Making The J-1 Work And Travel Program Work For You | Facing the Challenge: Adequately Staffing for Seasonal Business Needs

Seasonally based hospitality employers have frequent challenges finding large numbers of service-oriented staff required to support business needs for what are often short peak seasons. Being insufficiently staffed has a detrimental effect on the levels of service that a hotel or resort can provide and can mean missed revenue generating opportunities. As HR professionals know, any unfilled requisition results in increased overtime, overworked team members trying to pickup the slack, and frustrated or inconvenienced guests. All of these factors can have a long-term impact on the financial success of a hotel or resort destination as any negative guest experience has a real and detrimental impact on a guest’s intent to return.

The location of the business is another contributing factor to the difficulty of hiring seasonal staff. Remote vacation destinations such as Martha’s Vineyard or Hilton Head Island only have an adequate number of locals to staff the properties on a year round basis, and do not have the potential to grow rapidly to support the staffing levels associated with peak seasons.

Most local residents require jobs which offer year round income, employment stability and the benefits associated with full time work. Therefore, the prospect of only being hired for three or four months of the year is either not attractive, or not a viable financial option. As a result, resorts and hotels are often unable to depend on the local workforce to support dramatic seasonal peaks that demand large numbers of workers for short periods of time. Isolated resort areas may have already tapped the local market for all qualified or viable candidates.

The cost to advertise, select, hire and train a large number of employees for a relatively short period is also immense. As the pressure of getting manpower to meet the growing needs of the season intensifies, there is a danger that quality selection processes and “best fit” hiring can be forgotten. Hiring criteria may be seriously compromised in order to identify enough “bodies” to serve drinks and bus tables. The result is a new hire that does not meet the company’s normal hiring guidelines and may be completely disengaged from the guest experience, impacting the service goals of the employer.

Promise of Benefits: The Problem Can Be Solved

Many HR professionals seeking a solution to the challenge of seasonal staffing are turning to the large number of eager international students who arrive in the United States every winter and summer to participate in the Exchange Visitor Program. This program, sponsored by the Department of State, has been designed to allow foreign nationals the opportunity to experience the culture of the United States and then return home to share their experiences. The Exchange Visitor Program is also based on reciprocal agreements with other countries, which in turn encourage Americans to go abroad and experience a slice of life overseas during their summer vacation.

The Exchange Visitor Program includes 13 different program categories that allow individuals to participate in a variety of cultural exchanges in the United States, ranging from camp counselor to spending a year abroad as a high school exchange student. However, it is the flexible Work and Travel category that offers HR Directors and Resort Managers a predictable supply of international workers to ease the burden associated with seasonal staffing demands, and often at no cost to the employer. More and more employers are turning to Work and Travel Program participants as an important component of their seasonal hiring strategies.

All Work and Travel participants are over 18 years of age and enrolled in a full time college or university program, and must also be registered for a full-time course load for the semester following their participation in the program. This brings a different caliber of worker to the hospitality industry where college degrees are often the exception rather than the rule.

Work and Travel Program – Realizing the Benefits

The Work and Travel program is a viable staffing solution for all resorts suffering from seasonal worker shortages. The benefits you can realize include:

• The Right Skill Set at the Right Time - A sizeable number of international students arrive each summer and winter seeking work. Participants originating from northern hemisphere countries arrive as early as mid-May and as late as early August. Participants from southern hemisphere countries generally arrive from early to mid-December.
• Staffing Flexibility - Staggered arrival dates allow a resort to ramp up their staffing levels along with the occupancy levels of their properties. Different summer vacation dates, some lasting until the end of September, mean a resort will not be faced with the problem of all of their seasonal help leaving at the same time to return to school before the busy Labor Day holiday.
• Bi-Lingual Capabilities - Although careful selection must be made to ensure that international workers are able to speak and understand English at a level suitable for the position they will fill, there are also benefits to hiring bi-lingual employees. Strategic hiring from countries that match the demographic of your international guests can be an innovative way to improve service levels. The bi-lingual, and sometimes tri-lingual abilities of the international students have a great impact on helping guests from these same countries immediately feel at home within your resort. The introduction of international employees can also be a valuable supplement to ongoing work place diversity initiatives.
• An Eager and Motivated Workforce - Program participants arrive eager to work and willing to participate in unskilled or service sector jobs. This is something many domestic college workers are not prepared to do during their vacations, preferring to seek internship experiences that will benefit their long-term career goals upon graduation. Other common characteristics are an enthusiasm to learn about the U.S. culture and a strong desire to interact with Americans in order to improve language skills and to experience a slice of life. This makes them a natural choice in high guest contact roles.
  An additional benefit for participants on the Work and Travel program is the ability to travel for up to 30 days at the end of their working period. This serves as motivation for them to work as many hours as possible to save money for their “final trip” around the USA. This helps provide coverage for full time staff, many who will be requesting their own vacation time during seasonal peak periods when program participants are available for additional coverage.
• Financial Savings - Work and Travel participants are subject to Federal Minimum Wage requirements, and must receive the same pay and benefits as received by their American counterparts working in the same positions. However, employment of participants also results in a 7.65% saving on payroll costs as FICA contributions for Social Security, Medicare and Unemployment do not have to be made. Over the course of the season this can be a considerable saving.
• Returning Workers - Work and Travel program participants can return for a subsequent season as long as they do so before they graduate from their course. This “repeatability” is another advantage for employers, as a returning worker can save the company substantial training dollars on future seasons. Although this is a benefit to the employer, the sponsoring organizations are limited to repeating no more than 10 percent of their previous year's participants.

The Administrative Requirements of Hiring Foreign Employees – It’s Easier Than You Think!

Interviewing, selecting and hiring foreign employees and then ensuring they have the necessary work authorization for just one season could appear overwhelming to your already overworked resort Human Resources team. Fortunately, there are many companies that actively compete to make this process as simple and hassle free as possible. The Work and Travel program requires a designated program sponsor, and several of these sponsors provide the following services and benefits:

• Free placement of international workers (based on a certain quota being hired).
• Active coordination of recruitment activities. Many allow the employer to be actively involved in the screening and interview process of the workers. Some even pay all expenses for the recruitment trip or “road show” to allow candidates to be interviewed in person by HR representatives. This is a substantial saving in recruitment costs as no expensive advertising is required. In addition, some companies also pre-screen candidates for motivation, communication, and similar work experience, saving the employer valuable time.
• Fast processing of the worker’s visa application and all paperwork associated with securing work authorization.
• Informative orientation provided to all participants, including a pre-arrival information session and an arrival orientation session to assist them in adjusting to life in the United States. Topics include dealing with cultural differences, safety, US laws, etc.
• Ongoing advice throughout the season to employers on the logistics of the Work and Travel program, and 24-hour support and assistance to participants in the event of an emergency situation.
• Pre-paid health insurance for participants through their sponsor, eliminating the need for the worker to participate in the employers plan, have the employer pay a benefits fringe, or be concerned that the employee is working without health insurance.
• Continual support and recommendations to employers building their program for the first time.

Best Practice Tips for Utilizing Work and Travel Participants

The following best practices will help to ensure successful implementation of the Work and Travel program for companies who are considering this solution for the first time:

• Housing - Provide affordable and conveniently located housing. Or, assist the students in locating such accommodation upon arrival.
• Transportation - Share information on local bus routes, negotiate discounted bus passes, or even supply bicycles or provide transportation to and from work, if feasible.
• Customized Orientation – Provide a thorough welcome orientation to help prepare the international participants for their immersion into American business culture. Give valuable advice on recognizing US currency, understanding the expectations of guests and share local information on community resources. This will allow for a smooth transition and set them up for a successful season.
• Social Networking - Put together a calendar of social and recreational activities throughout the season for the participants and your domestic workers. These events could include hosting themed dinners to share participants’ food, music and traditions with your staff. These will encourage cultural exchange and be a form of recognition and relaxation for all employees during a hectic season.
• Completion Incentives – Create a perk to encourage participants to work the full season. For example, a cash bonus or train and bus tickets to assist with their final trips.
• Referral Programs – Design a referral program to motivate your participants to promote your resort to their friends and family when they get home. This positive word of mouth will encourage other students to be future program participants and also give positive PR for your resort internationally.

Meeting the Challenge: The Answer to Seasonal Staffing

Hopefully, you can now see the advantages of the Work and Travel Program and the benefits of utilizing international students to ease the burden associated with seasonal staffing demands. Incorporating the Work and Travel Program as a component of your seasonal hiring strategy may be the long awaited solution you’ve been looking for. In addition to easing the burden of seasonal staffing on the HR department, it also offers financial benefits to employers and, most importantly, to resort guests who will not experience a negative impact from inadequate service levels resulting from staffing challenges.

If you would like additional information on the Work and Travel Program or other Exchange Visitor Programs sponsored by the Department of State, please visit their website at: exchanges.state.gov/education/jexchanges