In the competitive hotel and resort employment market,
candidates need an edge; a quality that makes their resume jump out from the
rest of the pile. In this industry, perhaps more than any other, bi- or
multilingualism can easily give you the upper hand over unilingual candidates
with similar skills and work history.
International Tourism on the Rise
International tourism is a huge industry, contributing
billions of dollars to the world economy.
According to the World Tourism Organization, international travel to North America increased an amazing 5.8% in 2005. The
number of visits made to the UK
by overseas residents in 2005 was the highest ever recorded – 30.0 million,
with visitors spending a record £14.2 billion! International travelers clearly want to
get out and see the world.
Hotel and resort companies realize that as this diverse
group of guests travels from Greece, France, Japan, Germany and other countries
to vacation, they appreciate comforts from home in their hotel and lodging
accommodations. Sometimes a friendly
“Hello” in their own language is enough to make the hotel stay a positive,
memorable experience for a traveler.
Why Employers NEED Your Language Skills… and Are Willing to Pay For It
The guests’ experience is enhanced when they have someone to
turn to for restaurant recommendations, directions to popular landmarks and
advice on using public transit, among other vacation concerns. Employers realize the value of providing
these seemingly small, but very important, services to their guests.
According to Dennis McMonigle, director of Human Resources
at the Adams Mark Hotel in Denver, Colorado, "In our industry, customer
service is what it's all about, and the ability to communicate effectively with
customers, as well as co-workers in their native language, is a valuable asset
in our recruiting strategies."
Bilingual hospitality workers in the United States are in such great
demand that in 2005, U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao announced nearly
$2.6 million in grants to train hospitality staff, with an emphasis on
providing English language training to those fluent in other languages. “The
fast-growing hospitality industry is very much in need of skilled workers,” She
commented, “Thousands of workers will benefit from the outreach, English
literacy and occupational skills… possible through these grants.”
Bilingual Hospitality Workers Promoted More Often
Working in the hospitality industry offers employees the
chance to travel and see the world while building their career. As a result,
hotels are often diverse workplaces and may employ staff from many different countries.
Employees who speak other languages and understand the cultures of their
coworkers are attractive candidates for management training and promotions, as
they are able to communicate effectively with a diverse staff.
Hotel employers often pay multilingual employees a better
wage and consider them first for promotions. Bilingual candidates also find it
easier to enter the job market and change jobs more easily, says Ghislain
Savoie, Chief of the Social Research Group for the Department of Canadian
Heritage. In the United
Kingdom, the international and culturally
diverse workforce, especially in the hotel and resort industry, makes
bilingualism in the workplace a huge asset, especially amongst supervisors and
managers. 40% of all Chinese women and 33% of Bangladeshi women in the UK work in the
hotel and restaurant industries. As a result, the potential for Bengali/English
or Chinese/English speakers to receive promotions and move into management is
much greater than that of a unilingual speaker who could not communicate
effectively with their staff.
Get That Job!
True bilingualism means that you can speak, read and write
fluently in your second language. If you took a few courses in high school but
can’t converse as you do in your native language, don’t tell prospective
employers that you are bilingual; they will be disappointed if you can’t
perform the duties you were hired for.
Most community colleges offer part-time and continuing
education language courses. Interacting with others in your language class is a
great way to develop and polish your skills. Once you are confident in your new
language, don’t stop there! Learning a third language is not as difficult as
you might think, especially if the two languages have similarities such as
French and Italian.
Highlight your multilingualism on your resume as one of your
major skills. You may even have a chance to show off your talent in an
interview!