Abstract
Tourism is fundamental to the economy of Wales, and the government tourism plan 2020–2025 centres on sustainable development. This paper presents a quantitative analysis of research undertaken by the Next Tourism Generation Alliance (NTGA) project in Wales evidencing sustainability skills gaps. Survey data collected from five tourism sectors, accommodation, food and beverage, destination management, visitor attractions, travel agents and tour operators, show that the highest green and social skills gaps were identified in food and beverage businesses, whilst accommodation reported the lowest skills gaps. The effect of the type of tourism sector, business size and job level on green skills gaps perceptions was found to be insignificant, which indicates that training in sustainability skills is considered important regardless of these variables. The effect of type of tourism activity on perceptions of social skills gaps including personal and communication was significant. Addressing skills gaps is crucial given the significance of the industry in the national economy and the need for recovery from COVID-19. Tourism is one of the worst affected industries in the pandemic, and global market research and policy guidance highlight the importance of sustainable tourism development to ensure a resilient recovery.
Highlights
Wales is a small country with a population of approximately 3.2 million within the United Kingdom [1]
An evaluation of the skills gaps according to the five tourism sub-sectors followed by the ranking of skills gaps in the tourism sectors in Wales was presented
Considering the limited academic research pertaining to sustainability skill gaps within the tourism and hospitality sector, results from this paper contribute baseline findings in relation to these skill gaps in a Welsh context
Summary
Wales is a small country with a population of approximately 3.2 million within the United Kingdom [1]. The Welsh Government is the devolved executive and has responsibility for tourism development. Tourism is considered a ‘foundational sector’ in the economy in which skills progression is encouraged in the Economic Action Plan for Wales, Prosperity for All [1]. Pre-COVID, tourism was one of the fastest growing sectors in Wales and almost 10% of the workforce was employed in the industry [2]. Tourism Performance Report for 2019 [3], there were increases in visits to Wales compared with 2018: an increase of 6.8% to 10,698,000 in terms of trips and an increase of 8.1% to. There were 87,300,000 day-visits, down 8.8% in 2018
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