VIRGINIA BEACH, Va - There’s a $1,000 incentive to get people back to work in Virginia Beach. Business owners and managers say that staffing shortages continue to be a big problem during the busy tourism season.
Virginia Beach restaurants and hotels are offering a $1,000 bonus to encourage people to apply for hospitality and to get people back to work.
"It’s no secret that the hospitality industry has been really struggling to find qualified people and talent to come back to work," Michael Kokolis said, the director of sales & marketing for the Marriott Virginia Beach Oceanfront Hotel and Cavalier Hotel.
The Marriott Virginia Beach Oceanfront Hotel is just one of several businesses offering the incentive.
"I think we’ve done a great job in making sure our guests don’t suffer as a result and we’ve still been able to provide the level of service that they are accustomed to and they expect, but it’s not sustainable. We have to bring people in. We need more staff because the current people we have are going to continue to burn out," Kokolis said.
"Money talks and one of the things that’s really going to help us is to incentive people to get back to work is cash," Michael Woodhead said, a consultant with the Hampton Roads Workforce Council.
The Marriott Oceanfront and the Cavalier Hotel in Virginia Beach are looking to fill several positions.
"Anything from housekeepers to servers, front desk associates, all of it. You name it. If you can think of a position and it exists in a hotel or a restaurant then it will qualify," Kokolis said.
Michael Woodhead, a consultant with the Hampton Roads Workforce Council, says all hotels and restaurants in Virginia Beach qualify to pay the $1,000 bonus to new employees.
"This is the first summer in the last at least 20 years where we’ve had this kind of shortage of workers," Woodhead said.
The $1,000 bonus will be offered to the first 250 spots filled at Virginia Beach restaurants and hotels.
"Act now. It’s a limited time offer,"
People interested in applying for a hospitality job in Virginia Beach can go to FundYourFire.org
