MIRI: Tourism across all sub-sectors is reportedly lacking qualified staff post Covid-19. How much is Malaysia, and Sarawak in particular, affected by this phenomenon?
During the Borneo SDG Summit here, Curtin University Malaysia (Curtin Malaysia) participated in a roundtable discussion with top-level experts to assess the potential damage to the development trajectory outlined in Sarawak’s Post Covid-19 Development Strategy (PCDS) 2030.
State Minister for Transport Datuk Sri Lee Kim Shin opened the discussion highlighting the importance of an integrated approach when targeting the PCDS 2030 goals.
“It is imperative to strengthen the capacities of the country via investments into infrastructure and talent development,” he said.
Professor Andreas H. Zins, Dean of the Faculty of Business at Curtin Malaysia, who is currently working with his team on the tourism aspect of the Greater Miri Development Plan 2030 pointed to the PCDS 2030 projection of an annual growth in tourism demand of seven to eight per cent to achieve the pre-Covid levels by 2025.
He argued that the entire tourism sector in Sarawak will need 17,500 more employees every year to sustain this growth.
Problem is in the unrealistic event that all people currently unemployed in Sarawak would move into the tourism sector, the labour market would run dry within just a few years.
Professor Linchi Kwok from The Collins College of Hospitality Management drew similar conclusions involving the US economy: In July 2022, the US recorded 10.9 million job openings overall with only 8.7 million unemployed.
The World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC), meanwhile, reported a labour shortfall in August 2022: 1 out of 15 openings in the United States, 1 out of 9 in the European Union failing to be filled.
According to Prof. Zins, colleagues from other Curtin campuses in Australia, Singapore and Mauritius confirmed the problem.
Many hospitality workers will not go back to their old jobs for various reasons like low salaries, inflexible working hours and conditions, discrimination of women, lack of training opportunities and further education, age discrimination, and bad image of the entire industry.
State Deputy Minister for Tourism, Datuk Sebastian Ting, who was also on the panel, mentioned some initiatives his ministry is taking to inject new impetus to tourism recovery and economic growth.
While acknowledging the detrimental effect of labour shortage on tourism development in the long term, he underscored tourism as one of the major economic sectors in the PCDS 2030.
He outlined the actions taken to build a more resilient tourism economy post Covid-19 including policies and financial incentives by the Sarawak government to support local domestic tourism players.
Special assistance packages, namely BKSS 1.0 to BKSS 9.0 with a total expenditure of RM6.7 billion are being implemented to increase flight frequency, provide discounted tours (for example, Sia Sitok), and reinforce continuous capacity building through an Online Ecosystem Fund.
Considering the increase of visitor arrivals of over 320 per cent this year compared to the same period in 2022, he is confident of a fast recovery of the entire tourism sector.
Meanwhile president of the Malaysia Association of Hotels, Sarawak Chapter, John Yew Teo, highlighted the situation of the labour market in Sarawak.
About 150,000 official migrant workers left the state during and after the pandemic and another estimated 150,000 unofficial workers left as well.
A huge number of Sarawakians are still registered as residents while working either in West Malaysia or abroad, he pointed out.
Thus the official statistics might deliver a distorted picture.
A new challenge is the very fierce labour drain towards Kalimantan where job opportunities appear highly attractive with salaries twice or three times more than what is offered in Sarawak.
Companies and employers are encouraged to do their part to increase the attractiveness of jobs in the tourism industries.
Ting urged all stakeholders, particularly young people in Sarawak, to have faith in the tourism industry.
He emphasised the importance of education and training, an enterprising mindset, responsible actions, and effective partnership to co-create values, such as creating more jobs.
He also touched on reskilling and upskilling programmes to make tourism players, including community members, more competitive to meet the rising demand in tourism and the labour market.
Curtin Malaysia, meanwhile, called for more pro-active and meaningful dialogue among stakeholders.
Prof. Zins announced that the roundtable discussions will continue throughout this year and company owners, managers, the youth, those who left the sector, those who are still working in tourism, will be invited to address their concerns and hopes.
“We are striving to deliver better and more sustainable solutions for the government and the private sector. Creating more attractive jobs for more people and the importance of the entire visitor economy not falling beyond 12 per cent of Sarawak’s GDP will be our focus,” he added.
