1.

  Human resource management in the

hospitality and tourism sector
Ronald J. Burke

The hospitality and tourism industry currently employs about ten percent
of the worldwide workforce. As tourism is seen as continuing to grow,
the number of travelers will also increase. About one billion people now
travel each year with this figure reaching over 1.5 billion in 2015. This
will produce a shortage of talented managers, coupled with the need to
meet increasingly diverse future customer needs. Changes in technology,
along with changes in the make-up of customers – fewer Baby boomers
and more Gen Xers and Gen Ys – will increasingly challenge hospitality
organizations. In addition, greater use will be made of social media and
mobile technologies, requiring the training of staff. Retaining qualified
staff at all levels who are now on board and recruiting and orienting new
staff will be critical to success.
The hospitality and tourism sector represents a major contributor to the
Gross Domestic Product of various countries and this sector is growing in
importance. Perhaps every country in the world supports their hospital-
ity and tourism industries (Baker, 2013). Growth in this sector has been
particularly strong in South East Asia, with Macau now becoming the
leading gambling center in the world. Several recent publications have
documented the positive contribution of hospitality and tourism to the
economies of various countries. These include Spain and Italy (Cortes-
Jimenez and Paluna, 2010); Spain (Balaguer and Cantavella-Jorda, 2002);
Germany (Brida and Risso, 2010); Turkey (Gunduz and Hatemi-J, 2008);
Cyprus (Katircioglu, 2009); and China (Shan and Wilson, 2001). In addi-
tion, surveys of tourism and economic development in a number of coun-
tries considered simultaneously have shown the significant contribution
made by hospitality and tourism (Sinclair, 1998; Hazari and Sgro, 1995;
Sequeira and Nunes, 2008). Research on human resource management
practices in this sector has also grown to reflect international practices and
concerns.

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 4  Handbook of HRM in the tourism and hospitality industries

SERVICE QUALITY

As a service industry, providing high quality service to all customers and

clients is vital to customer and client satisfaction, loyalty, and positive
word-of-mouth. Thus providing high quality of service is central to the
success of hospitality and tourism organizations. But measuring service
quality is complicated, as service quality is mainly a subjective assessment
of an interpersonal experience between an individual providing a service
and an individual receiving this service. As service is intangible, diverse,
and simultaneously produced and consumed, quantitative measures of
perceived service quality are important. Perceptions of service quality, and
customer satisfaction with provided services, while related, are different
concepts. Service quality is one aspect of customer satisfaction (Zeithaml
and Bitner, 2003).
Parasuraman et al. (1985; 1989) developed a multidimensional scale
for assessing perceptions of service quality. They view perceived service
quality as a global assessment about the superiority of service provided.
Customer satisfaction, however, only relates to a particular transaction
between provider and consumer. Thus service quality includes several
dimensions.
Parasuraman et al. (1989) offer five dimensions: reliability; responsive-
ness; assurance; empathy; and tangibles. Reliability involves the ability to
perform the promised service dependably and accurately. Responsiveness
involves a willingness to help customers and provide prompt service.
Assurance involves knowledge and courtesy of employees and their ability
to inspire trust and confidence. Empathy involves caring and individual-
ized attention given to customers. Tangibles involve the appearance of
physical facilities, equipment, personnel and written materials. Thus
Zeithaml and Bitner (2003) require customers to assess quality of service
in terms of these five dimensions.
Since service quality is basically a provider and consumer transaction,
human resources are seen as the most important aspect of organizational
success in hospitality organizations. Employees possess skills, knowledge,
experience, ability, attitudes and values, behaviors, and relationships,
both inside and outside their work area or organizations. Many of these
qualities (for example, attitudes, values, knowledge, behaviors, skills) are
affected by the human resource management policies and practices of their
organization and the behaviors of their supervisors and managers.
Michel et al. (2012) considered the relationship of an organization’s cus-
tomer service climate/culture on ratings of employee service self-efficacy
beliefs, job performance, and intentions to quit. Data were collected from
both front-line employees and their supervisors. Their supportive service

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 Human resource management in the hospitality and tourism sector  ­5

climate measure had three dimensions: HR support (rewards and incen-

tives for providing high quality service); management support (managers
had standards for high service quality); and job support (enough staff to
deliver high quality service). Employee perceptions of climate for service
quality predicted higher levels of staff motivation, less intention to quit
and higher performance ratings by supervisors.
Service quality has received considerable and increasing research atten-
tion over the past 20 years (Kandampully et al., 2014). This research and
writing has considered measuring service quality in hospitality organiza-
tions, the relationship of service quality and important outcomes such as
customer satisfaction, customer loyalty, customer behavioral intentions,
brand loyalty, customer expectations, front-line and managerial employee
behaviors, human resource management policies and practices, organiza-
tional climate or culture, and business performance.
The central concept of developing a high quality service culture emerges
as a focus for human resource management (Kandampully et al., 2014).
The key then is the role played by human resource management policies
and practices in the process of providing high quality service to customers
and clients. How would you define a high service quality culture? What
factors make up a high quality service culture? How would an organi-
zation measure their standing on these factors? How can organizations
develop a high quality service culture? What human resource management
policies and practices foster high levels of service quality? Studies have
reported that service quality cultures are associated with higher levels of
client satisfaction, more return business, more customer loyalty, and posi-
tive word-of-mouth to others (Batt, 2002).
Workplace culture is critical for organizational success (Davidson,
2003; Parasuraman, 1987). One can copy other organizations’ physical
facilities and products, their business strategies, and one can hire away
their employees, but it is impossible to duplicate their culture easily.
Culture is how things get done, the norms, and behavioral, attitudinal and
value expectations of all the staff. Aligning your human resource manage-
ment policies and practices to your desired workplace culture is important
in achieving high levels of service excellence and financial performance.
Chief executive leadership is key in starting this process. Human resource
management policies and practices that shape recruitment, retention, per-
formance through goal-setting, monitoring, appraising, discussing, recog-
nizing and rewarding excellence in performance will heighten employee
satisfaction, work engagement and organizational identification.
Human resource management issues emerge as the most difficult chal-
lenge facing hotel general managers and corporate executives (Enz, 2009a;
2001). Enz (2001) collected data from 170 hospitality managers from over

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 6  Handbook of HRM in the tourism and hospitality industries

25 different countries, asking them to identify the “thorniest” issues that

they encountered. At the top of the list was the use of their human capital –
how to care for and get the best performance from their employees. This
involved functions of attracting, retaining, training and developing and
motivating staff. These concerns were expressed by managers at all levels.
Enz (2009b) replicated her 2001 study, surveying 243 managers from over
60 countries. The most pressing concerns were attracting qualified staff,
retaining successful staff, training employees, maintaining or improving
staff morale, and creating career development opportunities. Employee
benefits and compensation costs were of less concern.
Yet human resource management policies and practices play a central
role for success in the hospitality and tourism sector (Zemke and Schaef,
1989; Schneider and Bowen, 1995; Schneider and White, 2004; Bowen and
Lawler, 1995). Service workers become part of the product representing
their hotels, and creating an image of their organizations. The personal-
ity, skills, knowledge, appearance, attitudes and behaviors of the service
worker become critical; how they are managed becomes similarly vital.
These factors produce high levels of service quality, customer satisfaction,
customer loyalty, a source of competitive advantage for an organiza-
tion, and high levels of organizational performance and success. Human
resource management policies and practices, organizational culture, and
the integration of human resource management and business strategies are
all associated with valued customer and organizational outcomes.
The basic framework that guides much of the thinking, research and
application of research findings linking human resource management
practices with ultimate organizational outcomes proposes (1) antecedents
including level of human capital talents, human resource management
practices, and organizational culture leading to (2) employee attitudes
and behaviors such as job satisfaction, work engagement, team contribu-
tion, exercising voice, loyalty and commitment to the organization, and
commitment to service quality, which leads to (3) customer satisfaction
and customer loyalty, which then contributes to (4) valued organizational
outcomes such as productivity, profit and competitive advantage.
Human resource management in hospitality organizations emphasizes
attracting an effective workforce, maintaining an effective workforce and
continuously developing an effective workforce (Worsfold, 1999). Human
resource policies and practices that apply to hospitality and tourism
organizations would include: shaping the organizational culture; determi-
nation of the organization’s labor and talent needs; recruitment and selec-
tion; employee orientation and socialization; training and development;
performance management and performance appraisal; equal opportunity
and managing diversity; rewards and recognition systems; supporting

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 Human resource management in the hospitality and tourism sector  ­7

effective team functioning; internal and external branding challenges;

employee relations; working with professional associations and labor
unions; health and safety issues; and grievance and disciplinary processes.

CONSIDERING BOTH THE ORGANIZATION AND

EMPLOYEES
A small but increasing body of research has examined organizational
level and individual level factors in the delivery of high quality customer
service. Liao and Chuang (2004) examined the influence of both indi-
vidual and organizational factors on employee service performance and
customer outcomes. They collected data in 25 restaurants from 44 manag-
ers, 257 employees and 1993 customers. Both employee conscientiousness
and extraversion were associated with higher levels of employee service
performance, and both restaurant service climate and levels of employee
involvement were associated with higher levels of restaurant performance.
Finally, employee service performance at the restaurant level predicted
customer satisfaction and loyalty. In a second study, Liao and Chuang
(2007) reported that managers’ transformational leadership increased
employee service performance in a sample of hair stylists in Taiwan, which
in turn increased client loyalty and retention nine months later. Store-level
transformational leadership increased store-level service climate, which in
turn increased the relationship between individual transformational lead-
ership and employee service performance. Thus while “the people make
the place”, the place matters.
This introductory chapter sets the stage for the rest of the collection.
The hospitality sector is a major contributor to the GDP of many coun-
tries, is a major source of jobs, and is growing. This industry today faces
some important old and emerging challenges. This collection provides a
practical view on how human resource management initiatives have been
found to be useful in addressing these issues. It first considers the context
including leadership and management, organizational culture and people,
leadership competencies, and human resource practices more generally. It
moves to a consideration of ongoing and new challenges facing hospital-
ity organizations. It then offers a sample of human resource initiatives
that address some of these challenges. Human resource initiatives are
also included in the material on ongoing and new challenges, and in the
chapters that follow.

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 8  Handbook of HRM in the tourism and hospitality industries

LEADERSHIP COMPETENCIES FOR HOSPITALITY

AND TOURISM MANAGEMENT

Given the importance of both the hospitality and tourism sector and
service leadership, it is not surprising that research and writing attention
is being paid to required leadership competences. These competencies are
typically captured in competency models. Testa and Sipe (2012) under-
took interviews with 110 individuals at high levels of management in four
industry segments: hotels, tourism, restaurants and attractions. They iden-
tified 100 managerial behaviors which they then allocated into 20 compe-
tency areas. Many of these behaviors and areas had been noted earlier by
others, while some were new. These 20 areas were then collapsed into three
major areas of service leadership competencies: business savvy; people
savvy; and self savvy. Business savvy included: planning; numberwise;
continuous improvement; strategic decision making; systems thinking;
technical service; and results oriented. People savvy included: interper-
sonal; communication; expressive service; team orientation; coaching
and training; inspiration; cultural alignment; and networked. Finally, self
savvy included: accountability; professionalism; self-development; time
management; spirit of optimism; and change management.
But increasing these competencies in managers turns out to be difficult.
Agut et al. (2003) interviewed 80 hotel and restaurant managers in Spain
to identify competency needs and training demands. They distinguished
between technical managerial competencies needed (economic-financial,
computing, language, work organization, people and work team manage-
ment) and generic managerial competencies needed (job performance,
efficacy including time management and self-confidence, self-control
including stress tolerance and listening to others, social relationships, and
proactive behaviors such as having a positive vision and being commit-
ted to meeting targets). They also examined present and future training
demands based on a gap between present and required levels of knowledge
and skill in these two areas and found that managers reported strong needs
for technical managerial competencies but significantly lower training
needs for general managerial competencies. When training needs were
identified, they were oriented towards the present rather than the future.
These managers did not indicate that they required training in any of the
general managerial competencies. Managers may have seen these skills as
not particularly relevant to them in their jobs, or not a priority, or that
training would not increase levels of these skills and knowledge.
There is a sense that many managers in the hospitality and tourism
sector lack the skills necessary to perform managerial functions (Foster
et al., 2010). They found in a study in the UK that half the managerial

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 Human resource management in the hospitality and tourism sector  ­9

skills in their skills assessments were deficient. In addition, there appeared

to be little demand for development. The largest skill deficiencies were in
­marketing, customer service and financial skills.

LEADERS AND MANAGERS

Leadership and management are both important but they are different
(Nicolaides, 2006). Leadership involves possessing a vision of what the
ideal workplace should look like, being inspiring to all levels of staff, having
high levels of communication skills, being ethical, and possessing business
knowledge vital to organizational success. Managing involves understand-
ing and structuring work roles, processes and tasks, standardizing operat-
ing procedures, sharing performance expectations with staff, monitoring
staff performance, developing staff, and meeting the needs of one’s staff.
Thus Whitelaw (2013) studied leadership styles (transformational,
transactional, laissez-faire) of 105 senior managers, 135 middle manag-
ers, and 42 line managers, most working in large international hotels in
Australia. Respondents indicated not only the extent to which they used
each of these leadership styles, but how they related to three areas of their
job: their effectiveness, their satisfaction and their commitment of extra
effort. Managers at higher levels tended to exhibit higher levels of contin-
gent reward and more transformational behaviors such as idealized influ-
ence, inspirational motivation, intellectual stimulation, and individual
consideration. Senior managers also tended to rate themselves higher on
extra effort. In addition, there were differences between the three levels
of managers in relationships of the various leadership behaviors with the
three work outcomes.

ONGOING HRM CHALLENGES

Unfortunately, challenges facing hospitality and tourism organizations

are compounded by relatively low historical interest in human resource
management policies and practices in this sector and in people manage-
ment more generally (Baum, 2007). The hospitality and tourism sector, as
a result, has a negative image as far as working conditions, pay, and career
development are concerned (Kuslavan et al., 2012). As a consequence,
very high rates of employee turnover plague this sector (Davidson et al.,
2010). Zopiatis and Constanti (2005) list human resource challenges facing
the Cyprus hospitality industry involving managers, included low levels of
motivation and high levels of both burnout and turnover.

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 10  Handbook of HRM in the tourism and hospitality industries

In addition, studies of perceptions of students in hospitality and tourism

management programs, a key source of staff, have typically found nega-
tive attitudes and views of this sector (Kuslavan and Kuslavan, 2000).
Aksu and Koksal (2005) collected data from 689 tourism and hospitality
management students in each of the four years of study. Students believed
that workers in this industry were generally unmotivated and uneducated,
industry managers did not expect much effort from their employees,
managers failed to provide necessary training or promotional opportuni-
ties, and working hours interfered with having a regular life. Richardson
(2009), in an Australian study of 320 tourism and hospitality students
from eight university and college programs, reported that most students
did not believe that tourism and hospitality as a career provided factors
that they believed to be important: enjoyment, security, salary, promotion
prospects, a reasonable workload, and a pleasant workplace environment.
Zopiatis and Kyprianou (2006) reported generally negative attitudes
towards the hospitality sector in a study of 227 secondary school students
in Cyprus. Perceptions of the hospitality sector on 12 factors (for example,
poor salary, boring work, negative working environment) ranged from
neutral to negative. Richardson and Thomas (2012), in a study of US
students enrolled in hospitality programs who had worked in the hospital-
ity sector, who had generally favorable views about working in the sector
and who had planned to work in the sector, almost always, however, rated
the importance of particular factors higher than the extent to which they
would be met in the hospitality and tourism sector.
Keep and Mayhew (1999) wrote that inadequate and limited human
resource management practices in the hospitality and tourism industry
were associated with a number of human resource issues. These included
low wages, skill shortages, work hours and shift patterns that interfere
with family functioning, limited career promotion options, high levels of
employee turnover, and women holding lower status jobs while men held
higher status jobs. This had been attributed to the underlying economics
of the sector, an emphasis on short-term responses and quick fixes, an
unwillingness of employing organizations to acknowledge their problems,
a low skill base, and the presence of large numbers of small and medium-
sized enterprises. But progress and changes have been observed here as
well, particularly in the larger hospitality organizations and the interna-
tional chains.

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 Human resource management in the hospitality and tourism sector  ­11

WORKPLACE STRESS AND ITS EFFECTS

Hospitality employees, particularly front-line service workers, experience

workplace stress. Han et al. (2016) collected data from 228 front-line
service workers working in 28 Florida-based restaurants, studying the
relationship of customer incivility and both burnout and turnover inten-
tions. Customer incivility (personally insulting, sexual comments, com-
ments on appearance, verbal attacks) were associated with burnout, which
in turn fully mediated the relationship of customer incivility and intent to
quit. Both hospitality organization and supervisor support reduced the
association of customer incivility and burnout.
Shani and Pizam (2009) found a modest but higher rate of depression
among hospitality workers in a study carried out in Florida. Depression
is associated with higher health-related costs, absenteeism, and lower
productivity. Depression can be the result of job stress, burnout and low
social support.
Hospitality organizations and their supervisors can work to reduce
the association of customer incivility and adverse employee and organi-
zational outcomes by using examples of customer incivility in training
programs to help employees better handle and diffuse these instances.
Employees can also share with each other what seemed to work for them.
In addition, managers can also be more visible to both employees and
customers to make readily available access to lower tension before a major
incident occurs. Incivility from co-workers can have similar negative
effects and be addressed in similar ways (Sakurai and Jex, 2012).
Zopiatis and Constanti (2005), based on questionnaire data from 75
managers in the hospitality sector in Cyprus, examined three burnout
components: emotional exhaustion, depersonalization, and lack of per-
sonal accomplishment, using the Maslach Burnout Inventory. Managers
scoring higher on these burnout components were younger, had less work
experience, were more highly educated, and worked in five-star hotels. A
worrying finding was the low level of personal accomplishment reported
by a large proportion of respondents. The good news is that both alcohol
abuse and depression, among other stress-related outcomes, can be
treated.

EMOTIONAL LABOR

Considerable research attention has been given to the concept of emo-

tional labor in service industries. Emotional labor involves managing
one’s emotions and their expression to fit organizational or occupational

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 12  Handbook of HRM in the tourism and hospitality industries

expectations about appropriate emotional expression (Pizam, 2004).

These emotions need to be expressed even though they are at odds with the
person’s real feelings – a discrepancy or emotional dissonance. Emotional
labor involves faking positive emotions as well as suppressing negative
emotions. Individuals can also genuinely feel and express positive emo-
tions. It is possible to genuinely express negative emotions but unlikely in
a service or workplace interaction. That is, positive emotional displays are
required while negative emotional displays are prohibited.
The positive display of emotions by front-line service workers has been
found to be associated with higher levels of customer satisfaction and
perceptions of service quality (Pugh, 2001) and customer retention and
satisfaction (Ashkanazy et al., 2002). But emotional labor can be psy-
chologically and physically harmful to service workers (Brotheridge and
Grandey, 2002; Grandey, 2003).
Kim (2008) studied antecedents and consequences of emotional labor
among 197 front-line workers in the US. Antecedents included job char-
acteristics and personal attributes; consequences included job burnout.
The measure of emotional labor considered both surface acting (faking,
pretending) and deep acting (trying to feel these emotions). Two person-
ality characteristics were measured: neuroticism and extraversion; three
interaction characteristics: frequency, duration and variety; job character-
istics included autonomy and control in one’s work; and company display
rules: negative and positive. Variety, duration and positive display rules
predicted deep acting; negative display rules predicted surface acting.
Workers higher on neuroticism reported more surface acting and workers
higher on extraversion reported more deep acting. Surface actors reported
higher levels of burnout than did deep actors.
Shani et al. (2014), in a qualitative study conducted in Israel, considered
context factors associated with emotional labor. Interviews were con-
ducted with 35 front-line workers, 26 female and 9 male. They identified
four context factors: the manager–employee relationship, the manager’s
attitude towards employees and their degree of supervisor support; physi-
cal demands of the job – physical strains, job demands and stresses; train-
ing for emotional labor – training in dealing with emotional interactions
and their de-escalation; and the frequency, duration and repetition of the
employee–customer encounter – depending on whether the customer was
a first time or repeat customer. They suggest that supervisors receive more
training in soft skills, provide staff training in emotional labor causes and
consequences, and improve the employee’s physical work conditions.

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 Human resource management in the hospitality and tourism sector  ­13

WORK–FAMILY CONFLICT

Work and family are two important roles for most working women and
men. Work–family conflict exists when the demands of one role make it
hard to meet the demands of the other role (Greenhaus and Beutell, 1985).
Work–family conflict is seen as having three types: time-based conflict –
time devoted to one role makes it difficult to fill the second role; strain-
based conflict – strain in one role interferes with successful performance
of the other role; and behavior-based conflict – the behaviors required
in one role are incompatible with behaviors required in the other role.
Conflict can also occur from family to work as well. Work–family conflict
is increasing due to more dual-worker/dual-career couples, more single
parents, more workers caring both for children and ageing parents, and
the need to earn more income.
Workers in the hospitality sector work long hours, workplaces are open
24/7, workers also work on days when most other women and men do not
(for example, weekends and holidays), they have unsupportive supervi-
sors, there is more absenteeism and a high labor turnover, resulting in
labor shortages requiring some to work longer (Magnini, 2009). Magnini
(2009) lists other costs to hospitality organizations resulting from work–
family conflict. These include reduced job performance, increased recruit-
ing, staffing and training costs, more absenteeism, and being “present”: at
work but not fully functioning. Thus integrating and balancing work and
family roles becomes important.
Burke et al. (2014) collected data from 549 front-line service workers
in Turkish hotels in a study of consequences of work–family and family–
work conflict, their sample generally working long hours. Work–family
conflict and family–work conflict were significantly and positively corre-
lated, work–family conflict being greater, but levels of both were moderate.
Respondents at higher organizational levels and those with responsibility
for supervising others, these two personal demographics being positively
correlated, reported higher levels of both work–family conflict and
family–work conflict. Workers reporting higher levels of family–work
conflict also indicated lower levels of job satisfaction and vigor; workers
reporting higher levels of work–family conflict also reported more job
satisfaction and absorption, likely reflecting their higher organizational
levels. Neither work–family nor family–work conflict predicted intent to
quit, which was at very low levels.
Wong and Ko (2009), using both quantitative and qualitative data
from a large sample of hotel employees in Hong Kong, examined per-
ceptions of work–life balance issues. Most respondents were front-line
employees (food and beverage, front desk, housekeeping), with about 20

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 14  Handbook of HRM in the tourism and hospitality industries

percent being managers or higher level employees. A 30-item measure of

work–life balance was created for the study, measuring seven factors: life
orientation; allegiance to work; workplace support of work–life balance;
voluntary reduction of contracted working hours to cater to personal
needs; upkeep of work and career; flexibility of work schedules; and
enough time off from work. These factors were presented here from high
to low in agreement. In general, respondents indicated low perceptions of
work–life balance. They made the following recommendations: listen to
employees and appreciate their differences and needs; provide more free
time and increase flexibility of work schedules; provide workplace support
on family matters; and initiate a wider organizational effort to address
work–life balance issues and evaluate their effectiveness.
Magnini (2009) offers the following initiatives for reducing work–family
conflict in hospitality organizations:

● Selection and hiring: clearly indicate to applicants the job require-

ments, work hours, and family support policies and programs of the
organization.
● Training and education: offer training sessions on coping with
work–family conflict, the importance of employees discussing their
jobs with their families, training of supervisors in supporting work–
family conflict.
● Job design: encourage employees to discuss their job stressors and
ways of making their jobs less stressful; offer flexibility in worker
breaks.
● Scheduling initiatives: allow more flexibility in scheduling; longer
but fewer shifts; changes in start and finish times of shifts.
● Other initiatives: child care centers, adult day care, employee well-
ness and physical fitness facilities.

SEXUAL HARASSMENT

Kate Burnham, a pastry chef working in Toronto, reported unwanted

sexual banter and sexual harassment by previous bosses, some of whom
grabbed her breasts and crotch. Sexual harassment in hospitality has now
become a topic of discussion and action. The Province of Ontario has
committed $1.7 m to educate and equip hospitality workers to address
sexual harassment (Ferguson, 2016). The training will include ways of
intervening in a safe way, such as calling authorities or talking to an indi-
vidual across the bar.
Poulston (2008) writes that sexual harassment is more prevalent in

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 Human resource management in the hospitality and tourism sector  ­15

hospitality than elsewhere, and is acknowledged by managers. Sexual

harassment is associated with higher levels of absenteeism, turnover,
monetary damages and legal costs. Causes include high levels of interper-
sonal contact, flirting by staff for tips, provocative clothing (for example,
uniform for waitresses at Hooters), satisfying customer expectations, low
status of hospitality workers, and a hierarchical workplace structure. In
her New Zealand study, Poulston (2008) found, in order of frequency,
harassment was engaged in by co-workers, customers, peers, supervisors
and juniors. Sexual harassment was generally tolerated, it being associated
with enjoyment and the nature of the industry.
Sexual harassment in hospitality organizations is very common
(Poulston, 2008), reflecting the hierarchical nature of hospitality organiza-
tions, the nature of hospitality work, characteristics of front-line workers,
some front-line workers required to dress provocatively, an emphasis on
meeting the needs of customers, and a low sense of responsibility of cus-
tomers. Sexual harassment includes unwelcome sexual advances, requests
for sexual favors and either verbal or physical contact of a sexual nature
(Gilbert et al., 1998). Gilbert et al. (1998) list the costs of sexual harass-
ment as higher turnover, poor working relationships with other staff and
customers, and costs in lost productivity and turnover. There are also
psychological and physical costs for victims. Some harassment remains
unreported, particularly if historically such incidents were not dealt with
promptly or appropriately or the perpetrator was a higher level manager
or chef. The lack of sexual harassment training for managers, the lack of
sexual harassment policies, and the non-response of managers to cases of
sexual harassment are common.
Practical initiatives should start in hospitality management university
programs then move on to hospitality organizations. Hospitality man-
agement students need to be exposed to diversity management concepts,
discrimination and sexual harassment. Students on work placements
should be alerted to instances of sexual discrimination and harassment,
particularly for female students. Hospitality managers need to be educated
in diversity management, issues of discrimination and harassment, they
should be trained in how to deal with these, contribute to the development
of appropriate organizational policies, and foster a culture that makes it
possible to discuss such behaviors.
Gilbert et al. (1998) describe a three stage process for creating policies
for sexual harassment. The first stage involves research – current policies,
a review of court cases, soliciting input from all levels in the workplace;
the second stage involves policy development – circulating draft policies
to all employees, surveying their feedback, consulting policies of other
organizations and associations; the third stage is policy implementation –

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distributing policies to all employees and having them sign that they have
read them, training of staff, and evaluation of effectiveness of all initiated
policies and activities.

CUSTOMER MISBEHAVIOR

Customers can misbehave in a wide range of ways. Such behavior goes

against accepted norms of conduct in such situations. Examples would
include customers acting in abusive ways to staff or other customers, dam-
aging property, theft, and being drunk or on drugs. Customer misbehav-
ior creates problems for front-line employees, managers and hospitality
organizations in general. Managers need to both proactively and actively
address instances of customer misbehavior in order to prevent future
occurrences and minimize their negative effects (Daunt and Harris, 2011).
In addition, all employees should receive information and training in how
to best respond.

EMPLOYEES BEHAVING BADLY

Pizam (2010) reviewed research studies of alcohol abuse among hospital-

ity workers compared to other occupations, finding more alcohol abuse
among hospitality workers. These findings raise potential employee health
problems and risks to the industry. They attribute this heightened alcohol
abuse to a drinking sub-culture, easy access to alcohol, and work condi-
tions including stress and long work hours.
In an Israeli study, Belhassen and Shani (2012) found that hotel employ-
ees used more tobacco, alcohol and cannabis than the average in Israel
society. Usage was highest among young, single male employees with low
levels of education working in the front of house.

WORKFORCE DIVERSITY

Workforce diversity is expected to grow in hospitality organizations over

the next decade, the workforce reflecting the overall population, which
has become more diverse. Organizations that capitalize on diversity will
reap financial gains (Singal, 2014). Gender and racial discrimination in
this and other sectors has been documented. Durrani and Rajagopal
(2016) collected data from 80 human resources managers on their views
of workplace diversity, their definitions of ethical hiring, and on ethical

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 Human resource management in the hospitality and tourism sector  ­17

hiring in their organizations. Respondents were mainly white (84 percent),

46–55 years of age (41 percent), spoke only one language (68 percent), had
undergraduate degrees (50 percent), were Christian (55 percent), worked
in organizations having 1000 or more employees (66 percent), and had
been in human resources for 10 years (30 percent) or 29 years or more (29
percent). The sample had generally favorable attitudes towards workplace
diversity (mean = 4.1 on a 5-point scale). Whites had more positive views
on workplace diversity than non-whites. Most viewed their organization’s
hiring practices as ethical and fair (mean = 3.9 on a 5-point scale). Human
resources managers from larger organizations viewed their hiring practices
as more ethical and fair than did managers from smaller organizations.
Most respondents gave similar definitions of ethical and fair hiring prac-
tices, sharing an understanding of the meaning of ethical hiring.
Madera (2013) reviewed diversity management practices in 14 top
ranked companies. He identified some common categories of diversity
practices: creating a corporate diversity council, offering diversity train-
ing programs, supplier diversity, employee networking and mentoring,
creating cultural awareness, support for female, lesbian, gay, bisexual and
transgender employees, and same-sex benefits.
Madera et al. (2011) developed and tested a diversity training program
using perspective-taking and empathy towards non-English-speaking indi-
viduals. Participants were students in a hospitality management program
in the US. Most had either full-time or part-time work in this sector. The
group included several ethnicities. Some measures were taken before and
after the training.

GENDER ISSUES

Three gender issues will be considered here. First is the slow progress that
qualified women have made in advancing to senior executive levels in the
hospitality and tourism sector. Second is the question of whether women
and men function and behave differently in leadership roles. Third is the
question of whether women and men in front-line service positions have
similar or different work experiences.
Most research in the 1990s reported very few women in senior man-
agement positions (Crafts and Thompson, 1997; Diaz and Umbreit,
1995; Brownell, 1994). Woods and Viehland (2000), while noting slow
progress, observed women and men provided similar competences for
advancement, behavior and circumstances, contributing to women’s and
men’s career development, but women more than men saw these as prob-
lems for women. Burrell et al. (1997), in a study of women’s ­employment

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 18  Handbook of HRM in the tourism and hospitality industries

patterns in the hospitality industry in four countries (France, Italy,

Spain, the UK), found that stereotyped attitudes existed as barriers in the
kinds of jobs women and men had in hotels. Fleming (2005), based on
a random sample of 112 990 women and men working in the hospitality
sector in 2010, found women earned less money then men, controlling
for several factors (education, hours worked), the pay gap being largest
among managers. The good news was that the gender pay gap was
smaller in the 2010 data than in an earlier 1989 study, indicating slow
progress.
Marinakou (2014) interviewed 15 male and 15 female managers working
in five-star hotels in Spain. Both males and females indicated that a glass
ceiling existed for women. Barriers were long work hours, relocation,
work–family and work–personal life issues, and having to work harder
than men to prove themselves. Fewer women aspired to become General
Managers and they believed discrimination existed. But both male and
female managers thought the situation was getting better. Females
described their leadership styles as more nurturing and team oriented than
men did, interestingly. If this is indeed the case, women’s leadership styles
may actually be more in sync with the new realities of many workplaces
(for example, more team-based, more participative and involving a greater
emphasis on empowering front-line workers).
Purcell (1993), in a sample of three graduating cohorts of a hotel and
catering management course (1985, 1986, 1987), found that even though
women and men had similar credentials, women were less likely to be
recruited, developed and rewarded as employees with senior management
capabilities.
Thus one can consider both “push” factors in educated and qualified
women’s decisions to turnover including the glass ceiling, the old boys’
network, a hostile, biased workplace environment, difficulties in relocat-
ing, a masculine culture, tokenism, limited mentoring and developmental
opportunities and few promotional prospects, and “pull” factors such
as work versus family, caregiving responsibilities for both children and
ageing parents, and home responsibilities.
Let us now consider the work experiences of women and men in front-
line service positions. In studies we have carried out involving several dif-
ferent areas of both work experience and work and well-being outcomes,
we have found relatively few sex differences. Women and men tend to
report similar levels of job satisfaction, work engagement, feelings of psy-
chological empowerment, organizational identification and intent to quit,
among other factors. This is the good news. Women do, however, report
greater concerns with sexual harassment, discrimination, and work–family
conflict (Blomme et al., 2010). This is the continuing bad news.

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 Human resource management in the hospitality and tourism sector  ­19

Women and men may respond to the same work experiences differently.
Kim et al. (2009a) examined gender as a moderator of experienced job
stress (role conflict and role ambiguity) and job satisfaction in a sample
of 165 men and 153 women working in hotels in Korea. They found
that though males reported higher levels of both role stressors than did
females, these role stressors were more strongly related to job dissatis-
faction for females than males. They attributed this to women’s greater
valuing of communal and social oriented behaviors in relationships with
others who understand their roles. Women may also have coped with these
stressors differently than men did.
Although some progress is being seen, senior executive positions in the
hospitality sector still convey a “man’s world”. There are several reasons
for this, including both subtle and obvious discrimination, long work
hours required, the need for relocation, family responsibilities, and some
women not being interested in senior level positions. The glass ceiling is
alive and well, but showing a few cracks.

CROSS-CULTURAL DIFFERENCES

Pizam (2014), noting the increase in globalization and internationalization

of hospitality organizations, makes the case for cross-cultural competence
training in the hospitality and tourism sector. This refers to increasing
one’s ability to interact successfully with others of different cultures. This
competence improves the interaction of service providers and customers,
increasing customer satisfaction and ultimately organizational perfor-
mance. Few, if any, hospitality and tourism programs offer courses to
increase the cultural competence of students. Both college and university
programs as well as hospitality and tourism organizations need to offer
such training.

MIGRANT WORKERS

The hospitality industry relies on migrant workers for day-to-day func-

tioning, increasing workforce diversity and making new demands on
human resource management practices (Forde and MacKenzie, 2009).
But managers lacked the training to capitalize on this source of labor.
Managers were also not clear on what diversity initiatives would be helpful
to them. Migrants will undertake work that the locals avoid. Migrants are
highly motivated, seeking opportunities they cannot obtain at home. Thus
migrant labor will continue to be an important source of employees in

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 20  Handbook of HRM in the tourism and hospitality industries

hospitality and tourism workplaces. The sector needs to understand why

locals do not want to work in the hospitality sector. There is also a need to
foster management interest in learning to improve the way they introduce
and work with migrants in their workplaces.
Zopiatis et al. (2014) interviewed managers, local workers and migrant
workers to understand the work experiences of migrants in Cyprus.
Managers offered three reasons for hiring migrants: locals will not do
the work; potential contribution of migrants given the seasonal nature of
the industry; and lower pay for migrants. Migrants were willing to work
for the pay, realizing that locals would not do their jobs for this pay, and
believed that knowing other languages was an asset. Managers, however,
saw language as a problem with migrants. Migrants were generally satis-
fied with their experiences with locals. Locals noted language barriers as
problematic, but other than that, relationships with migrants were gener-
ally satisfactory. Some managers observed an exploitation of migrants and
discrimination. There was disagreement on whether migrants provided
good service to customers, however; some customers complained about
the service provided to them by migrants. Some migrants had low skill
levels and poor language ability, risking quality of service.
Recent research undertaken in Toronto involving 184 Chinese restau-
rant workers showed they were exploited in terms of low pay, unpaid over-
time hours, being paid in cash or by check so as not to leave a paper trail,
not receiving payroll slips from their employers, and their injuries at work
not being reported (Mojtehedzadeh and Keung, 2016). Some had legal
issues in terms of their working in Canada, others had limited English
skills, and some were afraid of complaining for fear of losing their job.

GENERATIONAL DIFFERENCES

There have always been different generations in workplaces. Younger

employees have always been different from older ones. But today the
reality may be more complicated. There is considerable evidence that
indicates that different employee generations (for example, Baby boomers,
Generation Xers, Millennials) have somewhat different values, expecta-
tions and priorities. These differences can be a source of conflict and bar-
riers between these generations, creating an “us versus them” mentality
(Lub et al., 2012).
Chi et al. (2013) studied generational difference on perceptions of
younger and older managers among hospitality employees. Data were
collected from 677 front-line workers and 228 managers of a large US
hotel organization. Baby boomers were born between 1946 and 1964,

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 Human resource management in the hospitality and tourism sector  ­21

Generation Xers were born between 1965 and 1980, and Millennials
were born between 1981 and 2000. There were significant differences by
generation in perceptions of younger and older managers, as well as dif-
ferences by job position among these three generations. Millennials had a
more negative view of managers than did respondents from the two other
generations. Boomers and Generation Xers had more negative views on
younger managers’ competency than did Millennials.
Park and Gursoy (2012), in a study of 677 customer service employees,
examined generational effects in work engagement and the association of
work engagement with quit intentions. Three generational cohorts were
considered: Baby boomers, Generation Xers and Millennials. Millennials
tended to report lower levels of work engagement than the other two
cohorts, and engagement was more strongly associated with quit inten-
tions among Millennials as well. Millennials indicated the highest turnover
intentions. Managers then need to spend more time with their Millennials,
identifying their work preferences (meaningful work, fulfilling jobs) to
retain them.
Organizations can use these differences for the better. Organizations
first need to be sensitive to the potential effects of these differences across
generational cohorts. Intergenerational blending of their workforce is
important for performance. Executive leadership needs to understand
the needs of each generation and meet them. Managers and supervisors
need to communicate, communicate, communicate with Millennials;
Millennials need to receive information and feedback from their manag-
ers. Organizations need to support Millennials in the use of the latest
technologies. Millennials will need flexibility in order to integrate their
work and personal lives. Managers and supervisors need training in how
best to work with Millennials. Since Millennials value growth, training
and development should be available to them. Employees of each genera-
tion should have meaningful opportunities to work together. Encouraging
Baby boomers to mentor Millennials, and Millennials to offer their talents
and strengths to complement Baby boomers supports cross-generational
synergies. Cross-generational team building meetings also would serve
a useful purpose here. Finally, having different generations serve on
task forces and committee tasks allows across-generational contacts and
interaction.

EMPLOYEES WITH DISABILITIES

Employees with disabilities still encounter difficulties gaining employment

despite supportive legislation. Disabilities can be physical, intellectual

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 22  Handbook of HRM in the tourism and hospitality industries

or psychological. Given the importance of appearance and personality

among front-line workers in the hospitality sector, this has presented
a challenge. The principal reason for this is the negative attitudes of
employers.
Barnes and Mercer (2006) and Jasper and Waldhart (2013) noted the
following barriers facing the disabled: stereotypes about work they can
and cannot perform; lack of management training and education in
the hiring of the disabled; hiring the disabled increases costs of train-
ing, accommodation and supervision; both managers and the disabled
lack information about government support for their hiring; concerns
about  their level of job performance; and the disabled need more
supervision.
Chi and Qu (2003) examined attitudes in this area among food service
employers in Oklahoma. They found a somewhat favorable attitude
towards workers with disabilities, attitudes being more favorable among
those having prior positive work experiences with people with disabilities.
Those with more positive attitudes towards the disabled were also more
likely to hire or commit to hire persons with disabilities. It should be noted
that there is often a gap between organizations saying they are open to
hiring the disabled and actually hiring the disabled. Larger organizations,
and managers having higher levels of education, were more open to hiring
the disabled. In addition there are various government programs offering
financial support for disabled hiring.
Houtenville and Kalargyrou (2015) compared employers’ perspectives
regarding hiring the disabled in 263 hospitality and leisure companies
with 3126 firms in other industries and found that service firms were more
open to hiring the disabled than were goods-producing industries, which
is potentially encouraging news. The vast majority of the disabled want
to work. There is a looming labor shortage in the hospitality and tourism
industry; many able-bodied people prefer not to work in this sector. And
the societal costs of unemployment among the disabled are paid by the
taxpayers.
While hiring the disabled is important, the disabled need more support
to prevent accidents and injuries, employees with disabilities having higher
rates of workplace accidents and injuries. Employees with disabilities
need additional training as they have as much right to a safe workplace
as anyone else. They need to know their rights to a safe and bias-free
workplace, that they may have accidents, be injured, or killed on the job.
They need to know that accidents can be prevented, understand the risks
they may face, and how best to deal with these risks and hazards by iden-
tifying resources that can keep them safe. All employees need to inform
their supervisors if they feel at risk and unsafe. Interested readers will find

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 Human resource management in the hospitality and tourism sector  ­23

a document created by the Labor Occupational Health Program at the

University of California at Berkeley and NIOSH (2016) invaluable here.

LOW PAY AND THE ROLE PLAYED BY TIPPING

Some countries (for example, Japan) do not allow tipping. Some people
argue that tipping makes staff subservient to and of lower status than the
customer. A few restaurants in Toronto have done away with tipping,
probably incorporating an increase in the prices of their food; it is hoped
that this money is allocated to staff. The minimum wage in Ontario is
currently $11.25 an hour and will rise to $11.40 in the near future. It is dif-
ficult to have a life at this rate of pay. Thus individuals can increase their
pay through receiving tips. I have asked waiting staff at a few restaurants
if they receive the Ontario minimum wage and they have said no, but they
share in the pooling of tips. An increasing number of Toronto restaurants
no longer allocate the tips received to staff, but instead pay above the
minimum wage, for example $13.25 an hour. However, this results in staff
getting less money and the employer getting more. The practice of tipping
and pay levels is becoming an increasingly important issue in the hospital-
ity sector.
An increasing number of restaurant employees (chefs, servers) failed
even to receive pay they were due when restaurants closed, or they failed to
receive pay for extra shifts worked or after a contract termination (Henry
and Wallace, 2016).

BUILDING A SAFETY CULTURE

Workplace accidents and injuries such as slips and falls, strain from lifting
heavy objects and burns from hot substances are common in hospitality
organizations, being both dangerous to employees and costly to work-
places. Employees sometimes fail to follow established safety practices
as well. Workplace accidents and injuries can be significantly reduced by
building a workplace safety culture. Zohar (1980) defined a safety culture
as employee perceptions of the value and role of safety in organizations.
Clarke et al. (2013), based on an extensive literature review, reported asso-
ciations between the presence of a safety culture and safety work outcomes
such as compliance with safety rules, undertaking safety audits, injury fre-
quency and injury severity, and less accident under-reporting. Antecedent
factors associated with a strong safety culture included the values of
safety held by executives, the behaviors of managers and supervisors,

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safety-related communications, safety education and training, quality of

co-worker relationships, safety supportive systems, and lower levels of
workplace stress (Griffin and Neal, 2000; Taylor, 2010).

PHYSICAL SAFETY AND SECURITY OF HOTELS:

ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT?
Enz (2009a) developed two indexes of hotel safety and security (safety
equipment and security equipment). Data were obtained from 5487 US
hotels. The average safety index score was 70 and the average security
index score was 64 out of possible score of 100. Each index had a large
standard deviation, suggesting wide variance among hotels. Hotels scoring
higher on these indices charged higher prices, were newer, in urban and
airport locations or in the luxury market, and were larger. Although Enz
doesn’t say this, possible concerns might be raised about the physical
safety and security among the lowest ranking properties.

TERRORIST ATTACKS ON HOTELS AND CAFES

We have witnessed a new challenge to hospitality organizations over the

past decade. Al-Qaeda militants attacked three hotels in the Ivory Coast
on Sunday 13 March 2016, killing at least 16; the six attackers were also
killed (Corey-Boulet, 2016). Pizam (2016) cites the terrorist attacks in
Paris, the Sinai and Mumbai, as well as attacks on tourist-carrying airlines
and the Russian airliner shot down in Egypt, as occurring because these
sites were unprotected and openly accessible, highly visible and having a
high impact, and they represented activities (drinking alcohol, Western
music) that were seen as decadent by Jihadists. He suggests a need to
“harden” their targets, making it more difficult for terrorists to attack
them. This is difficult to do because of the thousands of such organiza-
tions involved, the belief that the state should be responsible for this, lack
of clarity on how to do this, and a lack of resources and manpower. There
are training programs to increase employee awareness of security and ter-
rorism issues, and efforts have been made to involve the public at large in
identifying any potential terrorist activities. Some hospitality organiza-
tions have hired trained security staff, installed safety and security equip-
ment, and posted policies of safety and security to all staff.
Baker (2014; 2015) provides a review of the effects of terrorism on
tourism, with the literature spanning over 30 years. Terrorism has been
associated with increased unemployment, homelessness and economic

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 Human resource management in the hospitality and tourism sector  ­25

costs. It is linked with reductions to travel and tourism, with the financial
and economic consequences. A key element is the perception of risk by
potential travelers and tourists. Risk perceptions have certainly increased
in 2016 from a rising number of terrorist attacks in more countries.
Terrorism also has other less dramatic effects on the hospitality sector.
Bader and Berg (2014) consider the impact of terrorism on the job perfor-
mance of expatriates using a stressor–strain framework. It is common for
major hotel chains to move senior managers from one country to another.
They consider two types of stressors: situation-related stressors including
previous terrorist attacks, terrorist threat levels, one’s working and living
conditions, and threat levels of a particular host country; and interaction-
related stressors such as relationships with host country staff and potential
spouse and family conflicts. These comprise terrorist-related stressors and
strains which influence an individual’s work attitudes towards their col-
leagues, job and organization, and ultimately expatriate job performance.
Hospitality organizations can address some employee concerns about
terrorism. Bader and Berg (2013) suggest an emphasis on the expatriate
family, including greater preparation before entering the host country,
greater family support once there, and more frequent trips home coupled
with shorter foreign assignments. Howie (2007) proposes seminars tack-
ling fear of flying, dealing with those who fit a terrorist profile, working
in tall buildings, making greater use of technologies to minimize travel to
high risk countries, and developing a security-oriented workplace climate,
with senior managers making efforts to maintain or increase staff morale.

INCREASING TURBULENCE IN TOURIST

DESTINATIONS

A recent report (Kivanc, 2016) noted that increasing levels of fear are
causing tourism in Turkey to drop dramatically. They attribute this
decline to increasing terrorism and ethnic tensions, decreasing numbers
of Russian tourists after Turkey shot down a Russian warplane, and the
attempted but failed coup against the country’s President, Recep Erdogan,
in July 2016. They estimate a $12 billion decline in tourism revenues in
2016, a 50 percent decline in European tourists and loss of 100 000 jobs in
Antalya, a prime tourist region, as well (Arango and Yeginsu, 2016).
Egypt, another prime tourist destination, has experienced increasing
instability over the past few years, also resulting in a drop in tourism.
Former military dictator and President Hosni Mubarak, now imprisoned,
maintained some semblance of stability during his regime. When he was
overthrown in a citizen uprising beginning in Tahrir Square, a democratic

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election led to the leader of the Muslim Brotherhood becoming President.

He in turn was later arrested in a coup led by the military and is still
imprisoned. General al-Sisi is now the Egyptian president, but protests in
the streets are still ongoing.

SEX TOURISM: A PROBLEM

There are many forms and reasons for tourism. In some countries sex
tourism is seen as a means of economic development (Hall and Ryan,
2001; Jeffrey, 2003). Sex tourism involves prostitution, the payment for
sexual services. Sex tourism destinations then are generally in developing
countries. Mason (1999) reviews the historical development of large-scale
prostitution in South East Asia as moving from local demand to tourist
demand. Women are usually the prostitutes, with concerns being raised
about their mental and physical health, marginal economic status, and the
possibility of HIV/AIDS.
A new study found child-sex tourism has increased dramatically in the
travel and tourism sector – a disturbing development (Lowrie, 2016). This
growth raises ethical and moral issues for the industry. However, it is not
clear what official stand the industry has taken and what efforts have been
made to combat this activity.
ECPAT International (2016) conducted a global study on the sexual
exploitation of children in travel and tourism (SECTT). SECTT has
increased despite country efforts to reduce it. SECTT exists in all coun-
tries, though regional variations were found to exist. Child victims can
suffer serious and life-long emotional, psychological and physical damage.
ECPAT International calls for greater protection of potential and actual
victims, for cultural and social norms of child sexual abuse and child mar-
riages, and cultural views of masculinity to be addressed, and for stronger
enforcement of laws currently in place. Coordinated efforts by govern-
ment agencies, the hospitality and tourism sector, and country citizens are
necessary for progress to be realized.

MEDICAL TOURISM: A CAUTION

Given the high and increasing costs of medical treatment in the developed
world, a growing market has developed for patients needing treatment
to seek it in the developing world where it is cheaper; hence the emerging
field of medical tourism (Lunt et al., 2012; Cortez, 2008). Medical tourism
involves consumers traveling across international borders to receive

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medical treatment. Medical treatment includes services such as dental

care, cosmetic surgery, other elective surgeries, and fertility treatments.
Individuals from wealthier, more developed countries travel to less well
developed countries, seeking cheaper treatments. Top destinations include
Costa Rica, India, Mexico, Singapore, Taiwan, Thailand and Turkey.
Millions of people engage in medical tourism annually, with potential cost
savings of 25 percent to 90 percent, depending on the destination chosen.
Medical tourism requires a first class tourism infrastructure in order to
succeed. Medical tourism is enhanced by cheap airfares and reasonably
priced hotel and vacation possibilities, so high levels of customer service
become important selling features (Connell, 2006). National governments
have developed strategies to support medical tourism in their countries
(MacReady, 2007). But questions must be addressed about the quality
and safety of medical treatment in other countries; there is always a risk
in international patients traveling back home (Burkett, 2007). Much more
research needs to be devoted to understanding the health outcomes from
medical tourism and the impact of medical tourism on the health care
systems of the treatment-providing countries.

HOSPITALITY AND TOURISM ORGANIZATIONS

NEED TO ADDRESS THE FOLLOWING
CHALLENGES

These challenges include: being selective in staffing and hiring; the need
for staff orientation and training; the need to offer competitive and fair
pay; more supportive, friendly and humane supervision; using job charac-
teristics and job design to offer more variety, control and job enlargement;
empowering staff, increasing job involvement; reducing levels of some job
stressors; creating a customer service culture; and developing stronger and
visionary leadership at senior and executive levels.

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT INITIATIVES

Fortunately a range of human resource management initiatives have been

undertaken to address some of these challenges. This section begins by
offering ideas on what constitutes a high performance workplace culture
and a high quality of working life; human resource practices that increase
both internal and external branding and why these are important; creat-
ing fun at work, the use of service rewards, and the role of psychological
capital in increasing staff resilience and performance.

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High Performance Work Practices

High performance human resource management practices refers to a

collection of separate human resource practices that suggest ways that
managers and employees can interact to improve both individual and
organizational functioning. Dhar (2015), in a study of 618 front-line
employees and 31 managers/supervisors, considered the relationship of
eight high performance human resource practices and organizational com-
mitment and service innovative behaviors. The eight high performance
human resource practices were: selective staffing; extensive training; inter-
nal mobility; employment security; clear job descriptions; results-oriented
appraisal; incentive reward; and high staff participation. He reported
that high performance human resource management practices increased
employee organizational commitment, which in turn increased employee
service innovative behaviors, the latter relationship mediated by the
organizational climate for innovation.
What elements make up a high performance management system for
hospitality organizations and perhaps elsewhere? Murphy and Murrmann
(2009) used a two-step process, the first one involving interviews with
industry experts at the Vice-President level and above to identify elements
of a high performance management system; the second involving a Delphi
study with restaurant experts, consultants and academics from the hospi-
tality field. The first study identified 13 high performance work practices,
and the second step added two more and eliminated three.
These were: Training and skill development; Employer of choice;
Information sharing; Selectivity in recruiting; Measurement of the HR
practices; Promotion from within; Quality of worklife; Diversity; Incentive
pay based on performance appraisal; Participation and empowerment;
Employee ownership; Self-managed teams; High wages. The three that
were dropped were: Employment security; Job design; and Reduced status
distinctions.
Kandasamy and Ancheri (2009) employed qualitative methods (inter-
views, focus groups) with both hospitality students and hotel employees
to identify their views and expectations of a good work–life balance. Eight
dimensions were identified:

● job characteristics: work that is challenging, interesting, satisfying

and manageable;
● person–job fit: a match with qualifications and interests;
● company image: growing, good performance, a clean and safe
working environment;
● human resource policies: adequate and fair pay, training and

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 Human resource management in the hospitality and tourism sector  ­29

development, fringe benefits, performance appraisals, orientation

programs;
● work group relationships: cooperation, trust support, communication;
● physical working conditions: enough space, good lighting and air
conditioning, ergonomically designed work stations;
● work–life balance: time for social and family life;
● interaction with customers: respect of customers, customer praise
for doing a good job.

Human Resource Management Practices and Internal Branding

Internal branding within hospitality organizations has been proposed as

a vehicle for increasing employee brand commitment. Brand-committed
leaders increase employee brand commitment by serving as role models,
championing the brand, and regularly communicating to staff in ways that
develop and support the desired brand identity. Terglav et al. (2016), using
a sample of 226 employees in a European hotel chain, considered the role
of top management brand commitment. They found that leader brand
commitment was associated with employee brand commitment through
three mediating variables: employee brand knowledge; employee brand
fit; and fulfillment of their psychological contract. Besides top manage-
ment’s commitment to service quality as a brand feature, and an internal
brand, employees need to have brand-relevant information and knowl-
edge, come to share features of the internal brand, and feel that they are
engaged and committed in the process.
Kim et al. (2009b), in a study of 194 managers and 104 front-line
service workers from ten Bangkok hotels, found that three measures of
managerial commitment to service quality had positive associations with
employee levels of job satisfaction, which in turn had positive relation-
ships with both extra-role customer service behaviors and cooperation
with co-workers. The three management commitment to service factors
were organizational rewards, empowerment of employees, and levels of
training provided.

Human Resource Management Practices and External Branding

Love and Singh (2011) show how human resource management p ­ ractices
contribute to organizational branding reflected in “Best employers”
surveys. They identified eight common human resource practices in these
surveys: inspired leadership; a strategic plan that promotes”best employer”
human resource practices; employee communications; ­ performance
­management; training and development; benefits based on best practices

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 30  Handbook of HRM in the tourism and hospitality industries

that meet the needs of employees (e.g, work–life balance, workplace flex-
ibility, a safe and healthy work environment, feedback from employees);
appealing physical workplaces; and strong corporate citizenship.

Are We Having Fun Yet?

Having fun at work has been shown to be associated with higher levels of
job satisfaction, employee retention, job performance and customer satis-
faction (Evans and Vernon, 2007; Fleming, 2005; Karl et al., 2005). Chan
(2010) undertook an interview study to identify a typology of workplace
fun in the hospitality sector using preliminary interviews, focus groups and
then final interviews with 10 human resource managers. He identified four
categories of fun:

● staff-oriented workplace fun: celebration of birthdays and special

events, extra time off, employee appreciation days, flexible work
schedules;
● supervisor-oriented workplace fun: lunch with one’s supervisor,
happy hours with supervisors;
● social-oriented workplace fun: annual dinners, picnics, Christmas
parties, friendly competitions, charity events;
● strategy-oriented workplace fun: casual dress days, family-friendly
policies, organization-provided food and refreshments, newsletters,
emails, sharing sessions with the chief executives.

Maddeaux (2016) writes that all employees at some of the best rated
restaurants eat a meal together before opening for dinner customers as a
simple team building initiative. This allows the lunch shift and the dinner
shift to both take part.
Tews et al. (2013) studied the influence of workplace fun on employee
turnover and performance among front-line servers in a national US
restaurant chain. Data were collected from 195 servers. Fun activities
included productivity contests, social events, team building activities and
celebration of work accomplishments and personal milestones. First, these
fun events were positively associated with work performance; secondly,
manager support for fun was negatively associated with performance.
They suggest that managers should adopt a fun managerial style (using
fun activities) along with implementing specific performance goals – creat-
ing fun at work while maintaining higher levels of work performance.

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 Human resource management in the hospitality and tourism sector  ­31

Service Rewards and Prosocial Service Behaviors of Front-line Service

Employees

As mentioned earlier, one important human resource management prac-

tice is the use of rewards for the provision of outstanding customer service
by hospitality employees. Eren et al. (2014) undertook a study of levels
of service rewards perceived by front-line service workers from four- and
five-star Turkish hotels and their engaging in prosocial service behaviors.
The latter included engaging in extra-role, role prescribed, and coopera-
tive helpful behaviors. Data were collected from 241 employees working
in 18 different hotels. Personal demographic characteristics were weak
predictors of both perceptions of service rewards and levels of proso-
cial behaviors undertaken. However, service rewards were strong and
consistent predictors of the three prosocial service behaviors. The two
most common reward types offered by these properties were recognition
and bonuses. It would seem to be easy to increase the types of available
rewards for outstanding job performance.

Psychological Capital

Psychological capital is a positive psychological state involving four

dimensions: self-efficacy, optimism, hope and resilience. It has been shown
to be associated with a range of individual and organizational health,
well-being and performance variables. It is a source of strength that can be
developed in training programs (Luthans et al., 2006a; 2006b; 2007). Min
et al. (2015), in a study of 232 hotel employees in South Korea, mostly
front-line service workers from 10 middle to upscale hotels, 7 in Seoul,
examined the role of psychological capital as a buffer between challenge
and hindrance stressors and both burnout and work engagement. They
found that psychological capital buffered the negative relationship of both
challenge and hindrance stressors and burnout. Psychological capital also
buffered the effects of challenge stressors and work engagement.
Paek et al. (2015), using data from 312 front-line workers from 15
five-star hotels in Seoul, found in a one-month longitudinal study that
psychological capital increased employee work engagement, which in turn
increased both job satisfaction and hotel affective commitment.

NEW EMPLOYEE ONBOARDING PRACTICES

Turnover, particularly among new employees, is very high in the hospital-

ity sector. Employee onboarding has been shown to be an effective way to

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 32  Handbook of HRM in the tourism and hospitality industries

reduce turnover, increase employee satisfaction and ultimately customer

loyalty (Bradt and Vonnegut, 2009; Sims, 2010; Stein and Christiansen,
2010; Watkins, 2013). Onboarding processes make employees feel valued,
comfortable and assist them to succeed. Onboarding fits into the employee
socialization literature (Klein and Heuser, 2008).
Onboarding of new hires helps them become productive employees.
But onboarding takes time and resources. Supervisors/managers need
to review the onboarding process with the new hirer as a way of getting
feedback on their onboarding efforts. The supervisor/manager needs to
spend up to three months helping new hires succeed. Onboarding can
start even before the new hire begins work by describing the job expecta-
tions and organizational mission and culture in the interview process,
developing email accounts and organizing work spaces. Onboarding can
also take place outside of work at social and business events sponsored
by the organization. Work teams are also a source of information during
onboarding.
Graybill and her colleagues (2013) studied employee onboarding in 17
US university and college libraries. Onboarding practices involved a dis-
cussion of job expectations and evaluation criteria (100 percent), a discus-
sion of mission, vision and values (59 percent), and organizational culture
(29 percent). Onboarding programs ranged from one week to six months.
Grillo and Kim (2015) suggest three key onboarding processes: a survey
of newly hired employees in the first 60 days; providing materials to
managers and newly hired employees during the onboarding process; and
paying special attention to diverse hires (women, racial minorities, ethnic
minorities, the disabled). They offer practical examples and onboardng
materials to address these three objectives.

UNIVERSITY AND COLLEGE INTERN PROGRAMS

Almost all university and college programs in hospitality management

include an internship program for students. These programs typically fall
short in meeting the needs of students and potential employers (Zopiatis
and Constanti, 2012). Building on the concept of experiential learning,
they suggest ways that universities and college programs, the hospitality
industry and students can contribute to making internships a valuable
learning experience.

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 Human resource management in the hospitality and tourism sector  ­33

HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

IMPLICATIONS FOR HOSPITALITY
ORGANIZATIONS: SOME BOTTOM LINES

The hospitality industry is facing a number of old and new challenges.

Executive leadership needs to identify the workplace culture that best
meets the needs of the firm and its employees, then determine ways
that human resource management practices can support this. Examples
include:

● using realistic job previews in selection to reduce turnover;

● appreciating the importance of early socialization practices after
new employees are hired;
● clearly articulating performance expectations, monitoring job per-
formance, conducting performance appraisal reviews, recognizing
and rewarding high levels of contribution;
● training supervisors and managers in supporting employees;
● educating employees on the causes and costs of emotional labor and
job stress and failing to cope with these;
● offering flexibility to address work–family issues when it is practical
to do so;
● training and development of supervisors to improve the quality of
leadership and management;
● using teams where appropriate and offering training in team
effectiveness.

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