Overview of tourism and economic development
The contribution of different sectors to economic development of states as well as the global economy has been the greatest area of focus for economists. They measure sector contributions basing on both the direct as well as indirect effects of the sectors on the economic growth and development.
One of the notable sectors in modern economies is the tourism sector. This sector is being given a lot of attention to in many countries because of the benefits that are derived from it. Of considerable attention is the role that is played by the sector in bringing about full employment in modern economies.
As pointed out in many research outcomes, tourism is one of the main contributors to employment in economies. More researchers are sure that tourism has contributed to the creation of employment opportunities in economies (Aykac 12).
Tourism and employment
Tourism has been termed as one of the main leading factors in social, cultural and economic development. One contribution of tourism to economic development is argued to be the creation of jobs in economies. There are a lot of investments in tourism development.
These investments open up job opportunities for populations. Jobs in the tourism sector are created in different ways. There are direct jobs that are created indirectly in sectors that back tourism.
Therefore, any research or analysis of the contribution of tourism to the creation of employment has to be objective in order to capture all the diverse aspects of employment (European Commission 2).
There are a lot of kinds of tourism activities, which create both long-term and short-term employment opportunities. Percentage of job creation differs from one tourist activity to another as well as from one economy to the other.
The international labor organization has termed the tourism and travel industry as one of the most dynamic industries across the globe. Tourism contributed 9 percent to the global gross domestic product in the year 2010.
According to statistics from the ILO, the tourism industry has been attaining growth and expansion at a remarkably quick pace thence creating many economic opportunities in the prevailing globalized economy.
The diversity in the tourism industry resonates from the argument that different tourist activities are being coined hence increasing the job creation capacity of the industry. The more creativity is employed in the tourism industry, the more the number of employment opportunities.
According to the economic surveys that were conducted by ILO, the global tourism industry employs approximately 8 percent of the total employees in all industries in the world. This translates to about 235 million jobs.
This is a significant contribution to economic development bearing in mind that employment creation is one of the mechanisms through which economies are sustained (International Labor Organization 6).
Economic forecasts point out that employment opportunities are expected to be created in the tourism industry in the coming years. The ILO projects that by the year 2019, approximately 60 million jobs will have been created in the industry increasing the employment figures in the industry to 296 million jobs.
This projected outcome can only be achieved when economic factors and forced to remain intact. What is meant here is that the tourism industry is temporary in nature. It is severely affected by economic forces emanating from the global economy. However, the industry remains one of the main sources of employment.
In spite of the global financial pressures that mounted on economies between 2008 and 2009, the global tourism industry managed to have and employment creation increment of one percent. This is a positive indicator of the growing strength of the industry.
This growth is backed by heavy investment in the industry as well as the diversification of functions and activities that make up the industry. For instance, sports tourism has been gaining prominence with a continued creation of sporting facilities and sporting events across economies in the world.
Therefore, it can be argued that the industry is becoming sustainable in terms of creating and maintaining a high number of jobs. As more creativity is applied in the industry, the stability of the industry is slowly becoming a reality.
Therefore, more sustainable jobs are being created in the tourism industry across the globe (International Labor Organization 8).
Employment trends in the tourism industrys
In the analysis of the employment trends and features of labor in the UK tourism industry, it was noted that the industry provides different categories of employment. The categories of employment in the tourism industry range from temporary to part-time employment and self employment.
Most of the employees that work in the tourism industry are of young age meaning that the tourism industry is acting as a solution to the global crisis of unemployment. The other valuable thing noted is that the tourism industry is quite wide.
The principal sub industries that are found in the larger industry include food and beverage, accommodation, the transport industry which caters for logistic services sports, cultural, conference and recreation activities.
All these industries provide job opportunities. Job opportunities in these sub-industries are dependent on the nature of tourist activity in a given area (Eddie et al. 25).
Impediments of employment creation in the tourism industry
As mentioned earlier, the tourism industry is delicate in nature and is thus easily swayed by forces emanating from the whole economy or other sectors connected to the economy. The notable example is the recent financial crisis that originated from the United States and Europe.
The crisis has far reaching effects on the tourism industry. It impeded the capacity of the sector to provide employment opportunities in the global economy. The crisis had a negative effect on the potential of the industry to sustain the employees who had secured employment in the industry.
Research shows that a considerable number of employees are laid off as a result of the crush in travel and expenditure by tourists. The crush is caused by inflationary pressures on economies (International Labor Organization 6).
This makes many people view the industry as a provider of temporary employment rather than permanent employment as is desired by many people in economies.
A noteworthy observation has been made which supports the sustainability of employment in the tourism industry. The easing of financial pressures on countries is often accompanied by positive growth prospects in the tourism industry.
People return to their normal expenditure patterns leading to the revitalization of the tourism industry. This is how the industry has managed to recover from the employment mess that was created by the global monetary crunch. With the improvement of the global financial position, the industry has regained its employment trends.
The other notable factor is that the industry operates basing on seasons. Returns and high levels of employment in the industry are attained when tourism activities are at the pick or high season. During this season, more opportunities are created in the industry with more returns on investments.
When there is a shift in season, employees can easily sustain themselves. Also, other investments can be made from the high returns attained hence creating other job opportunities (Aykac 15).
While the developing countries present the best tourist attraction opportunities for travel tourists, the figures of job creation in tourist industries of these countries are still low. Much job opportunities remain furrow in the developing world.
The employment creation figures that are released in the industry could be increased if the developing world exploits the full potential of the industry. This does not mean that nothing is being done to increase earnings from the industry in the developing parts of the world.
The main thing that is needed is the streamlining of investments in the industry in order to derive more employment opportunities from it. If this is done, benefits among them job creation will be derived from the industry hence raising the economic worth of the industry in the entire world.
Among the most vital areas that need to be improved so as to make the industry proactive in creating job opportunities is the improvement of infrastructure. Infrastructural incapacitation has affected the developing world for a long time thus denying countries opportunities of creating jobs in the tourism sector (“Oecd Tourism Trends and Policies” 89).
The diversity of tourism has added to the potentiality of the industry to provide jobs in the global economy. The hotel, food and accommodation sector is highly backed by tourism either locally or internationally. The hotel and accommodation sector, which is the main host of tourists, has been growing at a faster pace.
New hotel and restaurants are built and expanded on a daily basis in tourist zones across the globe. Hotels employ a substantial number of people especially in places where tourism is the main economic activity (Eddie et al. 26).
An in-depth look of sports tourism, which has been growing at a quick pace, shows that sports tourism creates a lot of employment opportunities and income. Research indicates that sports tourism has grown tremendously.
This is backed by the increasing trend of support for sports as has been witnessed in the organization and hosting of mega sporting events. Examples of these sporting events are the Olympic Games, the FIFA World Cup and other regional sporting events.
Sporting destinations benefit a lot by virtue of hosting sporting events. Sporting arenas and clubs employ people who ensure that the sporting facilities are maintained. The hosting of key sporting events creates temporary job opportunities in destinations where the sporting events take place.
Many investments are being channeled to the promotion of sports tourism. This implies that jobs are being created in sports tourism.
The most notable limiting factor in sports tourism in the developing world is the lack of efficient and effective sporting structures. This limits the exploitation of job creation potential of sports tourism (Homafar et al. 35).
The accommodation industry, which is a sub industry in the larger industry, employs millions of people across the globe. Statistics from the European Commission indicates that accommodation sector in the tourism sector of Europe, provides employment to approximately 13 million people.
This figure comprises of people who have been directly and indirectly employed in the sector (European Commission 9). More research is needed in the tourism industry. This research needs to be directed on seeking mechanisms that can be used to increase the potential of the industry to create more jobs.
Works Cited
Aykac, Aslihan. “Tourism Employment: Towards an Integrated Policy Approach.” Anatolla: An International Journal of Tourism and Hospitality Research 21.1(2010): 11-27. Print.
Eddie, Smith, Webber Dominic and White Sean. “Employment Characteristics of UK Tourism Industries in 2008.” Economic & Labour Market Review 5.1 (2010): 24-45. Print.
European Commission. Tourism Employment. Web.
Homafar, Fazele, Habib Honari, Akbar Heidary, Taghi Heidary and Afsane Emami. “TheRole of Sport Tourism in Employment, Income and Economic Development.” Journal of Hospitality Management and Tourism 2.3 (2011): 34-37. Print.
International Labor Organization. Employment in Tourism Industry to Grow significantly over the Coming Decade, says ILO report.2012.Web.
Oecd Tourism Trends and Policies. Paris: OECD, 2012. Print.