UK hotel chain Travelodge has launched a new recruitment programme specifically designed to help parents re-enter the workplace.
The programme launched on 14 January 2019 and will enable successful candidates to take advantage of flexible working hours, training, coaching from a work buddy and online careers advice, tailored to parents going back to work.
New starters will also have access to the organisation’s benefits package, which includes discounted hotel stays, and will be able to join Travelodge’s management programme, Aspire.
Peter Gowers, chief executive officer at Travelodge, said: “Travelodge is growing quickly and we want to unlock the potential of Britain’s mums and dads as they return to work. Hospitality can offer a great career for parents, with jobs close to home, hours that can match the school run, benefits that suit families and a path into management.”
Travelodge, which has approximately 12,000 UK employees, will be offering returning parents roles across its 558 UK hotels, as well as within its head office and at new hotels being built. Candidates will be able to apply for a range of jobs, such as hotel manager, assistant hotel manager, receptionist, bar cafe team member and housekeeping team member.
The recruitment programme has, in part, been designed to help Travelodge manage its business growth; the organisation plans to open an additional 100 hotels over the next five years, creating around 3,000 new jobs.
A survey Travelodge conducted with YouGov of 451 unemployed parents in August 2018 helped inform the structure of new programme. It found that, although 86% of respondents wanted to return to work, 59% stated that the scarcity of jobs with flexibility around the school run was their biggest challenge.
Gowers added: “We are preparing in earnest for post-Brexit Britain. With thousands of new jobs to fill, we need more new [employees] than ever. We see vast untapped potential in parents who want to return to work. YouGov research shows that many parents want to get back into a job, especially one that can lead to a career, and the first step is often the hardest.
“We’ve based our new programme on making it easier than ever for mums and dads to work around the school run and climb the career ladder [while] raising their family.”