Dimensions of employability in the hospitality industry at destination level—the case of a spa destination in Bulgaria

Abstract

The paper presents the results from the application of the holistic approach to employability based on secondary data and a questionnaire survey of the human resources employed in the hotel and restaurant sector (198) and semi-structured interviews with tourism sector employers (11) in the municipality of Devin, Bulgaria. The results outline some of the dimensions of employability, existing problems of employability and their potential solutions. It is typical for the municipality of Devin that a large part of the local population in the region is directly dependent on tourism. This leads to relatively low staff turnover and high motivation to offer a quality tourism product. Respondents exhibit a high self-assessment of their own knowledge, skills and attitude in terms of development of tourism, but this does not correspond to the real situation given their activities to improve their own skills during the pandemic period closure. Recommendations are proposed for upgrading the qualification of staff at municipal and enterprise level.