Stuttgart (dpa / lsw) - The hospitality industry in Baden-Württemberg is open to employing Ukrainian refugees, but warns against expectations that are too high. "The lack of staff was, is and will continue to be a major challenge," said the state spokesman for the German Hotel and Restaurant Association, Daniel Ohl, of the German Press Agency in Stuttgart. There are already individual contracts with Ukrainian employees. "But to believe that this would solve our problems would be an exaggeration."
He promoted the hospitality industry as an employer for refugees. It offers opportunities for people with a wide range of abilities and also includes work that does not require high language skills. In service, however, the language must be mastered to some extent. In addition, the industry is very international, which makes it easier for foreign workers to integrate.
According to the State Statistical Office, almost 330,000 people worked in the hospitality industry in Baden-Württemberg in 2019 before the corona pandemic. Although mass layoffs could be avoided with short-time work, the virus crisis also resulted in a significant reduction in staff. According to the statisticians, the number of people employed in the hospitality industry fell by 17 percent in 2020, and then by a further 11.7 percent in the period from January to November 2021.
