Alaska’s Hospitality Recruitment Challenge
“Who wants to work just four months of the year?”
Alaska boasts incredible summers with long days and an abundance of natural beauty. As soon as the snow and ice begin to melt, tourists arrive en masse and businesses statewide open their doors to meet visitor needs: accommodations, food, and fun. For those in need of work, Alaska’s summer season is bursting with hospitality—and tourism—related jobs, but there is one major hitch—most of these positions are seasonal, lasting just about four months.
“It’s interesting as it’s kind of a bifurcated industry right now,” says Economist Neal Fried, adding the state tourism segment is “looking really good” and he expects continued growth in the future. The local hospitality business segment, however, isn’t as fortunate, says Fried—the restaurant and tavern sectors are experiencing a softening due to Alaska’s recession.
Alaska’s tourism industry is one of extremes with vast fluctuations in employment numbers. Fried uses the Denali region as an example: unemployment can be as low as 2 percent in the summer and hit 20 percent in the winter. “That is a real challenge for recruitment because who wants to work for just four months of the year?” He adds that trying to recruit from outside of Alaska is getting tougher as there are greater job opportunities in the Lower 48, also a result of its healthy economy.
Training, Incentives
Current Issue
April 2024
Seasonal employees for Holland America Group have a range of opportunities and often return to take new roles to expand hospitality skill sets.
Holland America Group
“We hope that this leads to both an enhanced customer experience as well as an enriched employment experience for our staff,” says Haines, adding that recruiting, hiring, and retaining workers isn’t challenging on all fronts.
Some challenges related to employment recruitment are cost and lack of housing for seasonal employees near tourist destinations.
“We offer onsite employee housing, seasonal bonuses, and have a quality benefits package. We have a strong wellness and safety initiative throughout our organization,” says Haines. The resort also offers workers a variety of health, wellness, and recreational discounts.
At Holland America Group, which includes Carnival Cruise Line, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, and Seabourn in North America, employee incentives are far ranging and include free cruise opportunities.
Holland America Group, which has operated in Alaska for seventy-one years, also owns the Westmark hotel chain in Alaska. Holland America Group offers traditional cruises and land-sea cruise tours, with excursions ranging from river rafting to a journey exploring Denali. More than half the vessels in its fourteen-ship fleet sail to Alaska, carrying
between 1,400 and 2,100 passengers and feature everything from spas and salons to cooking and culinary experiences.
“It is a tough time to find the number and quality of workers we need for our seasonal business in Alaska,” says Jeanne Amey, director of shoreside talent acquisition. She says the most difficult jobs to fill are skilled positions, including driver guides, line cooks, and maintenance positions.
Amey says that at least one Holland America Group vice president began as a driver working in the Denali region and that her department is in the process of hiring an employee who began as a seasonal worker in Alaska.
A critical component to Holland America Group’s hiring strategy for all workers is training.
“We offer training for thousands of jobs in industry, from working at the front desk of a hotel to serving as a guide on a train,” as well as hundreds of roles in back-end operations, Amey says.
“Our business model allows us to plan ahead with our workforce management so we know how many workers and what skill sets we’ll need before the season even begins and do the training accordingly to make sure we’re ready,” she says. Many employees actually take on different roles season after season, which helps them grow their hospitality skill set.
“That, in addition to the benefits we offer, such as free cruising benefits, work together to help us get the numbers we need for the season once we open up.”
The position of tour director is just one of hundreds of hospitality roles Holland America Group recruits employees for each year.
Holland America Group
That effort begins on the high school level, and beginning this year includes a scholarship program for students in Alaska’s remote areas, including Ketchikan and Sitka.
“You have to start on the high school level to make sure we are supporting the hospitality educational process from the very beginning,” Amey explains. “We just don’t find the numbers we need in Alaska directly.”
Industry Support
Many hospitality venues in Alaska aren’t as vast as Holland America Group and don’t have tremendous resources for recruiting, training, and staff retention. But they do have support from the Alaska Cabaret, Hotel,
Restaurant, and Retailers Association (CHARR), a nonprofit focused on fulfilling the needs of Alaska’s hospitality industry.
The organization, according to President and CEO Pete Hanson, provides training programs, legislative and government relations, informational and membership services, and promotes the industry.
It’s a key support program for many members given the tight labor market.
“Honestly, some people would rather not work at all than take a job that starts at $11 per hour. As a result, they are missing out on a great opportunity. This is an industry that will provide an opportunity for anyone who wants to work,” he says, noting that one-third of all Americans’ first job was within the hospitality industry.
“It’s where they can learn skills that will allow them to advance in the hospitality industry to become business managers or owners or make them successful in whatever else they decide to do—in college and beyond,” he says.
Alaska CHARR offers training programs, including a high school-focused Pro Start technical education program providing training in culinary arts and restaurant management skills.
“There is a state-level competition and a national-level competition each year. Alaska just had two high school teams compete at the National ProStart Invitational in Providence, Rhode Island, a couple of weeks ago,” notes Hanson.
Not only does ProStart provide job skills, it instills confidence and teaches goal-setting, teamwork, and other key life skills. It also helps to correct wage discrepancies, since ProStart students often command a higher starting wage than young people without experience or training, notes Hanson.
The organization, which has been serving the hospitality industry since 1964, has an educational fund providing scholarships to Alaska residents who would like to pursue culinary arts or hospitality management degrees at the college level.
“Most of these students attend UAA, UAF, or another in-state school, but some also attend universities in the Lower 48. Currently we have scholarship recipients attending UNLV, Brown, Gonzaga, Johnson, and Wales and other institutions,” says Hanson.
Alaska CHARR also provides certified food protection manager training using the nationally-accredited food safety training ServSafe Food Safety Program. The group works with the National Restaurant Association on an apprenticeship program to train more chefs and hospitality industry managers.
“For people who would rather learn on-the-job, as opposed to in a classroom setting, the apprenticeship program will get them marketable skills that employers in our industry need,” says Hanson.
Judy Mottl writes about important issues country-wide with an affinity for Alaska.
In their company kitchens, the Corporate 100 blend wholesome ingredients with exquisite utensils to create the scrumptious ambrosia that keeps employees gratified and contented. Meet the top Alaska employers ranked by number of Alaskans on their payroll, and learn the recipe for success. This issue also includes a focus on economic development initiatives in Anchorage and Kodiak.