NTUC forms 22-member network to offer accessible training for hospitality professionals

THE National Trades Union Congress Hospitality and Consumer Business Cluster (NTUC HCBC) has formed a network of 22 partners to better curate training programmes for hospitality professionals in Singapore.

Known as the Hospitality ABC (HABC) Network, the collaboration aims to equip hospitality professionals with "accessible, bite-sized competencies" so that they may take on higher-value-added roles, and keep pace with the industry's transformation.

The new network will empower hospitality professionals with the flexibility to select what to learn, and how to learn - be it through online lessons, face-to-face classes or hands-on sessions, NTUC said.

It will also offer training programmes for all categories of hospitality employees including leadership, digital and operations disciplines.

During the launch of the HABC Network on Wednesday, the 22 partners formalised a memorandum of understanding, which was witnessed by NTUC's secretary-general, Chan Chun Sing.

Lead coordinators for the network include NTUC HCBC; the Food, Drinks and Allied Workers Union; as well as the Attractions, Resorts and Entertainment Union.

Going by statistics from the Singapore Tourism Board (STB), the hospitality industry contributes about 4 per cent to Singapore's GDP (gross domestic product) and employs some 33,000 workers.

Said STB's director of hotels and sector manpower, Ong Huey Hong: "Deep skilling our hospitality workforce has always been a key priority for STB, and this formed one of the pillars of our Hotel Industry Transformation Map. We hope that hospitality professionals would be able to ride on the strength of this newly-formed industry-wide network and take up more training courses to equip themselves with skills that are industry relevant."

STB is the lead government agency for the HABC network.

Separately, the Ascott Centre for Excellence (ACE) on Wednesday said that it is collaborating with NTUC as a training provider and institute of higher learning.

"By joining the Hospitality ABC Network, we aim to leverage our expertise to enhance the skills of the hospitality workforce in Singapore. As ACE is the global hospitality training centre of serviced residence operator, Ascott, we are able to share the team's best practices and experience from managing properties across over 30 countries worldwide," said ACE's vice-president, Willie Ong.

Ascott is a subsidiary of mainboard-listed CapitaLand.