Hundreds attend tourism job fair in Charlottetown as industry ramps up for summer

The hiring spree ahead of the peak tourism seasonis well underway in P.E.I. as optimism in the sectormounts.

According to organizers, about 600 people came to a tourism job fair hosted by the Tourism Industry Association of P.E.I. on Saturday in Charlottetown.

"We had over 1,000 positions available," said Debbie Mol, the association's job fair co-ordinator."So anyone that is employablewill possibly get a job, for sure.

"There's a lot of students coming through. But there's also mature workers, people that want to change their careers, or they've retired and they just want to work seasonal."

This year's event is especially significant with P.E.I. poised to ease pandemic-era restrictions that have stifledthe industry for the last two years.

Mol said 2022 may look a bit more normal in the sector.

"I think that we have to live life," Mol said. "Certainly other areas are doing that, and they're surviving. So eventually, that's what we have to do too."

Colby and Ciara Smith were some of the people looking for a job at the fair. The siblings said they hoped to get a call next week, butgothired on the spot by the same restaurant.

Ciara Smith said she brought 20 resums. But both got hired at the first stop.

"I think [employers] are looking for exactly what we are, just teenagers and available and with a good attitude, and they're just excited to see us," she said.

'You don't want to be behind'

Forty-seven exhibitors attended the job fair.

Rob Shaw, who runsShaw's Hotel in Brackley Beach, said he'll be moving quickly to hire some of the people he met at the fair in anticipation of a tight job market this summer.

"You don't want to be behind," he said."[Meeting candidates] helps screen resums. We're in the people business. And when a person comes up and talks to you, you can see whether they're the right person to be in that business."

Mathew Jelley, president of the Maritime FunGroup, said the fair is an important part of his company's hiring process ahead of the summer months.

His company has only 10 year-round staff, but Jelley said the number can go up to 350 at the peak of the season.

He said this year they'll be bumping up salaries and expanding bonuses usually reserved for returning workers to first-time hires. They're also offering some incentives to employees who recruit others to work with them.

"We're really trying to ramp up and grow back," Jelley said.

Gina Aghdassi, owner of Casa Mia, said she was looking for staff to work at the restaurant's seasonal location, which is set to open in May.

"We're expecting [a] busy season," she said. "We just have to prepare for it. It's great to see people out here. I'm sure that we'll probably see a lot more resums even after this."

TIAPEIis holding three more job fairs.One will be held April 9 for the northern part of the Island. The events for the eastern and western ends will be May 7.