Hundreds of UK workers are re-discovering careers in hospitality as hotel group Jurys Inns announces 800 jobs drive and reveals its vacancies are over-subscribed by 100 to 1.  

Jurys is launching a national recruitment drive to fill 800 new positions including 100 management opportunities as part of its growth plans to open 10 new hotels across England, Scotland and Wales, and also include a new hotel in Prague. 

Jurys Inn will open 7 new hotels comprising over 1,700 rooms in Watford, Exeter, Derby, Swindon, Aberdeen, Portsmouth and Prague in 2009.  A further 3 hotels are planned in Glasgow, Newcastle and Bradford in 2010.

The mid-market hotel is benefitting from current trends for business and leisure users economising on travel habits and Britons holidaying at home this summer due to the strong Euro. 

Jurys vacancies are attracting an unprecedented level of interest from candidates from sectors including banking, recruitment, retail and even the Army who are switching careers as national unemployment figures rise to 2mn .

With 16, 500  fewer graduate job opportunities this year and popular sectors like banking expected to shrink by up to 28%  traditional sectors like hospitality are back in vogue.

CEO John Brennan said: “We offer careers not jobs and want the 800 friendliest people in Britain to work in our new hotels.  As a response to increasing unemployment we expect to recruit from a diverse range of backgrounds and personalities. Only those prepared to go the ‘extra mile’ for the customer will succeed.  We look for qualities not qualifications.

“We hope to get talented people who normally don’t think about hospitality.   The changing labour market can turn a new generation on to career opportunities in the hospitality sector that for too long have been ignored and looked down on.  

We are also seeing a trend in people switching from office jobs to more rewarding, people businesses like hospitality.”

Jurys Inn is searching for talent from any country or profession to join its growing hospitality business.  It argues that great hospitality is more relevant today not less so as consumers want more value for less in tough times.

In total Jurys Inn will recruit up to 200 jobs - setting a target of 25% - from long term unemployed workers as part of the Government’s LEP scheme.

The UK Hospitality sector has struggled for a decade to attract enough domestic workers to fill its vacancies.  VisitBritain Chairman Christopher Rodrigues recently challenged to the industry to raise its standards warning of a “danger of the UK losing our reputation for service”.

Deloitte valued the total impact of UK Visitor Economy at £114mn (8.2% of GDP) and forecast a long term value of £188bn by 2018.

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