positions available in areas such as Food and Beverage, Culinary and Beach & Pool Service.
Organised by Workforce Opportunities and Residency Cayman (WORC), the Department and Ministry of Tourism and the Cayman Islands Tourism Association (CITA), the Tourism Job Fair featured 15 employers from across the tourism sector, including The Ritz-Carlton, The Westin, Kimpton Seafire, Marriott, Tukka East & West, ABACUS, Karoo, Grand Old House & The Wharf, Rum Point, the Parrot Sanctuary and more.
Job seekers had the opportunity at the event to discover current opportunities available in the hospitality industry; speak and interview with employers at hotels and restaurants; and take the next steps to finding a new job.
WORC, working in conjunction with CITA, has been actively matching Caymanian tourism workers displaced by the COVID-19 pandemic border closures with available jobs within the industry for the past several months as the Islands prepared for reopening. The job fair was an extension of this effort, with another similar event planned for early 2022.
Several members of Cabinet attended the job fair to speak to job seekers and hear their stories. On hand were Premier Hon. Wayne Panton, Deputy Premier and Minister for Labour Hon. Chris Saunders, Minister for Tourism Hon. Kenneth Bryan, Minister for Social Development Hon. Andre Ebanks, and Parliamentary Secretaries Hon. Katherine Ebanks-Wilks, Hon. Heather Bodden, and Hon. Dwayne Seymour.
Minister Saunders said, “The PACT Government is committed to both returning our displaced hospitality industry workers to fulfilling jobs in tourism, and to the ongoing ‘Caymanianisation’ of our tourism industry and product. In addition to welcoming Caymanian hospitality workers returning to the field, we aim to work with tourism industry partners to create new job opportunities for Caymanians including new graduates entering the workforce. We have clearly seen from the interest shown in this job fair that there are Caymanians ready, willing, and able to work in the tourism sector.”
Minister for Tourism Hon. Kenneth Bryan echoed the sentiments of Minister Saunders, and stated that he was very pleased with the number of Caymanians who came out to the event.
He said, “As more visitors return and the industry grows, it will drive a corresponding need for more workers, so the plan is to host another job fair in the first quarter of next year to ensure that Caymanians continue to be considered first for all job opportunities. I am expecting that the next job fair will also include more administrative jobs as well as those that are more hospitality focussed and my Ministry will continue to work with stakeholders to make that a reality.”
A video from the event can be viewed online at
https://youtu.be/dRN9wYk_qNk