Workforce Solutions Shared With Tourism Minister

• The Go with Tourism Workforce Wānanga wrapped up today following a series of workforce solutions shared with Tourism Minister, Stuart Nash.
• Solution examples include rebranding Tourism, community engagement, a centralised resource hub and more.
• Solutions presented today will be shared in an action plan in December 2021. A long-term plan will be released in February 2022.

From knowledge sharing to a centralised resource hub, rebranding Tourism and community engagement campaigns, a range of workforce solutions were shared with Tourism Minister, Stuart Nash this afternoon as the Go with Tourism Workforce Wānanga wrapped up.

For the past two days, 108 representatives from the industry, associations, educators, unions, students, local and central government have worked together in small groups to discuss the challenges that currently face the Tourism & Hospitality workforce and how we can overcome them.

Four key themes were apparent in the solutions presented today: a need to change perceptions, to amplify education, provide resources for employers, and creating a partnership culture. A high-level summary of today’s ideas include:

• Establishing a culture of knowledge sharing within the industry
• Creating better resources and training opportunities for employers
• A centralised resource hub or toolkit that covers business operation, career progression and wellbeing
• Community engagement campaigns
• Apprenticeships, micro-credentials or a wider range of paid pathways into Tourism & Hospitality
• Building better relationships and alignment between industry and educators
• A ‘Tourism & Hospitality Accord’ which establishes a workforce standard
• Rebranding Tourism to the “Experience Economy”

Minister Nash’s role at the Wānanga was to hear the ideas, to ask questions, offer his thoughts and generally assist attendees to consider every opportunity.

Assisting him were the co-chairs of the new Industry Transformational Plan for the Tourism industry, which was announced yesterday. The chairs are Unite Union national secretary John Crocker, Tourism Industry Aotearoa chair Gráinne Troute, and Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) tourism branch acting general manager Karl Woodhead.

The first stage of the Tourism ITP will be focused on enabling ‘Better Work’ for Tourism & Hospitality, and the outcomes from the past two days have the potential to feed into its long-term vision.

More immediately, however, Go with Tourism – the organisers of the Workforce Wānanga - will use the ideas presented today to release an action plan for the Tourism & Hospitality industry in December 2021. This plan will recommend who should take ownership and what additional support is needed to move solutions forward.

A long-term plan will follow in February 2022, which will be developed from the full range of ideas and material collected across the event. Go with Tourism have contracted research and strategy specialists Angus & Associates to analyse and consolidate this information.

Programme Director of Go with Tourism, Matt Stenton, says that he is thrilled by the passion seen and work achieved throughout the event. “Our goal was to unify the voices of all who have a stake in the Tourism & Hospitality workforce and in doing so, future-proof our industry. The quality of the presentations today shows that we’ve achieved this. It is my hope that the Workforce Wānanga will be that pivotal moment our industry needed to change for the better and we will be a sector of choice for New Zealanders looking for viable, life-long careers.

“Solutions such as better training for employers and creating a culture of sharing and partnerships have the potential to make immediate, positive change. I look forward to seeing these actionable ideas take shape quickly throughout our industry.”

To receive the most up-to-date information on the outcomes of the Workforce Wānanga, please follow Go with Tourism on their LinkedIn channel, where all announcements will be made.

The action plans will be made available via the Go with Tourism website and distributed to industry and media in December 2021 and February 2022.

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