Background

The Covid-19 pandemic has significantly affected people’s lives and futures due to lengthy closures and limitations, especially for the hospitality sector, including hotels, bars, and restaurants. Long-term and informal employees became underemployed, and new graduates struggled to get employed in the sector. The new normal workplace practices must be adapted, and the workforce in hospitality must be equipped with unique skills, re-skill, and upskill competencies. To become superior and successful, the employees need a solid foundation of functional skills, job readiness skills, 21st century skills, and digital skills in the hospitality sector.

The Project

Diageo Moet Hennessy (Thailand) has been committed to doing business responsibly and sustainably, so they launched SOCIETY 2030: Spirit of progress, to empower communities and strive to increase access to opportunity for all. Launched in 2018, Learning for Life is Diageo’s business and hospitality skills program which provides equal access to business and hospitality skills and resources to increase participants’ employability, improve livelihoods and support a thriving hospitality sector that works for all. The pilot project was partnered with the Office of Vocational Education Commission. Later on the project coordinated with Panyapiwat Institution of Management and the Thai Hotels Association to run free-of-charge courses for anyone whose career got impacted by the country’s Covid-19 restrictions aiming to be a part of tourism recovery.

Activities

Learning for Life Enhancement Program will utilize Diageo’s Learning for Life Program curriculum, especially the Responsible Drinking and 21st century skills, to build foundation capacities for those target beneficiaries. Kenan will incorporate gender lens such as leadership, collaboration, and critical thinking along with the 21st century skill. In addition, Kenan will enhance the project with digital skills and job readiness skills training. The project is aiming for students soon to graduate, recent graduates, current hospitality workers, and unemployed workers. In the first year, we target 1,700 beneficiaries across Thailand through online and 5 province onsite trainings. The program will partner with key government agencies such as the Ministry of Labour, Ministry of Tourism and Sports, Thai Hotel Association, Tourism Authority of Thailand, Ministry Of Social Development And Human Security, Ministry of Education, universities, and business partners.

Expected Result

The expected outcomes are the increased knowledge on digital skills, work readiness knowledge and skills, the 21st century skills for 1,700 beneficiaries. The ultimate goal of the project is to improve the employment situation, such as start new job, participate in internship, get document ready and apply for a job in the recruitment online platform, change the employment status from part-time to contract or full-time, etc. in Thailand’s hospitality sector during and after Covid-19 by the necessary skills provided with this enrichment in the Learning for Life curriculum.