Tourism sector regains its attractiveness – Lapland Hotels the most often considered employer among hotel chains in Finland

Press release | Tue Dec 12 09:00:00 2023

During the past autumn, recruitment has continued to pick up in the tourism sector after the challenging years following COVID-19. The number of jobs has increased and the tourism sector has regained its attractiveness. Competition for skilled employees is growing and employers are being compared more and more closely. According to a recent survey* commissioned by Lapland Hotels & Safaris, Lapland Hotels is considered as a future workplace the most among the hotel chains in Finland.

Lapland Hotels & Safaris carried out an extensive recruitment campaign in the autumn of 2023, followed by a survey that mapped, among other things, the attractiveness of different employers. The survey was answered by more than 300 Finns who work or could think of working in the hotel and restaurant industry or other tourism-related jobs. According to the results, Lapland Hotels is the most often considered future workplace out of the hotel chains in Finland.

“We are delighted that Lapland Hotels is the preferred workplace choice for both current and potential employees. According to the survey, people consider us a valued and secure employer with distinct personality,” says Taru Tahvanainen, HR Manager at Lapland Hotels & Safaris.

“We achieved the best results among the 25–34-year-olds. On the other hand, the 35–45-year-olds, in particular, consider Lapland Hotels & Safaris to be a warm-hearted, pioneering workplace that offers a lot of career path opportunities,” she says.

Almost all jobs have been filled

During the past autumn, Lapland Hotels & Safaris has been hiring both seasonal workers and professionals for year-round employment. The jobs have included, for example, receptionists, department heads, chefs, waiters and ski instructors, as well as safari and dog sled guides.

“We have been able to fill almost all of our open positions for this year. Lapland Safaris’ seasonal jobs are now 100% filled. Positions at hotels and slopes are also currently 98% filled, which is considerably more than last year,” says Tahvanainen.

Many of those who left the travel industry during the COVID-19 period have returned to familiar work, and at the same time, Lapland is attracting more and more professionals from abroad. Lapland now holds a particular interest for both customers and employees.

“We offer diverse career paths around northern experiences. We are constantly working to ensure that we have enough competent staff and that we are an attractive employer for both our current staff and new talent. Currently, the internationality rate for seasonal workers is 35%. We believe that it will continue to grow,” says Tahvanainen.

More and more seasonal workers are returning

Depending on the season, Lapland Hotels & Safaris employs around 700–1,950 tourism professionals. The turnover of permanent staff is low and the return rate of seasonal workers has also improved steadily, being currently at 50%. This year, the return rate for seasonal workers increased by 10% compared to 2022.

“Our employees' willingness to recommend, NPS, has risen by almost
10% between spring 2022 and spring 2023. Our employee satisfaction is at a good level, which has been affected, among other things, by the fact that we have putting special effort in the orientation of new professionals, the development of skills and the development of supervisory work and management.

“Our staff is highly motivated and professional, which is also reflected in our customer experience and excellent customer satisfaction. Our customer satisfaction has been high for a long time and continues to rise steadily. Our NPS figure is significantly higher than the average of international hotel chains,” says Tahvanainen.

* The survey commissioned by Lapland Hotels & Safaris was conducted as a quantitative online panel survey during weeks 42–44/2023. The survey was answered by more than 312 Finns between the ages 18 and 45, who work or could think of working in the hotel and restaurant industry or other tourism-related jobs.

Image copyrights: Lapland Hotels & Safaris

Media inquiries:

Taru Tahvanainen, HR Manager, Lapland Hotels & Safaris, +358 (0) 400 690 543
taru.tahvanainen@laplandhotels.com

Travel enterprise Lapland Hotels & Safaris offers Northern experiences for all senses. It consists of Finland’s largest private hotel chain, Lapland Hotels, the largest experience service company in the Nordic countries, Lapland Safaris Group Oy, and Lapland Ski Resorts. The group has approximately 1,950 employees in total.

Lapland Hotels has 19 hotels, more than 2,400 rooms and apartments as well as over 10,000 restaurant seats around Finland: in Ylläs, Levi, Saariselkä, Rovaniemi, Olos, Luosto, Kilpisjärvi, Pallas, Hetta, Helsinki, Tampere, Oulu and Kuopio.

Lapland Safaris offers unique outdoor activities in five destinations in Lapland: Rovaniemi, Ylläs, Saariselkä, Levi and Luosto.

Lapland Ski Resorts comprises five ski centres located in Ylläs, Luosto, Olos, Pallas and Rovaniemi. www.laplandhotels.com/en/, www.laplandsafaris.com/en/