The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Some 2,500 tourism jobs, which supported more than 10,000 family members, were blown away by Hurricane Dorian it was revealed yesterday.

The category five storm's impact on employment levels in The Bahamas' largest private sector industry was exposed by Bahamian and regional tourism associations as they unveiled an initiative to find work for hospitality workers displaced by the storm.

The Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA) and Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA) announced their Tourism Jobs for Bahamians initiative, which aims to secure temporary employment for impacted workers. They are working with public and private sector tourism partners in the Caribbean, The Bahamas and South Florida.

"Hurricane Dorian, one of the strongest storms on record, blew more than 2,500 hospitality professionals out of work in the Abacos and Grand Bahama, eliminating jobs that were supporting more than 10,000 family members in these islands," the CHTA said in a statement.

"The strong Bahamas tourism sector has created a wealth of skilled and dedicated tourism professionals who would be an asset to any hotel or tourism business," said CHTA president, Patricia Affonso-Dass, who runs Ocean Hotels in Barbados.

"Even short-term seasonal positions would allow these Bahamian professionals not only to enhance other destinations but also to expand their own skills and experience."

To identify these temporary positions, the CHTA is deploying its Caribbean Tourism Job Bank, set up in the wake of Hurricanes Irma and Maria in 2017, to connect job seekers with opportunities in the 80 percent of The Bahamas that the hurricane missed. The Job Bank will also seek openings in the Caribbean, the US and Canada.

Among the early responders to the CHTA appeal are unaffected Bahamas hotels such as Sandals, with has three Bahamian properties; Baha Mar; Atlantis; and hotels in the Out Islands of Eleuthera, Exuma, Andros, Bimini, Cat Island and Long Island.

The CHTA is also reaching out to prospective employers through the Greater Miami and the Beaches Hotel Association. It called on potential employers to use the job bank to post openings for the full range of hotel and tourism functions - from management, supervisory and line level positions to areas such as chefs, bartenders, engineers, groundskeepers, marina support, sales, marketing and accounts.

The CHTA said several hotels have already tapped the pool of experienced Bahamian hospitality employees, while others have committed to hiring displaced workers.

"CHTA hopes that humanitarian and economic considerations will allow for a temporary waiver of visa restrictions, particularly in South Florida, where hotel employers report difficulties in filling many positions, given the low unemployment rate and where many affected Bahamians have extended friends and family who can provide added support, like housing, to help tide over the period before they return to The Bahamas," the Association added.