A STUDY ON SKILLED LABOUR MIGRATION IN SRI LANKAN HOTEL INDUSTRY WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO FIVE STAR HOTELS IN WESTERN PROVINC

Abstract

Skilled labour plays an essential role in the service industry. The hotel industry, as a labour-incentive industry skilled manpower is vital, to alive the sector. There, is a lack of study on skilled labour migration in the hotel industry relating to the Sri Lankan context. Hence, the research involved studying skilled labour migration in the Sri Lankan hotel industry. The study is driven by three objectives; first to identify the factors that affected skilled labour migration in the hotel industry; second, to identify the issues and challenges faced by the hotel sector due to skilled labour migration; and finally, to identify the appropriate strategies to decrease skilled labour migration in the hotel industry. Data were collected from 10 skilled migrants in the hotel industry and 5 HR-related persons in 5-star hotels using face-to-face and telephone semi-structured interviews. Among non-probability sampling methods, snowball, convenient, and purposive sampling were used as sampling techniques. The findings of the first objective revealed the industry-related factors, employee-related factors, beneficial factors, social and personal factors, and finally instability of the local hotel industry from a two-way approach. As findings of the second objective, increased organizational cost, deterioration of reputation and brand value, HR issues, marketing issues, and managerial issues and challenges were identified. As per the third objective, appropriate strategies were identified under the dimensions of skilled labour retention, manpower building, and government plans, policies, and programs in order to address the issue of skilled labour migration in the hotel industry. As the core of the study, the importance of keeping a skilled workforce is highlighted while introducing the facts that have been revealed apart from the objectives. Finally, emphasizes the continuous focus and stakeholder collaboration in the case of promoting Sri Lanka as a tourist destination.