Hundreds of Caymanian jobseekers of all ages descended upon the Grand Cayman Marriott Resort on 8 and 9 Sept. to try and secure a coveted job in the hospitality sector.
Clutching their resumes, attendees were hoping to learn more about career paths in the industry and to find employment with more than 30 hotels, restaurants, condominiums and watersports companies, which were recruiting at the event.
The event was organised by Workforce Opportunities and Residency Cayman (WORC) and the Ministry of Caymanian Employment and Immigration with the Cayman Islands Tourism Association. The first day of the event was attended by jobseekers invited by WORC, but the second day was an open house, with all 250 places taken ahead of the event.
Ministers open the fair
Kicking off the two-day jobs fair were Deputy Premier Gary Rutty, who is also the tourism minister, and Michael Myles, minister for Caymanian employment.
“Our goal is simple yet powerful,” Rutty said. “To reconnect Caymanians with the tourism and hospitality sector and to ensure that more working Caymanians can benefit from the rewarding career opportunities that the tourism industry offers.”
“You are the ambassadors that will make this possible,” he added. “This event is an important opportunity for you to meet directly with employers, ask questions, and learn more about the wide range of roles available.”
Myles spoke about how watching his mother work for many years in the tourism industry had impacted him, telling the audience, “My ministry is not going to be spending four years on immigration reform. We’re going to be spending four years on employment reform. … Our responsibility is to ensure that every Caymanian that wants a job, has a job.”
Recruitment fair
The Marriott ballroom was packed with recruiters from across the industry, including ONE | GT, Grand Hyatt Resort, Palm Heights, Morritt’s Resort, The Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman, The Westin Grand Cayman Seven Mile Beach Resort & Spa, Kimpton Seafire Resort + Spa, Hotel Indigo Grand Cayman, Red Sail Sport and Tortuga Rum Company.
Grand Hyatt Managing Director Steven Andre said that the hotel had sent a full team to the jobs fair to meet and screen potential employees and that it was recruiting across all its different sectors, from human resources and finance to housekeeping, food and beverage, and engineering.
“We’ve been very actively recruiting in the local marketplace since day one and we’ve had a great number of people reach out to us already to kind of ask, ‘What are the opportunities?’” he said. “And as we’re opening from zero staff and want to get to 500, we have a tonne of opportunities.”
“There’s always entry-level jobs available at hotels,” he added. “What we need is great people who want to work.”
People with personality
Walter Capasso, general manager of Morritt’s, said that the hotel didn’t usually get many CVs, but that he had been inundated with them at the event.
“We’re recruiting for roles all across the hotel at the start of the season,” he said. “There are entry-level positions, and we’re looking for outgoing people with personality and who have the desire to work.”
He said that not only was it much easier to employ Caymanians rather than dealing with the cost and administration of work permits, but employing locally was very much part of the Morritt’s ethos.
“We are 75% Caymanian already, so it’s something we already do,” he said.
Roberta Bush, HR manager at The Westin, said she was currently recruiting for four roles, including beach ambassadors, housekeeping and maintenance, but that more would become available in November at the start of the busy season.
“The jobs fair has been really useful in reaching people, many of whom have just finished high school,” she said. “There are some smart kids here!”
Currently, around 80% of employees at The Westin are Caymanian, and Bush said she particularly wants Caymanians to work in customer-facing roles, such as front of house to give a “proper Caymanian welcome”.
One of the jobseekers at The Westin table was Georgette Maxwell, 56. She said she was looking for a full-time job in the industry, such as in housekeeping or in the kitchen, and had been looking for work for a few years.
“I’m good at what I do,” she said. “I’m hard-working and I can make drinks and I love experimenting in the kitchen.”
Useful jobs fair event
Paul Slijper runs Union grill and bar with his wife Tania and said he had found the event really useful.
“The first person that sat down to talk to us was a 17-year-old girl and she was incredible,” he said. “She just lit up the room. She had no experience but that isn’t a problem, as we can provide the training. Hospitality is all about people, and she was so great that it was worth coming just to be able to recruit someone like that.”
“We’ve found some good candidates,” said Laurent Bodden of Grand Old House. “We’re looking for people who are personable, open-minded and prepared to work hard.”
Having experience wasn’t an issue, he said, with many of the jobs available, such as server assistant and kitchen assistant, being entry level.
Job hunters
One of the many job hunters handing out his resume was Elder Ebanks, 21, who used to work with the cruise ship tenders and wants to continue working in the industry, preferably outdoors.
“I’m an outside person,” he said. “I’ve spoken to Red Sail Sports already and I’m going to work my way around the room and look at watersports opportunities, especially with Indigo and the Kimpton.”
Jemilla Frederick, 21, was home-schooled in Cayman and is now looking for her first job. She said that she was looking for rewarding work and was exploring the various roles available in the industry, possibly in housekeeping.
“I’m here to see what kind of opportunities are available and I’m talking to as many companies as possible,” she said.