Hospitality sector urged to retrain, upskill their workforce

IPOH: The hospitality industry has been urged to retrain and upskill its workforce while awaiting the revival of the tourism sector.

Perak Tourism Committee chairman Datuk Nolee Ashilin Mohd Radzi said this would help “employees look elsewhere for opportunities”.

“The state government is also working towards this direction with the relevant federal agencies.

“We will have an outreach programme with the industry players.”

Nolee Ashilin was commenting on the closure of several prominent hotels here that had resulted in hundreds of employees losing their jobs.

Tower Regency Hotel and Kinta Riverfront Hotel and Suites will close on Thursday. It is also learnt that a third hotel here, Ritz Garden Hotel, temporarily shut its business earlier this month.

She said the state was aware of the challenges faced by the hoteliers.

“We hope they look for alternatives and also fully utilise the stimulus package offered by the Federal Government.

“There are also grants available from the Tourism, Arts and Culture Ministry, ” Nolee Ashilin said.

She added that they should also look at digitalisation to open up new business opportunities.

“We are drawing up an action plan to galvanise the industry, ” she said.