Hoteliers and restaurateurs on the Northern Black Sea coast are forced to hire workers from Indonesia and India because there are not enough willing Bulgarians for the summer season. Students studying tourism majors are increasingly less likely to want to work in the industry.
Due to the lack of people willing to work in tourism, the industry has until recently relied on personnel from Eastern Europe.
At the moment, the Labor Bureau in Varna has announced 700 vacancies for personnel in tourism. Waiters and waiters are most wanted. The other vacancies are for bartenders, chefs and front desk administrators. Seasonal retail outlets are looking for salespeople. What are the reasons for the lack of personnel in tourism?
According to hoteliers, the short summer season forces many of the Bulgarian workers to seek employment where there is permanent employment.
“Due to the pandemic, tourism lost many valuable personnel, who were forced to retrain and start other jobs. Unfortunately, we cannot bring these personnel back,” Stanislav Stoyanov, a hotelier, is emphatic.
“I also notice a reluctance for them to even gain experience during the seasons. In our time, we looked for connections to find a job, now you need huge connections to convince someone to go to work for a seasonal job,” said Prof. Stoyan Marinov, Varna Tourist Chamber.
According to experts, the solution to the personnel problem is in the hands of the business.
“To leave more people in year-round work, with year-round salaries, in this way to form stable teams of knowledgeable and capable people, who will form teams during the season, so that work is a pleasure”, noted Prof. Stoyan Marinov, Varna Tourist Chamber .
The Labor Bureau in Varna will once again organize a job fair where employers and unemployed compare their expectations.
It is expected that this year a hotel administrator will receive a salary between 1300 and 1500 BGN. Regular chefs will receive up to 2,500 BGN per month, and head chefs over 5,000 BGN.
