Unit 3

CAREERS IN TOURISM

Tourism is a highly people-oriented business, therefore the opportunity to create employment in an area is
one of the attractions to governments. If an area has suffered from declining industries, tourism could be a
way of revitalizing that area and creating employment. But the skills needed within the industry may not be
the same as the traditional industry, so efforts are made to retrain and recruit those with the necessary
expertise, such as communication, personal presentation or specific catering qualifications. Some of the
employees may need to be relocated to the developing area, particularly where there are skills shortages, but
others will be employed locally. Other local residents may see an opportunity to become self-employed and
develop their own businesses in the tourism sector.

Direct employment in tourism occurs in accommodation and catering, transport operations, travel agencies
and tour operators, tourist attractions and government departments, such as tourist boards and tourism
information centres, national parks and monuments, air traffic control and lifeguards. Tourism employment
opportunities may also arise indirectly, through areas such as customs and immigration officials at land
borders and airports, and capital investment jobs: design and construction of highways, airports, hotels,
resorts.

The number of people employed in the sector at some point during the year is likely to be
high for four main reasons:
• relative labour intensity
• many low-wage occupations
• much part-time and casual employment
• seasonal peaking.

Some areas of travel and tourism are labour intensive. This is true of front-office situations in travel,
accommodation, restaurants, souvenirs and small scale tourism activities, and especially in low wage
economies. Transport, tour operation and back-of-house activity have, by contrast, a much higher capital-
labour ratio in general. Thus in restaurant businesses, it is common to find more capital intensive methods
being introduced in food production, but staff numbers being maintained in food service .

Tourism does not necessarily create both employment and income to the same extent. In most economies
wages in the tourism sector are low relative to other industries for a number of reasons: many jobs are
unskilled, many jobs are treated by employers as unskilled even if some level of skill, say in customer
service, is really called upon but not recognized, many employees are transitory, and labour turnover is
high.

There is a distinction between the number of workers employed in the travel and tourism industry and hours
of work completed. In virtually all economies a considerable number of workers are part-time, and more
are casual, working only for temporary periods when employers consider that final demand warrants taking
on extra staff. In most recreational tourism destinations, seasonality means there are at least two labour
markets: one for permanent workers throughout the year, and a second market for peak season work. As
with
casual work seasonal employment may draw in 'marginal workers'.
 Vocabulary Practice
How to apply for a job – writing a CV

Exercise 1
Draw up a mind map about yourself:

MY STRENGTHS / MY WEAKNESSES / I LIKE / I DON’T LIKE

Exercise 2
Research yourself.

Strengths: I’m excellent at … / I’m able to … / I’m interested in … / I recently managed to

Weaknesses: I’m not very good at … / I could be better at … / I’m reasonably good at … / I would like to
be able to …
Positive characteristics: I am … / I try to …
Negative characteristics: I can sometimes be … / Occasionally I am … / I can be a little bit …

Write sentences about yourself:

Exercise 3)
Find the Hungarian equivalents of the listed action verbs. Select some of the verbs and write true
sentences about yourself. When writing about past experience in your CV do not use the personal
pronoun:
Example: Organised events. Not: I organised events.

English Hungarian Sentence

achieved
anticipated
approved
arranged
calculated
chaired
collaborated
compiled
consulted
convinced
coordinated
created
delegated
demonstrated
designed
developed
edited
established
evaluated
examined
facilitated
formulated
identified
implemented
improved
increased
interpreted
investigated
led
motivated
negotiated
operated
organised
persuaded
planned
presented
recommended
represented
researched
resolved
scheduled
supervised
taught
trained
translated
wrote
Exercise 4)
Write your CV. Organise your CV in reverse chronological order. Use the given structure.

Name
Contact information
Education
Professional experience
Activities and interests
Languages:
Computer skills:

CV template

Your Name
Personal details:
Address
Mobile
E-mail (professional, not: [email protected])

Education
Date Name of the school
some details
Date Name of the school
some details

Professional experience
Date Name of the company, location
description of the company (1 sentence)
job title
Duties:
- brief description
- brief description
- brief description

Date Name of the company, location

description of the company (1 sentence)
job title
Duties:
- brief description
- brief description
- brief description

Languages

Computer skills

Activities and interests

List your hobbies and activities
 Role Play

Role A
You are Antal/Anita Bakos and having a job interview with the manager (Tom/Tina Sherwood) of a travel
agency in his/her office. You have applied for a travel agent position. Answer the interviewer’s
questions.

 qualification – university degree in Tourism and hospitality

 5 years’ experience in reservation department of a large hotel
 want to leave – new challenge,
 be ready to talk about your expectations in connection with the job
 talk about your strengths and weaknesses

YOUR PARTNER STARTS.

Role B

You are Tom/Tina Sherwood the manager of a travel agency. You are interviewing a candidate in your
office, who has applied for a travel agent position. Ask him/her about:

● qualifications, positions, tasks

● reasons for leaving previous job
● expectations in connection with the new job
● strengths and weaknesses

YOU START.

Writing Task

Letters of Application/ Cover(ing) letter

A formal letter of application is written when applying for a job or a place on an educational course. A job application
usually includes educational/professional qualifications, details of previous experience as well as the applicant’
qualities and skills.

Introduction
Paragraph 1
State reason(s) for writing

Main Body
Paragraph 2-3-4-5
Education & qualifications, previous experience, personal qualities, suitability

Conclusion
Final Paragraph
Closing remarks

Useful Language

To begin letters:

I am writing to apply for the post/position of … advertised in yesterday’s …

I am writing in connection with / with regard to the vacancy in your Sales Department, as advertised in The Times
on /of 14th October.

Experience/qualifications

I am currently/At present I am employed/ working as …

I was employed as (position) by (company) from (date) to (date) …
During this time, I held the position of …/ was responsible for …/ my duties included …
I have received training in … / completed an apprenticeship, etc . …

My qualifications include … / I am presently studying / attending a course …

I am due to take my final examination in June …
I have / hold/ obtained was awarded a degree/diploma/certificate in …
I have successfully/recently completed a course in (subject) at (place)

To end letters:

I enclose/Please find enclosed my CV/references from …

I would appreciate a reply at your earliest convenience/ as soon as possible.
I would be available for an interview at any time/until the end of June / etc.
I would be pleased/happy to supply you with any further information / details …
Please contact me should you have any further questions/ queries.

Sample letter:

Dear Mr Lloyd,

I am writing to apply for the position of Marketing Manager in your Tokyo office, as advertised in
last week’s Guardian newspaper on 9th October.

As outlined in my curriculum vitae, which I have enclosed, I attended Riverside Secondary School in
Gloucester where I completed my GCSE and ’A’ Level studies. In 1987, I graduated from the University of
Wales with a BSc in Business Studies and Marketing.
After graduation, I moved to Tokyo where I trained as a market researcher for the Yen Company for
two years. On my return to England, I continued working as a market researcher until 1993 when I obtained
my present position.
 I am currently employed as Assistant Managing Director at Melton Enterprises, where my duties
include the organisation of staff and stock, as well as the allocation of budget within the sales department. I
am also responsible for overseeing the whole business, and am generally noted for my good organisational
and managerial skills.
I believe that I would be an ideal candidate for the position you have outlined, as I have had
extensive marketing training with a well-known Japanese marketing and public relations firm. My time
spent living in Tokyo also ensured that I obtained a valuable insight into Japanese culture and working
practices. I also have a number of very good business contacts in Tokyo, as well as a basic understanding of
the Japanese language which is necessary if one is to be able to work effectively. Finally, I am willing and
able to relocate at short notice, which I understand to be a requirement of the position.

I enclose my curriculum vitae and photograph as requested, and I would be happy to supply you with
further details should they be required. I thank you for considering my application and am willing to attend
an interview at any time.

Yours sincerely,

TASK 1
Apply for this job vacancy and write your cover letter in about 150 words.

Junior Event Planner

VISION OF SUCCESS
We seek to employ an organized, resourceful, insightful, creative, and proactive professional. They regularly develop outreach
strategies to grow current business and attain new clients. Their internal communication helps support a culture of service,
learning, teamwork, fiscal responsibility, personal accountability, and fun.

FUNCTION
The ideal candidate can work with other team members to contribute to marketing and product development programs, both
short and long-range, targeted toward existing and new markets by performing the following sales and functions.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES
• Prepares day of wedding coordination communication with clients.
• Assist to expand day of coordination services and corporate planning events.
• Conduct research and venue sourcing for clients to win business.
• Creates pre-event communication which includes direction on food and beverage, linen, equipment, staff, floor plans,
timelines, and event/client-specific notes and details.
• Aids and conducts site visits and client tastings.
• Ensure execution of events through on-site management.
•Other duties as assigned.

DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS
• Excellent communication, people, and networking skills.
• Possess strong sales and business acumen in a fast-paced, high-pressure environment.
•Team player, ready and willing to assist in departmental projects and emergencies.

EXPERIENCE
•Bachelor's of Business Administration, Sales or Hospitality degree from an accredited institution or equivalent experience.
•At least 2-5 years’ experience in a sales capacity with proven results.
•Food and beverage or Culinary background a plus.