|
|
Outstanding Hospitality Employee: Kurdel Dariah
St James Club Morgan Bay is pleased to recognize Kurdel Dariah. Kurdel is employed at the resort as a Laundry Attendant. He is one out of the many of our most valuable employees who not only shines in his department but other departments as well.
He is a pleasant, kind, willing and hardworking young man. He does not hesitate to go the extra mile to assist his colleagues in and out of his own department. He also does very well representing the St. James’s Club Football Team.
We are proud to have him as part of the SJC Team.
Why is it important to recognize employees?
Appreciation is a fundamental human need. Employees respond to appreciation expressed through recognition of their good work because it confirms their work is valued. When employees and their work are valued, their satisfaction and productivity rises, and they are motivated to maintain or improve their good work.
|
|
LUCELEC Scholarship Programme Boasts 25 Students
Five students were welcomed into the Saint Lucia Electricity Services Limited (LUCELEC) Secondary School Scholarship Programme on Saturday August 23, 2014. Their induction at the ninth annual Scholarship Social brings the total number of children in that programme to twenty-five (25).
The Secondary School Scholarship Programme began in 1985 and covers all approved textbooks and supplies, tuition and facilities fees, CXC Examination fees and uniforms. LUCELEC also provides each recipient with a school bag and notebooks.
In reviewing the 2013/2014 academic performance of the scholarship recipients Chairperson of the LUCELEC Scholarship Committee, Ms Miguelle Warner noted two students had performed exceptionally well in the CXC examinations – one of whom would now move on to the Sir Arthur Lewis Community College while the other had phased out of the Programme in pursuit of an undergraduate degree.
“For the academic year 2013/2014, seven students were able to successfully meet and exceed the performance standard of the LUCELEC Scholarship Programme which is a 70% overall pass…Full Story Here.
|
A History of Saint Lucia
now available at
SLHTA Office
The 400-plus page book records the island’s geological formation and subsequent Amerindian occupation, through colonization by France and England to the rise and fall of the sugar industry, the tribulations of slavery, the Brigand wars, Emancipation, the struggle for independence, dignity and respectability, the birth of trade unions and political parties, the demise of the sugar industry and the social revolution created by the advent of bananas as an economic emancipator.
Principal driving force behind A HISTORY OF ST LUCIA was Dutch-born Jolien Harmsen, one of the three authors, who has lived in Vieux Fort since 1994 and holds a PhD in Social History based on research done on the island.
Another author is former Director of the St Lucia National Trust Robert Devaux, who has spent a lifetime promoting the conservation of St Lucia’s natural and cultural heritage and has several published works to his credit.
The trio of authors is rounded off by journalist Guy Ellis, whose career has run side by side with the island’s more recent past and who has written books on St Lucia as well.
|
Understanding Budgeting Preparation, Implementation and Management Workshop
Learning Objectives:
At the end of the programme the employees will:
- Have a basic understanding of the Financial Process of the business
- Increase efficiency in the preparation, implementation & management of departmental budgets.
- Understand the role of budgeting in decision making in the business.
Topics will include:
- Intro To Finance and Accounting
- Elements of Financial Statements
- Decoding the Balance Sheet
- Budgets and Budgeting
- Budgeting Control and Monitoring
Tuesday
9th September 2014
9:00 am – 4:00 pm
GAMA Learning Institute
Cnr. Maurice Mason Ave. & L’anse Rd.
Tel: 758-453-7719 | 758-285-6719
Break and Lunch are included
|
|
|
|
Young Saint Lucian top chefs score at regional cooking competition
 Young Saint Lucian culinary stars Jana James and Yohance Cazaubon have represented their country well, receiving a special award for “Best Use of Indigenous Ingredients” and a Silver Medal for Overall Performance in the recently concluded Caribbean Junior Duelling Challenge competition held in Barbados.
The Soufriere Comprehensive Secondary School students built on the cooking momentum previously set at the Saint Lucia Hotel and Tourism Association (SLHTA) Chef’s In Schools Cook-Off Competition held last February where they outdid nine other participating schools.
Executive Vice President of the SLHTA Noorani Azeez said the two awards were undoubtedly a proud achievement for the young culinary ambassadors and for Saint Lucia as the island continues to capitalize on the international culinary attention secured by the likes of Chef Nina Compton and Chef Edward Harris and the resulting encouragement to utilize local ingredients to create flavorsome dishes.
The Caribbean Junior Duelling Challenge (CJDC) Competition was held from August 21 – 24, at the Culinary Arena in Barbados. This competition is an extension of the Barbados programme “Junior Duelling Challenge”. It is a challenge for young career-building Chefs which allows for competing countries to showcase their national foods as well their own mastered creations.
In addition to the competition, the event included its first ever Caribbean Junior Culinary Conference, which featured presentations by keynote speakers, valued sponsors and informative demonstrations by international chefs. Saint Lucia’s two Junior Chefs challenged six other Caribbean teams from Barbados, Bonaire, Dominica, Grenada, Guyana and St. Croix., Bonaire emerged the overall champion.
SLHTA Project Assistant, Mr. Wendel George coordinated the trip while a member of the 2014 Saint Lucia Culinary Team from Cap Maison, Chef Refer Leonce coached the young cooking champions. Food and Nutrition teacher for the Soufriere Comprehensive School, Ms. Macrina Joseph functioned as their chaperon. Throughout the six years of this competition, Saint Lucia has been a consistently challenging participant and has always delivered exceptional dishes with three victorious wins.
This year, Saint Lucia has proudly received a Silver Medal and most excitingly a special award for Best Use of Indigenous Ingredients.
|
Barefoot Holidays St Lucia Relocating
 We are pleased to inform you that effective 2nd September, 2014, we are relocating to our new office building at Greenwood Terrace, Glasgow Hill (Top of the world), Marisule.
Our website, email, and telephones, will remain the same and will be fully operational during the moving process.
Please update your records with our new mailing address:
Barefoot Holidays St. Lucia
Greenwood Terrace
P O Box BW379
Rodney Bay, St. Lucia
We look forward to serving you at our new location.
|
A NEW SEASON OF
REFURBISHMENT WORKS
AT COCONUT BAY BEACH RESORT & SPA
 Upgrade and refurbishment works of the physical plant is al-ways vital within the hospitality industry. This is because the facilities and amenities of hotels are ex-posed to intensive use. Coconut Bay which boasts of a year round occupancy average of 83% is very mindful of the need to maintain excellent standards in its product offerings. With this in mind, management has embarked on an incremental program of refurbishment over the past three (3) years. Management has been forced to undertake these remedial works in order to maintain an aging infrastructure which was actually built in the 1970s.
In September of this year, the 250 room resort will undergo another season of renovation for a period of one month. All 250 bathrooms units which form part of guest units will be redone. In particular some two dozen rooms will be refurbished to bring them into consistency with the Coconut Bay standard.
Unlike other relatively newer plants, Coconut Bay is particularly challenged in having to foot the high cost of maintenance. The hotel owner nonetheless up to the task of repairing and redressing this “old lady”, which continues to stand like a citadel contributing the social and economic upkeep of residents and the economy of the south. Coconut Bay’s unique feature, the Lazy River, which happens to be the only one on the island, will be subjected to necessary upgrade works during the month long closure. This will include: new bathroom showers, additional public restrooms and a brand new Lobby Bar.
After completion of this new season of refurbishment and remedial works, Coconut Bay will be able to boast a product of supreme excellence. The continued investment in the property by the owner Butch Hendrickson is a testimony of confidence in Saint Lucia and Coconut Bay. This inspite of challenging economic times and continuing increases in operating expenses, i.e. food electricity and water. Mr. Hendrickson is very mindful of the hotel’s contribution as the biggest employer in the south providing livelihoods for over 400 persons.
In speaking to the impending renovation and remedial works he noted: “When I acquired Coconut Bay in 2004, I was mindful of the risk factors but I was also seized of the stunning beauty of the property and Saint Lucia altogether. I have since fallen in love with them both. It has been a rewarding investment. There is no doubt that this hotel contributes in a significant way to the people and economy of the south”. “I am proud of this legacy”. “Coconut Bay forms part of a long term vision for the 80 acre property which will see further expansion and exciting additions in the coming years”.
|
Health & Safety Workshop:
Ebola Sensitization
The Saint Lucia Hotel & Tourism Association (SLHTA) in Collaboration with Ministry of Health Wellness, Human Services and Gender Relations, held another sensitization workshop on Ebola. The purpose of the workshop was to raise the awareness and knowledge of health care providers and other stakeholders in key sectors.
Other objectives of the workshop included:
- Strengthen implementation of standard precautions for infection prevention and control in health care facilities at all levels
- Early detection of cases with symptoms compatible with Ebola Virus Disease (EVD)
- Quick identification/tracing of contacts and follow-up/monitoring for progression of EVD
- reinforce intensive supportive care, administered with strict attention to barrier isolation, to severely ill EVD patients.
Approximately 15 representatives and nurses were in attendance. The workshop was held at the conference room of the Ministry in Castries. The Ministry officials have committed to continue training hoteliers and educating the general public on EVD.
|
Register now for Caribbean Travel Marketplace 2015
Early bird deadline is September 6
Caribbean Travel Marketplace is the Caribbean’s largest, most important and longest-standing tourism marketing event. Over two days of business meetings, over 350 Caribbean travel suppliers and 250 international and domestic buyers from over 20 countries conduct business negotiations that generate future travel to the Caribbean.
Supplier registration is now open, CLICK HERE
You will need the registration login details which have been emailed to the Primary Contact on record: Call the SLHTA for Login/Password.
The company ID is numeric and the Password is alphanumeric. No password will contain the capital letters “O” or “I”. If you see a character that looks like a “0” (zero) or a “1” (one), it is a “0” (zero) or a “1” (one) and not the letters “O” or “I”.
IMPORTANT
Caribbean Travel Marketplace is open only to CHTA members in good standing for the 2014 and 2015 (invoices to be distributed in October) membership year with no outstanding dues to CHTA or its subsidiaries to qualify to attend.
The event dates have a different pattern with the Opening Ceremony onWednesday, January 28th and the event ending the evening of Friday, January 30th.
If you have questions about the event, please contact us via email atevents@caribbeanhotelandtourism.com or via phone at (305) 443-3040.
|
Strong Canadian arrivals and a Successful Winter Season Place Caribbean Visitor Arrivals in line with World Average
The Caribbean recorded a rise in visitor arrivals during the first half of this year, keeping pace with the world average.
The region enjoyed a 4.3 per cent increase during the first six months of the 2014, much in line with the world average of 4.7 per cent, the director of research and information technology at the Caribbean Tourism Organization (CTO), Winfield Griffith, announced tonight on the CTO’s television programme, Destination Caribbean.
Mr. Griffith revealed that just under 14 million long-stay tourists visited the Caribbean between January and June, with nearly half this number ( 6.87 million) coming from the United States of America compared to 6.61 million during the same period in 2013. This represents a 3.9 per cent rise in arrivals from the US market.
“There is enough evidence to suggest that there is growing economic confidence in the region’s biggest neighbour and this is releasing much pent-up travel demand caused by a long recessionary period”. Mr. Griffith said.
The CTO research head stated that just 21 countries in the region were able to breakdown their tourist arrivals by destination in time for the report. From the most recent figures it was clear that more Europeans and Canadians are gravitating to the region showing increases of 6.0% and 4.3% respectively.
For the winter period represented by the first four months of the year, at least five countries reported double digit growth. These destinations continue to power through the current summer showing signs of doing exceptionally well this year.
Griffith also announced that the cruise sector enjoyed an 8 per cent increase in passenger arrivals to reach 13.1 million after the first two quarters of 2014. For more information visit www.onecaribbean.org.
|
|
|
|
