The Ramsey County Board of Commissioners proclaimed August as Hospitality Worker Appreciation Month to recognize the importance and value of hospitality businesses and their workers.

The board honored the hospitality workers in the county who have contributed their time, energy and resources to uplifting the culture of the county, its economy and our spirits. The board also encouraged all county residents to honor and celebrate the contributions of hospitality businesses and those working in them. 

Ramsey County is collaborating with Visit Saint Paul and Visit Roseville on Hospitality Future Finder, an initiative designed to help job seekers find employment and also assist hospitality businesses in filling open positions. After being dramatically affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, many jobs were lost, and now, filling those roles is a critical step in our economic recovery.

The opportunities in the hospitality industry are endless. The industry is thriving and offers the opportunity for professional and personal advancement, schedules to fit your life's needs, and a role to call your own.

To help provide a better picture of Minnesota's workforce demand, Ramsey County Workforce Solutions provides monthly labor market reports on several key industries, including the hospitality industry. Check out all the reports here!  

Data for these reports is provided by Gartner TalentNeuron with analysis support from RealTime Talent.  

When Sahil Taneja decided to leave his career in hotel management to become a Dunkin’ franchise owner in February 2020, he had no idea the impact that decision would have.

“It quickly appeared to not be the best time to leave a job of 18 years,” he said.

But Taneja’s leap into business ownership has led to immense satisfaction.

“I loved what I was doing, but owning a business is so rewarding, because the effort put in equates directly to what you get out,” he said.

Read the full article here. 

On Monday, August 16, Ramsey County and the City of Saint Paul kicked off the Right Track Plus program, a career pathway internship program focused on serving COVID-19 pandemic impacted young adults (aged 18-24) in Ramsey County, at the Frogtown Community Center.

More than 200 Tech for All interns will be working in various businesses, nonprofits and governmental organizations throughout Ramsey County. The Right Track Plus program is funded by the American Rescue Plan Act.

Check out more photos from the event!  

Trish Stevens, Membership Director at Hospitality Minnesota

Q: Share about the work of Hospitality Minnesota.

On April 1, 2020, the three separate associations managed by Hospitality Minnesota (restaurant, lodging and resort & campground), merged to become one organization. The timing of this new relationship and organizational structure was prescient with the coronavirus pandemic causing the shutdown of the hospitality industry. Working truly under one umbrella with one board of directors provided swift and effective support for what would become a prolonged and challenging time for all Minnesota hospitality businesses. Having centralized leadership could not have been better timed to provide a coordinated and consistent response to help Hospitality Minnesota association members successfully navigate through this devastating economic crisis.

Read more about Trish and Hospitality Minnesota.

Promising Practices, Resources, and Policies for Sourcing  Racially Diverse Talent   

By Tony Tolliver, Senior Director of Partnership & Impact

Building an economy that works for everyone will require designing solutions to close employment gaps by attracting, hiring, and retaining diverse talent for good jobs with family sustaining wages. It will require employers to have champions at every level, a willingness to measure progress regularly, and the innovation to make changes, when necessary.

In fact, the economic benefits are in the billions of dollars: according to Fed Communities, if the racial gaps in employment were closed, the GDP for Minnesota would have increased by $2.3 billion each year from 2005 to 2019.

Continue reading the article here.