Introduction
   The UK Commission is working to transform the UK’s approach to investing in skills to 
   help secure jobs and growth.  Key to our ambition is the need to encourage greater 
   employer ownership of skills, working to secure long term sustainable partnerships.
   This slide pack and accompanying evidence report present the case for more employers  in 
   this sector to invest in the skills of their people.  It does so by presenting real-life, skill-
   based business solutions that have been used by leading employers to tackle the performance 
   challenges they face and by drawing on examples of the investments being made by the UK 
   Commission through its investment funds.
   There are several determinants of employers’ skills needs and training behaviour including firm 
   size, strategy and location but it is by sector which the strongest variations appear.  Hence this 
   work focuses on the Tourism sector.  Slide packs and reports are also available for a number 
   of other sectors from: www.ukces.org.uk. Each of the sectors are important to the economy in 
   terms of employment, productivity or their future potential.
   For information about this slide pack and accompanying report please contact: 
   info@ukces.org.uk/01709 774 800
   Source information can be found in the notes section of each slide
       Storyboard
               What are the key           Tourism matters:          Tourism matters:
              skills challenges in       the importance of        the sector tomorrow
              the tourism sector?         the sector today 
               The performance           The performance           The performance 
                  challenge:                challenge:                challenge: 
                  Productivity               Employee              Employee turnover 
                                           engagement                and retention
              The performance 
                  challenge:              Growth through 
                                        Benefits to business
                Investment in             skills: Securing        Benefits to business
                workforce skills          future success
                                                                                            3
     What is the tourism sector?
                             Hotels and other 
                             accommodation
                Restaurants                       Travel agencies 
                and bars      TOURISM             and tour operators
                  Gambling 
                  and betting      Sport and 
                                   recreation 
                                   activities
     The sector includes many businesses that are not solely driven by tourism, and may not 
                       self-identify as being part of the sector
    What are the key skills challenges in the 
    tourism sector?
      The UK tourism sector is large and growing. Output has increased by over 5% per  year 
      for the last decade, and will increase by a similar amount over the coming decade. Major 
      sporting events provide an incredible opportunity to promote the UK visitor economy . 
        Customers are becoming more demanding, driving up the level of service expected.
        Managers and staff need  to develop a culture of continuous improvement to meet these 
        increasing expectations.
               The sector needs to improve productivity and attract and retain talent .
               Poor perception of parts of the sector (low pay and unsociable hours) can make it difficult to 
               attract staff. Tourism has the highest labour turnover rate of any sector. 
               There is a high proportion of transient workers which can be useful in matching staffing levels 
               to demand, but makes long-term workforce planning more difficult. 
                    Not enough employers invest in the workforce. The sector has a relatively high level of 
                    spend  per employee on training, but much of this is the cost of training new recruits as a 
                    result of high labour turnover. 
                    Employers need to invest in staff and increase employee engagement. A more motivated 
                    workforce will lead to improved customer satisfaction, increased revenue and profits, and 
                    reduced staff turnover.                 5
       Tourism matters: The sector today
     •   Tourism is an important contributor to the UK economy. Sector output was £62 billion in 
         2010 (2006 prices): 5% of total GDP
     •   Businesses in other sectors sell to and purchase from the visitor economy, contributing 
         as much again to GDP
                                 •    It employs around 2.5 million people (1 in 12 UK jobs). 
                                      Half work in restaurants and bars, while a fifth work in 
                                      the sports and recreation activities sector.
                                 •    Over a third of workers are under 25, compared to the 
                                      average across all sectors of 13 per cent.
                                 •    Output has increased by 5.6% per year, and 
                                      employment by 0.6% per year, over the last 10 years.
                                            • The proportion of small and micro operators is very high
                                            • There is a high proportion of elementary and customer service occupations and workforce qualification levels are 
                                              lower than average
                                              • The visitor economy plays a particularly important role in rural economies and communities
                                              • The sector is a major provider of leisure activity