Essay Example on Hotel Industry in Singapore and Immigrants

Introduction

The hotel industry in Singapore has been on the rise, and this has been contributed by the tourism growth levels in the country. In 2019, the sector is in good shape, and this can be attributed to the romantic comedy dubbed "Crazy Rich Asians" and Trump-Kim summit, and it was noted that the occupancy rate was at 87%, the highest recorded figure in over a decade. The immigration process has been one of the main factors that have been affecting the hotel industry in Singapore, and it has been noted that the movement triggers some positive and negative effects on the industry. A good number of the immigrants have been from the neighboring states, such as Taiwan and the Philippines and their main reason for moving to Singapore is in search for work, tourism, and education. The country has been experiencing labor shortage, and one of the activities that they can undertake to curb the problem is relying on foreign labor. Some of the positive impacts that are triggered by immigration are the reduction in workers turnover rates and increased in production rates. However, some adverse effects like communication barriers and diversity that lowers the productivity levels are known to be some of the factors that are affecting the growth of the hotel sector.

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Negative Impacts

One of the problems that affect the hotel industry in Singapore due to immigration is the communication barriers. The nation has a shortage of labor, and it has been employing the immigrants to help cover the deficit an issue that has been triggered by the desire to operate optimally. However, employing foreigners has led to the problem of the various workforce being unable to exchange ideas and information due to the language barrier. For an organization or industry to operate efficiently, the various stakeholders interested in its affairs must be in a position to work as a unit, and communication is one of the main factors that units them. If they are experiencing language barriers, there are some sectors that will not work as planned leading to the loss of earnings, lack of desired growth and development. This is what has been happening in the Singapore hotel industry where, in some cases, the clients are unable to communicate with the attendant in hotels. The frustration has been driving customers away further worsening the earnings being made.

Another problem that has risen in the hotel industry in Singapore due to the immigration process is cultural conflicts. Culture plays a critical role in the way operations are handled in a given sector. Every society has its way of doing things as dictated by cultural expectations, and when these desires and projections are not met, there is the possibility of conflicts occurring and productivity reducing. A significant number of immigrants have found themselves at a crossroad where they are supposed to operate based on the local culture an issue that has raised problems in their workforce. Cultural diversity may also trigger the issue of discrimination where some of the workers may feel that they are being marginalized due to their nationality. When culture is formed, it refuses to change, and this means that some of the staff members may feel the need to only associate with people of their kind which means that the immigrants will not manage to interact efficiently with the people from the other parts of the world. The result will be a reduction in productivity levels and the earnings being made by the organization.

Low skills and the ability of the workforce has been another issue that relists from the immigration phenomenon as workers from the neighboring states trickle to Singapore in search of labor. They are usually ready to work in any given sector despite their low level of qualification and knowledge, and this tends to affect the hotel industry adversely. Singapore is experiencing labor deficit, and this means that the sector is usually willing to employ the available workforce even though they have not attained the required level of training. The clients raise various complaints regarding the quality of service they are getting, and this is leading to the hotel industry experiencing massive scrutiny and negative feedbacks among the various stakeholders. Despite the immigrants offering labor, the quality of their service is below the level required, and this is an issue that the industry needs to observe and rectify to avoid the sector collapsing.

Positive Effects

The immigrants to Singapore have positive effects on the hotel industry in various ways. In the past, the inadequacy of the labor force in the country was leading to the high turnover ratio where workers were leaving their employment at will for they are assured of getting a job somewhere else. The rate of turnover was high, and this was affecting the operations of the hotel industry. A significant amount of the available resources was being used in the recruitment process, but this problem was solved when the immigrants started to trickle into the country. The hotel industry is no longer experiencing high cases of staff leasing work, and it has managed to save funds that would have otherwise been used in the search for new employees. The reduction in the rate of turnover in the workforces has led to the stabilization of the hotel industry, enabling the various organization to manage their operations effectively. Additionally, it has become an easier process to make plans for the future since the workforce is available and there is a surety that the person given certain responsibilities will be there to manage the projects given until they complete them.

Another benefit that has been realized in the Singapore hotel industry due to the immigration of workers from other states has been the uptake of jobs in the skilled and semi-skilled sectors. In the past, the industry was experiencing a shortage of workers, and this means that the few employees available were selective on the type of job they are taking. The low skilled jobs were lacking people to undertake, and the problem was managed when the immigrants started to trickle into the country. They are undertaking the available opportunities an issue that has triggered massive growth in the sector. Even though in some of the cases they may lack adequate skill level, they have continued to improve with time, and this has enabled them to raise the quality of services that they are offering with time. The increase in productivity levels has been another issue that has been noted from the rise in the number of immigrants trickling to the Singapore hotel industry. The increase in productivity levels has been supported by the issue of the optimal utilization of resources

Importance

The immigration process is important to the growth of the hotel industry in Singapore in various ways. It can be noted that the population growth in the country for the last 10 years has been in a downward trend. The year 2017 registered 0% growth means that the future of the workforce in the country is at risk if some drastic measures are not taken to curb the situation. One of the measures is to encourage families to grow in size an issue that the people of Singapore may not be willing to undertake. The immigration has been the measure that has helped to prevent a breakdown of the hotel industry for it has managed to provide a workforce to cover the country's declining population. Therefore, the Singapore government should support the immigration process and even offer the immigrants the asylum that they deserve for they have been a revelation in the hotel industry. They have played a key role in ensuring its continued sustainability and growth.

The growth of an economy is realized when the factors of production are utilized optimally and when the immigrants undertake their jobs in the hotel industry, a portion of the salaries they receive is invested back to the country's economy. Some of the immigrants have decided to take permanent residence in Singapore, and this means that all the salaries that they get are invested back into the economy. With the continued growth of the economy, the hotel industry will also grow, and this will be important to the future of the industry. Therefore, the government should ensure that it allows more immigrants to the country though tight procedures should be used to ensure that the right processes of registering them are followed to avoid a situation where their influx triggers more demerits than the benefits that can be realized.

The immigration has triggered the rise in the level of entrepreneurs in the hotel industry, considering that the immigrants are starting their businesses in the hospitality industry. The increased competition has led to the entities raising the quality of the service they are offering to remain competitive in the market. The move has led to all the stakeholders and parties involved benefitting with the customers getting quality services while the organizations are making more earnings. Additionally, these immigrants have a hand in the affiliate and support factors to the hotel industry for they tend to supply some of the materials required in the sector. It can be noted that some of the food elements consumed in the hotels are obtained from the neighboring states.

Conclusion

To sum up, the hotel industry in Singapore plays a role in the issue of immigrants a significant number of its workers are from other states. The immigration process has had its adverse and positive effects on the sector. It can be noted that the immigrants have managed to provide an adequate workforce and helped to reduce the rate of employees' turnover. However, employing the immigrants has led to the issue of communication barrier at the workplace arising, leading to a reduction in productivity levels. The quality of services offered is directly correlated to the skill levels of the employees. The immigrants in some of the cases fail to have the right skillset meaning that the quality of services that they offer in the hotel industry is below the required standards. The issue triggers low returns among the hotel players in Singapore and the economy in general.