Hotels facing major staff shortage
PHUKET: The island’s tourism industry faces a shortage of labor in the coming high season and the Phuket Provincial Labor Office (PPLO) has warned that new hotels opening in Phang Nga are likely to draw more workers away from Phuket.
PPLO Chief Decha Preukpatanarak told the Gazette, “We’re chronically short of labor in the high season, with hotel occupancy so high that hotels have to manage with a few people to serve many guests.
“In Khao Lak, another 2,000 hotel rooms will be opening [for the high season].” This, he said, would place added strain on the ability of Phuket hotels to find, train and retain new staff.
In Phuket, he added, demand does not depend on the level of employees’ qualifications, but simply on what they are trained in.
K. Decha said the PPLO is now cooperating with schools and colleges to send students to work as trainees in local establishments, both private and state. The establishments pay the students, or at least cover fuel costs and pay for lunch, along with insurance for risky jobs such as engineering.
In return, the schools or colleges agree to send their students during the high season – the time the hotels need professional workers the most.
The Phuket Provincial Employment Office – a related government department – posts lists of job openings in its office at 38/27 Rattanakosin 200 Phi Rd, Phuket City, and on its website at https://doe.go.th/phuket/
It also holds monthly “Labor Markets” to bring potential workers and employers together. Details may be obtained by calling the PPEO at Tel: 076-219660.
Phuket News PPLO Chief Decha Preukpatanarak told the Gazette, “We’re chronically short of labor in the high season, with hotel occupancy so high that hotels have to manage with a few people to serve many guests.
“In Khao Lak, another 2,000 hotel rooms will be opening [for the high season].” This, he said, would place added strain on the ability of Phuket hotels to find, train and retain new staff.
In Phuket, he added, demand does not depend on the level of employees’ qualifications, but simply on what they are trained in.
K. Decha said the PPLO is now cooperating with schools and colleges to send students to work as trainees in local establishments, both private and state. The establishments pay the students, or at least cover fuel costs and pay for lunch, along with insurance for risky jobs such as engineering.
In return, the schools or colleges agree to send their students during the high season – the time the hotels need professional workers the most.
The Phuket Provincial Employment Office – a related government department – posts lists of job openings in its office at 38/27 Rattanakosin 200 Phi Rd, Phuket City, and on its website at https://doe.go.th/phuket/
It also holds monthly “Labor Markets” to bring potential workers and employers together. Details may be obtained by calling the PPEO at Tel: 076-219660.
