Alabama Plans to Spend $1 Million To Train 2000 Students for Hospitality Jobs

Since the whole of hospitality industry is suffering from labor shortage after the pandemic outbreak, Alabama is planning to spend around $1 million to prepare around 2000 students to work in the hospitality industry.

Republican Governor Kay Ivey informed about this decision on Wednesday, 5th January 2022, during a tourism conference on the Gulf Coast. Government grant would be given for a certification program which would enale students to learn the skills needed to operate in the hospitality industry.

Nearly 2000 students could be trained, as part of the program, in the state’s 24 community colleges. The certification program was developed by the Governor’s Office of Education and Workforce Transformation through the Alabama Community College System Innovation Center.

Alabama’s hospitality industry is a $16 billion industry, yet they often suffer from shortage of well-trained workforce.

The money will allow students to train online through the state’s two-year college system at locations across Alabama.

State tourism director Lee Sentell says industry leaders on the coast and in Birmingham, Mobile and elsewhere sought state assistance in attracting new workers.