Hotels have been through the wringer since the start of the pandemic.  The leisure and hospitality industry  8 million jobs in the first two months of the pandemic—more than any other industry. While hotels have seen  in recent years, hospitality employment remains below February 2020 levels. Employers in the sector are creating new talent pipelines for recruiting and retaining workers in the high-turnover industry. Hotel company Hyatt, which employs more than 189,000 workers across 70-plus countries, is relying on a program first established in 2018 that hires youth for entry-level roles. The initiative, called RiseHY, recruits “opportunity youth,” young adults ages 16 to 24 who are neither in school nor working, through community-based organizations. “When we started to experience real challenges with staffing, we were really happy that we started the work of figuring out how [to] access these folks, introduce our industry, and bring them on board,” says Malaika Myers, Hyatt’s chief human resources officer.  So far, she’s hired more than 5,300 people through the program and aims to hit 10,000 hires through the program by the end of 2025. The program boasts a strong retention rate for the industry, with more than 40% of RiseHy hires still with the company. For comparison, the hospitality industry saw an 82% turnover rate in 2022, according to U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data. “The retention rate for these hires is higher, certainly, than the norm. And some of that, I think, is because of the support system that we put around them,” says Myers.  Before being hired, RiseHy candidates can get a glimpse of a day in the life at the company through a virtual reality presentation. Many of the hires likely haven’t stepped foot in a hotel before, Myers says, and the VR demonstration helps them understand various roles and their responsibilities.  Hyatt also created a buddy system for program hires, as well as training for managers on how to best support these workers. Other support programs include providing ride services to RiseHy employees in their first month of work if they can’t immediately afford a car or other means of transportation to get to work. In addition to lower attrition, Myers says that talent sourced through the program has shown great potential for development, and more than 900 RiseHy hires have since been promoted or moved laterally and transferred to other Hyatt properties.“That proves the point that…you can come in an entry-level job in this industry and work your way up,” Myers says. It’s far more about what you bring to it, how you bring our purpose to life, how you care for our guests, and skills that you can be trained on than what degree you’ve got.”

Paige McGlauflin
paige.mcglauflin@cartas999.net
@

Correction, November 17, 2023: A previous version of this article misstated the number of total Hyatt employees.

Reporter's Notebook

The most compelling data, quotes, and insights from the field.

United Automobile Workers members  the tentative contract agreement with General Motors on Friday, ending a closely contested vote with 55% of members voting yes. GM was the last of the Big Three U.S. automakers to reach an agreement on its union contract.

UAW president Shawn Fain hopes the recent victories will reverberate across other companies—and motivate their workers to unionize.

Around the Table

A round-up of the most important HR headlines.

- A pedestrian accident caused Cruise, General Motors’ robotaxi service, to pull its cars from California streets last month temporarily. Now, it’s suspending a program that allows employees to sell their shares in the company. 

- Weekly jobless claims jumped by 13,000 last week to hit a three-month high as interest rates continue to cool the labor market. 

- The European technology CEO at Dublin-based Accenture says AI integration will free around 40% of workers from tasks that can be automated. He claims the company will redeploy and upgrade staff affected by AI, not lay them off. 

- Almost 90% of U.S. workers surveyed by ResumeNow report taking up a second job in the last six months to make ends meet. A little more than 40% say they're actively looking for a job in their field that pays more. 

Watercooler

Everything you need to know from Fortune.

New-gen. Glassdoor predicts that 2024 will be the first year that Gen Z outnumbers boomers in the workforce. The chief economist at the employer review site says this will force companies to change the way they attract employees. —Chloe Berger

Office international. Fair pay and a healthy work-life balance are some of the most popular qualities of the 25 workplaces included in this year’s Fortune World’s Best Workplaces list. Doing meaningful work and having a fair, engaged manager were also very popular. —Ted Kitterman, Great Place to Work

No staff, no service. Thousands of Starbucks workers walked out of more than 200 stores on Thursday to protest widespread understaffing. The one-day strike was planned on the company’s annual Red Cup Day when reusable cup giveaways bring extra customer traffic. — Dee-Ann Durbin, AP