Hospitality group Accor checking in 300 new staff - in locations including Edinburgh and St Andrews

Global hospitality group Accor has created 300 initial roles across the UK following the May reopening of indoor hospitality, in locations including Edinburgh and St Andrews, with hundreds more hotel positions expected later this summer.

The roles range from kitchen brigades and bar staff to front of house and management, in all types of hotels across the group’s brand portfolio from economy to luxury hotels. The group includes Ibis, Mercure, Raffles and Fairmont.

The positions are mostly centred on major cities and tourist destinations such as central and greater London, Manchester, Liverpool, Bristol, Liverpool, Windsor, Bath, Cambridge, Cheltenham and Sheffield – as well as Edinburgh and St Andrews

Sophie Kilic, who heads up talent and culture for Accor hotels in Northern Europe, said: “The hospitality industry has been damaged by Covid, but it is recovering, reopening and creating jobs and opportunities as it has always done.

Accor says the positions are mostly centred on major cities and tourist destinations. Picture: Evoke Pictures.

“Hospitality embodies everything that people have missed the most in the last year – travel, bars, restaurants, wellness, exploration and people. It is a sector that is much loved, as the last year without it has proved, and now there are opportunities to be part of the industry as it rebuilds.”

To drive talent acquisition and spotlight the opportunities and value of the hospitality sector, Accor has launched a series of bi-monthly Recruitment Days, the first of which was held at The Savoy hotel at the end of May, with more than 60 jobs filled, had trials or second interviews offered during the event.

Ms Kilic added: “There are fantastic job opportunities in hospitality today and opportunities to be part of a sector that plays an enormous role in the economic recovery of the UK.

Accor has more than 5,100 properties and 10,000 food and beverage venues in 110 countries. Picture: Abacapress/Peter Jackson.

“People join hospitality because they need a job, or they want a career and sometimes because this is their calling. Whatever their motivation, what they experience and learn in hospitality is invaluable. We learn to be always ready for the unexpected, to understand different cultures, to work in a fast pace environment, to have always a can-do attitude, to be business savvy and most importantly to connect heart to heart.”

Accor added that hospitality accounts for more than three million jobs in the UK and is the third-largest private sector employer, representing a tenth of UK employment.

Contribution

The group added that in 2019 the hospitality sector contributed £59.3 billion in gross value added to the UK economy, around 3 per cent of total UK economic output, and produces £130bn of economic activity.

Ms Kilic added: "The way our sector responded to the crisis has proved its importance and demonstrates why it will come back stronger than ever. As we have played our part during this crisis, we remain committed to playing our part in the recovery both in terms of our economic impact and our role as an employer.”

Accor has in excess of 5,100 properties and 10,000 food and beverage venues as well as about 260,000 workers across 110 countries.

Its latest jobs push comes after Scotland’s Crerar Hotels group, which runs seven establishments in some of the country’s most scenic locations, said it was putting £1 million behind a recruitment drive as the industry attempts to get back on its feet.

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