Arizona hotels, resorts ramp up hiring for tourism season

Several high-end hotels and resorts in Arizona are ramping up hiring for the 2011 tourism season, a welcome respite from the hiring freezes instituted last year because of the dour economy.

The InterContinental Montelucia Resort and Spa in Paradise Valley, the Phoenician in Phoenix, the Wigwam Resort and Spa in Litchfield Park and the Arizona Biltmore in Phoenix report they have jobs openings now or will in the near future.

Variety of hospitality-industry jobs available
It's a welcome turnaround for the hard-hit hospitality industry that curtailed most hiring in 2009 and the beginning of 2010, as hotels and resorts cut back in response to the significant dip in travel.

Arizona hotels and resorts attribute job listings to the upcoming leisure and convention travel season, a time when hotels historically increase employee numbers by as much as 50 percent, says Debbie Johnson, president and chief executive officer for the Arizona Hotel and Lodging Association. Arizona's tourism season typically begins in September and ends in late May.
Most of the new jobs are full-time posts with the possibility of significant hourly cutbacks during the slower summer months. "Hotels try to maintain their staff annually," Johnson says.
While the recent hiring spurtwon't be as significant as during the travel industry's golden years in 2006 and 2007, many front-of-the-house jobs, such as valet, hostess, cooks, servers and housekeepers, will be filled.

Also new positions likely will be added for the Insight Bowl in December, and the Fiesta Bowl and BCS National Championship game, both in January. "It couldn't come at a better time for our industry," Johnson says. "Those games are held at a time when traditionally there are very low occupancy rates because of the holiday season." Several high-end hotels and resorts in Arizona have or intend to post job openings in the coming months in anticipation of the upcoming tourism season. Some potential employers:

• Montelucia, a resort that hosts one of the Fiesta Bowl teams, will hire additional employees in the next few months to prepare for the football games and the upcoming convention season, says Greg Hanss, director of sales and marketing. Openings are in cosmetology, room service, banquet management, housekeeping and group-reservation bookings.
Many of the positions are seasonal through May but could be extended indefinitely, Hanss says.
Hanss says Montelucia will increase its staff by 20 percent by the end of the year.
The resort's hiring campaign began this month, less than a year after it emerged from foreclosure with a new owner, the property's original lender, German bank Eurohypo AG.
With better convention bookings and a much larger staff for the upcoming tourism season, Hanss says the resort expects to see significant revenue growth in 2011 to support the new hiring.

• The Arizona Biltmore began listing job openings on its website three months ago, anticipating an improved tourism season, says Andrew Stegen, the resort's general manager.
"For the last 11 to 12 weeks, we've had between 20 and 30 open positions per week," Stegen says.
The openings listed on Biltmore's website are for housekeepers and cooks.
Although Stegen says positions fill quickly, some spill over from week to week.
All job openings are full time and employees may be eligible for benefits, Stegen says.

• The Phoenician filled nearly all of its 70 positions in August and September to prepare for the launch of its second ballroom, which opened Friday.
While most positions are filled, the Phoenician still needs to hire additional banquet servers, says Denise Seomin, spokeswoman for the Phoenician.

• The Wigwam is currently undergoing a $7 million renovation which will lead to retraining of current staff members and a need for new employees.
While no jobs are posted yet, Frank Ashmore, director of sales and marketing, says various positions, such as bartenders, servers and room attendants,will be available in December.
New hires could be placed at the resort's outdoor bar, pools, restaurants and renovated outdoor spaces.

"We have not changed the square footage of the resort, but we've increased its useable space," Ashmore says. "We'll need to hire new employees and existing employees are going to be busier, working more than last year."Read more:

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