The tourism body Women in Tourism, designed to motivate women working in tourism, has found that most people working in the industry are women, but only a fraction of those reach senior positions.
The group was set up earlier this year to identify the opportunities and challenges for women in the tourism industry.
About a third of those who responded to the 2016 Women in Tourism survey said that having a family or being a carer had impacted on their career. But 57% said that they are simply passionate about the job, although just under half recognise that men progress faster in the industry.
The group is meeting this morning to hold a seminar along with Tourism Society Scotland to hear more about these results at their conference at the EICC.
Susan Russell, chair of Women In Tourism, said: “The results from the survey provide sector-wide evidence for the first time that we have an ambitious female workforce working across all parts of the tourism industry. While barriers or challenges have been identified, respondents were clear that they have the right skills and attributes to reach roles of leadership, but would welcome support through networks and mentoring to enable them to achieve their full potential.
“The support for Women In Tourism has been fantastic and we’re delighted to be hosting our first event during Scottish Tourism Week in partnership with Tourism Society Scotland. It was during this week last year when we became aware of the gender imbalance within senior roles across the sector and we’re thrilled to be part of the Signature Programme at the Scottish Tourism Alliance conference. This will be the next step in the evolution of our project and we look forward to working with both female and male colleagues across Scotland as Women In Tourism continues to develop.”
Women in Tourism is a not-for-profit organisation set up by a group of women, some of whom completed Edinburgh Napier University’s Destination Leaders Programme.
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