Austria
- On December 3, there was a graduation ceremony for the fourth class of this project which started in 2015 and this year had 48 students
- Thanks to this initiative, young people with limited resources have obtained the training needed to work in the bar, kitchen and maintenance areas of local hotels
On December 3, there was a graduation ceremony for the 48 Dominican students who participated in the fourth class of the Chance project, a pioneering initiative started in 2015 by the Mallorcan hotel chains Barceló Hotel Group, Majestic Resorts, Iberostar Group, Grupo Piñero and RIU Hotels & Resorts. The goal was to provide training and employment opportunities to youth at risk of social exclusion in the Dominican towns of Bávaro and Verón, where the hotel companies have been present for many years.
The participants received free training through the collaboration of the National Institute for Technical-Vocational Training (INFOTEP in its Spanish acronym), whose teaching staff provided the instruction from July 16 to October 24 in the Ann and Tedkheel Polytechnic School. In the first weeks, the students received training on generic subjects like mathematics, Spanish, English and humanities, as well as specialized tourism courses, including the hotel, kitchen, bar and maintenance areas.
After this training period, the young people started their apprenticeships divided into groups in the bar, kitchen, electricity and air-conditioning departments in five of the hotels owned by the chains in Bávaro. Following their graduation on December 3, the students who pass the course will have the opportunity--the "chance" as Dominicans say, hence the name of the initiative--to consolidate their professional future in the sector.
Chance was created in early 2015 as the first joint CSR initiative of the hotel chains Barceló Hotel Group, Majestic Resorts, Iberostar Group, Grupo Piñero and RIU Hotels & Resorts, which came together with the goal of strengthening their social presence in the Dominican Republic with community development through training and employment. After these four graduating classes, and those to come in the future, the Chance project has consolidated its positive impact on the Dominican community, with more than 200 young people in total having successfully graduated.
About Barceló Hotel Group:
Barceló Hotel Group, the hotel division of Grupo Barceló, is the number 3 chain in Spain and 29th in the world. It currently has 249 four- and five-star urban and holiday hotels, and more than 54,000 rooms distributed over 22 countries and marketed under four brands: Royal Hideaway Luxury Hotels & Resorts, Barceló Hotels & Resorts, Occidental Hotels & Resorts, and Allegro Hotels.
About Majestic Hotels & Resorts:
Majestic Resorts is a hotel chain with over 15 years of experience in the “All Inclusive Luxury Resorts” tourism sector in the Caribbean. Our mission is to offer our customers a vacation experience that exceeds their expectations, not only by giving them a privileged setting to enjoy, but also by providing exclusive services for guests looking for more intimate and personalized service, delighting them with our excellent international gastronomic propositions, showing them a good time with our professional entertainment team and its spectacular Caribbean shows. In short, by creating an ideal atmosphere everywhere in our Majestic Resorts world. To do so, we are aware of the importance of having professionally trained employees to offer excellent service to our guests. That’s why we’re very proud of being part of this CHANCE initiative and of providing opportunities and training to young Dominicans.
About Iberostar Group:
Iberostar Group is a 100% family-owned multinational Spanish company headquartered in Palma de Mallorca (Spain). Dedicated to the tourism business since 1956, its business origins stretch back to 1877. With a commercial presence that extends to 35 countries, it has more than 32,000 employees and serves eight million guests per year. The core business of the company is the hotel trade, for which it has more than 120 four- and five-star hotels in 18 countries on three continents. In addition to the hotels, it has two other business units: one centered on travel and managed through the companies Almundo.com and World to Meet (W2M), and the vacation club, The Club.
Iberostar Group is owned by the Fluxà family and chaired by Miguel Fluxà Rosselló, the founder of the Group’s current hotel business and of the Iberostar Hotels & Resorts brand. His daughters Sabina and Gloria hold the company’s two vice presidencies. Sabina is also the CEO of the Group, and Gloria, for her part, holds the position of Chief Sustainability Officer.
About Grupo Piñero:
Grupo Piñero is a Spanish tourism group present across the entire value chain of the vacation industry. It holds leadership positions in the vacation segment worldwide and bases its value proposition on three pillars: its capacity to generate trust; service that pursues excellence, warmth and attention to detail; and unique value for money in its different activity segments.
Grupo Piñero, which has a staff of 14,700 professionals, manages nine million vacation stays per year by guests from over 30 countries. In 2017, it reported EBITDA of 205 million, and its turnover increased 8% compared to last year. Grupo Piñero has three business units: Living Resorts, for its hotel and residential activity, where it has 27 establishments and more than 13,000 rooms in the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Jamaica and Spain, as well as residential complexes and golf courses; Travels, for its tour operator (Soltour) and destination management (Coming2) brands; and Services, which groups other services (sustainable transportation within complexes, production of videos and photographic reports, leisure activities, etc.). In applying its CSR strategy, Grupo Piñero is committed to being a healthy and sustainable company that is sensitive to the well-being of its professionals and makes a positive economic, social and environmental contribution in the places where it operates.
