Strategies for Low Turnover at Park Hyatt Sydney: Tourism Research

This research report investigates the high employee turnover rates within the hospitality industry, specifically focusing on Park Hyatt Sydney in the rapidly developing Australian tourism market. It aims to identify the underlying reasons for this turnover and propose strategies for maintaining a lower rate. The study begins with an introduction to the topic, followed by a literature review that examines the role of employees in the Australian tourism sector, the causes of high turnover, and measures implemented by other companies to address this challenge. The methodology section outlines the research approach, data types, and collection methods, primarily relying on secondary data sources. Data analysis involves evaluating secondary research findings and literature to draw conclusions and formulate recommendations. Key recommendations include developing employee incentive programs, enhancing job orientation and training, and fostering a more supportive work environment to improve employee satisfaction and retention. The report concludes by emphasizing the importance of investing in human resource practices to reduce turnover and ensure the stability of the workforce in the hospitality industry.

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RUNNING HEAD: TOURISM RESEARCH
Tourism Research

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Executive summary
The purpose of the study is to identify the reasons for the high turnover in the hospitality
industry and to provide the suggestions to overcome the issues of high turnover. The topic of
study is” How can maintain low turnover in Park Hyatt Sydney in rapid developing Australia’s
tourism market?”. It is identified that Hyatt Hotels Corporation is global company having 700
properties at more than 50 countries. The study analyses the employment opportunities and
importance of employees in hospitality industry, its challenges and provides recommendations to
overcome the issues. The data is analysed with the secondary information. The recommendations
depicts that there is need to develop incentive, job orientation and trainings to overcome the
issues of the high labour turnover.

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Table of Contents
Executive summary.........................................................................................................................2
Research Background......................................................................................................................5
Introduction..................................................................................................................................5
Project Aim..................................................................................................................................5
Research Objectives.....................................................................................................................5
Research Question.......................................................................................................................6
Literature review..............................................................................................................................6
To evaluate the role of employees in Australia tourism industry................................................6
To identify the reasons behind the high employee turnover in Australia tourism industry........7
To provide recommendations for measures taken by other companies in tourism industry to
overcome the challenge of high employee turnover....................................................................8
Methodology....................................................................................................................................9
Research approach.....................................................................................................................10
Data, its type and sources..........................................................................................................10
Qualitative or quantitative.........................................................................................................10
Data collection...........................................................................................................................11
Data analysis..............................................................................................................................11
Limitations of the study.............................................................................................................11

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Data analysis..................................................................................................................................12
Evaluation of the results of secondary research........................................................................12
Analysis of findings of literature...............................................................................................14
Conclusion and recommendations.................................................................................................15
References......................................................................................................................................17

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Research Background
Introduction
The topic of the study is “How can maintain low turnover in Park Hyatt Sydney in rapid
developing Australia’s tourism market?” this helps to provide the assistance towards the various
reasons for the high turnover at the Hotel industry and tourism industry besides the increasing
tourism in the Australian market. There is need to develop and implement strategy for retaining
the employees for a longer period of time to minimize the employee turnover in the tourism
industry. Besides this, the Hyatt hotels corporation is operating at diverse locations with around
700 properties at more than 50 countries. So the report will focus on Australian market for the
study of the issues related to employee turnover and suggestions to overcome the same.
Project Aim
The main aim of the project is “To maintain low turnover in Park Hyatt Sydney in rapid
developing Australia’s tourism market”. The aim of the study will help to commence the study in
organized and significant manner.
Research Objectives
For the achievement of the aims of the project study it is needed to accomplish the below
mentioned objectives.
 To analyse the role of employees in Australia tourism industry
 To evaluate the various reasons behind the high employee turnover in Australia tourism
industry

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 To provide recommendations to overcome the issue of high employee turnover and the
approaches used by other companies.
Research Question
The following research questions will help to investigate the problem and answering the
questions will help to understand the issues and challenges that have lead to high employee
turnover in the hospitality or tourism industry:
 What is the role of employees in Australia tourism industry?
 What are the reasons behind the high employee turnover in Australia tourism industry?
 What are the measures taken by other companies in tourism industry to overcome the
challenge of high employee turnover and how to implement them?
Literature review
As the name suggests, literature review refers to the assessment of the existing published and
literary material related to the problem of the study. This part of the investigation covers the role
and engagement of the employees in hotel industry, the various issues that lead to high employee
turnover and some recommendations to achieve low turnover in context to Park Hyatt Sydney.
To evaluate the role of employees in Australia tourism industry
As per the information available at Statista, (2018) travel and tourism is one of the significantly
developing industries employing more than 600 thousand population directly in year 2017. The
total tourism related employment was also around 900 thousand in this year. The data indicates
that the there were 530.4 thousand employed population in year 2007 which is continuously
increasing year by year. Hospitality industry is highly dependent on the manpower for providing
wide range of services to the customers towards leisure, holidays, events and business purpose.

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The variety of services leads to employ more number of employees but high pressure and long
time shifts are the challenges that are to be deal with in this industry. In addition to this, there
were around 6807 hotels in Australia employing 188 thousand employees (AHA, 2009). While
comparing this with the data of FY2005 the total employment in the hotel industry was 81675
indicating increased needs of the employees. As per PwCs survey the average of the employees
at the hotels is approximately 34.7 depicting high need and vital role of manpower in this
industry (AHA, 2009).
Figure 1: Direct tourism employment in thousands (Source: statista, 2018).
To identify the reasons behind the high employee turnover in Australia tourism industry
In the words of Wolfe, (2018), hospitality industry at present is facing 28 percent vacancy rate
and more than half of the business face difficulty in hiring and retaining staff. The hotel industry
was having problem of high turnover since long time. The labour turnover rate was 50.74%
every year in comparison to average staff turnover of 15% per year (Workplace info, 2006). The

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main reasons for the high turnover are low pay rates, high pressure, lack of recognition and long
working hours. Similarly, poor working conditions, lack of job security and promotion
opportunities are other challenges that leads to high employee turnover (Nadiri, and Tanova,
2010). There is low investment on the training and development of the employees that leads to
frustration of the employees and low employee satisfaction leads high turnover in this industry.
In addition to this, the contract based employment facilities is also a challenge that has lead to
increase dissatisfaction among the workforce due to lower payments and lack of fringe benefits
for the employees. As per the views of Karatepe, (2013) the organisations environment is also
responsible for high turnover. There are several companies that have no incentive and equality
among the employees which results to discrimination and de-motivation. Poor supervisory
practice, grievance, recruitment and frequent changes in the job responsibility are also a major
factor that impacts the employee turnover. Also, lack of reward for the performer’s leads to
dissatisfaction, if job fails to provide adequate financial incentive, lack of recognition and
competitive compensation are the factor that leads to promote turnover. There is also presence of
toxic environment that affects majority of employees.
To provide recommendations for measures taken by other companies in tourism industry
to overcome the challenge of high employee turnover
According to Robinson, Kralj, Solnet, Goh, and Callan, (2014), the approach to overcome the
issues of high employee turnover are only possible through number of approaches and practice
then for a long period of time. It is needed that the human resource department must focus on
recruiting the persons with high internal motivation and provide proper training to the
employees. It is identified that majority of the businesses in the tourism and hotel industry are
not providing orientation and training facility. In addition to this, DeTienne, Agle, Phillips, and

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Ingerson, (2012), it is also needed to improve in the wages and salaries of the employees are also
a key measure to retain employees. The adoption of job rotation and incentives is also a popular
approach that will support to low turnover in this industry. The management is also needed to
aware the employees towards the opportunities and carrier growth plan to overcome the
challenge of high employee turnover.
In addition to this, Tnay, Othman, Siong, and Lim, (2013), said that there is need to practice
equality and introduce compensation plans for all the employees so that they can be motivated
for remain stable in the hospitality industry. Job rotation will also help to relax the over burdened
employees and diverse environment to the employees will lead them towards multipurpose roles
which can be implemented through training programmes. There is need to spend more on
employee orientation and development as tourism industry is facing high employee turnover as
major challenge besides the increased tourists in the country.
Conceptual Framework
HRM practices in Hotel and
Tourism industry
Lack of supervision
Low pay rates, High
pressure, unhealthy
environment and long
shifts
Career growth, lack of
job security, Lack of
recognition
Grievance, recruitment
and frequent changes in
the job responsibility
Job dissatisfaction Turnover

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Methodology
For the systematic commencement of the investigation of the problem of study it requires to
collect the information to gain accurate conclusions. There are different tools and techniques are
applied for reliable results of the research. Research methodology is vital element that supports
to progress in the research in a structured way.
Research approach
Research design acts as master plan for conducting a study the most extensively used approaches
are exploratory and descriptive designs. Exploratory approach entails towards deep insights into
the topic of the study. This approach tries to explore each of the features of the study topic. On
the other side, descriptive approach tries to gain information in a complete and through manner
(Walliman, 2017). It is suitable for the current investigation due to exploring of the different
dimensions
Data, its type and sources
It is necessary for the researcher to collect the data as this helps to prove the findings of the
research in trusted manner. It helps to gather relative information for the topic that leads to gain
dependable outcomes in the reasonable time. The most rigorously used approaches to collect
data are first hand information and secondary data (Mackey, and Gass, 2015). Former method of
data collection involves interview, questionnaire, observation and survey for the purpose of
collecting data. On the other side, secondary data collection method refers information from
journal articles, magazines, online and published sources and books (Bryman, and Bell, 2015).
There will be use of the secondary information for the purpose of progress in this investigation.

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Qualitative or quantitative
There are also two types of data one is qualitative data other is quantitative data. As the name
suggests qualitative data deals with qualitative factors that are not possible to measure in
numerical form. In addition to this, the quantitative method present the information in
presentable form that facilitates easy measurement and different gathered information can be
easily presented (Bryman, 2016). For the commencement of the current study, a mixed approach
will be utilised i.e. combination of the quantitative and qualitative data. It will be preferred for
the study as it will help to cover all the aspects in context to the research. It will also lead to
improve the reliability and validity of the investigations.
Data collection
The data will be collected from the annual report of the Park Hyatt group of hotels and other
secondary sources such as government published reports, news articles and other online sources
along with scholarly articles for collecting reliable and accurate information.
Data analysis
The collected data is needed to processes with the help of specific tools so that it can be
understood and presentable for a common man. There are several methods that support to
analyse the collected data. The major approaches are regression analysis, SPSS, descriptive
analysis, graphical and Ms excel. In this investigation, descriptive method will be used to
provide detailed and understandable outcomes from the information gathered through the
secondary source (Hair Jr, Wolfinbarger, Money, Samouel, and Page, 2015). This approach helps
to present the information on pictorial form so it is easy to understand and effective decision
making.

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Limitations of the study
The research is limited to Australia continent. In addition to this, it will only focus towards the
hotels specially the turnover of the employees at Park Hyatt Sydney to analyze the issues present
in the hospitality and tourism industry.
Data analysis
This section reports the main findings of the study, including statistical and narrative data. It is
designed to explore relationship between the working environment and employee’s turnover at
hospitality sector in Australia.
Evaluation of the results of secondary research
From the evaluation of the secondary data from the available information on Australian Tourism
labour Force, it can be said that the average employee turnover rate in Australia was 64% in the
period of 2006-2010 which is improved to certain extent and reached to 55% recently (HRS,
2018). This turnover is almost three times in comparison to the benchmark of turnover of general
industries having average staff turnover of 15-18% per year (Australian Government, 2015). This
indicates towards the industry specific features that lead to high employee turnover in the
hospitality industry.
It is also identified that almost half of the tourism business face the challenge of recruitment,
skill or retention issues. The analysis of the labour force turnover in various cities indicates that
the vacancy rate in the Australian hospitality industry range between 4.4% -15.5%. The turnover
is also fluctuating and the minimum turnover was 42.3% in New South Wales. There are some
states having high turnover of 118.0% and 100.2% indicating the criticalness of the industry
(Australian Government, 2015). The main reasons identified for the retention difficulty were

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career development opportunities. The second reason that affected the retention at the industry is
difficulty of working whether it is long working shifts, physical work or pressure. At the same
time the third factor was recruitment offer from other industry (Nadiri, and Tanova, 2010). It is
also identified that the main area affected by deficiency are the labour force working as waiters,
chef and bar attendants.
The information available from the information regarding the employees working at the Park
Hyatt group it identified that the company is employing 45000 employees in 2009 with 80000
associate employees (HYATT, 2018).
There is an increase in the associates employees in the next year indicating the demand of the
employees where as the issues of the long shifts and pressure on the employees demotivate them
to move to other industry. The company recruited 5000 more employees in 2011 leads to 50000
employees at the end of year 2011 but the employees at the end of 2012 remained 45000 this
indicates that there are issues of health and work place environment (HYATT, 2018). This lead

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to high turnover in the group indicating 10% labour turnover rate. The number of employees
remains stable during the rest of the time up to year 2017 (HYATT, 2018). It is also identified
that the industry is facing challenge of high labour turnover due to the extreme pressure and lack
of promotion. The other reasons are lack of training and lack of support from the subordinates
and senior management.
Analysis of findings of literature
The findings of the various books, journals and articles depicts that there is an issue of high
labour/employee turnover in hospitality industry. Hotel and tourism industry is dependent on the
man power due to providing services to large number of visitors in Australia. This has resulted to
provide various services such as events, parties, leisure activities and daily operational activities
at the hotel (Herrera, 2017). The employees are needed to spend long time at the hotels
especially during night which leads to disturbance of the life. In addition to this, the low pay
rates and bad working conditions leads to high employee turnover. The demand of the employees
in this industry is increasing day by day indicating 34.7% increased need of manpower industry
(Australian Government, 2015).
There is also presence of high vacancy rate of almost 28% depicting the high turnover at the
various hotels where as the data analysis indicates that the employee turnover is quiet low in the
Park Hyatt group and the turnover rate identified at the hotel was 10%. The identified reasons for
the increased turnovers in the industry and Park Hyatt hotel was high pressure at the workplace,
low pay rates and prolonged working hours for the workers (AHA, 2009). The other reasons
identified at the time of secondary research were lack of recognition and poor working
conditions in the hospitality industry. The industry is lacking a framework and standards for
improving the conditions of the labour and employees at the hotel industries. There is also

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absence of training and orientation which leads to bigger challenge in front of the employees to
deal with high pressure situations (Tnay, Othman, Siong, and Lim, 2013). The employees also do
not find any promotion or development opportunity which leads to dissatisfaction among
employees.
It is also identified that, hospitality industry is also sourcing employees on contract basis this
leads to affect the wage rate and salaries of the permanent employees. There is also lack of
incentive and poor supervisory practices that leads to demotivate the employees. This is the
result that the employee turnover is around 54% in the hospitality and tourism industry and some
of the states of Australia are having 100% vacancy and turnover rate (Australian Government,
2015).
Conclusion and recommendations
This section of the study discusses the results of the existing literature and the secondary data
analysis. It will provide the comprehensive analysis of the reasons and the issues related to high
employee turnover followed by the recommendations to control high labour turnover.
From the above study, it can be concluded that the high employee turnover is a serious concern
for the organisations operating in the hospitality and tourism industry. The study attempts to
understand the main reasons for the high turnover in the hospitality industry. The study has
identified that the hospitality industry is highly dependent upon the employees. The wide range
of activities is not possible to be carried out without the support of proper staffing but at the same
time the industry is not able to develop a system that will provide them with stable solution to the
problem of employee turnover.

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The main problems identified for the high employee turnover are lack of recognition system,
issues of promotion and growth in career and clarity towards the implications of the practices in
the hospitality industry. The other issues that are identified in the study are high pressure during
peak season and night shifts of the employees. There are issues of poor supervisory practices,
conflict grievance and long shifts that makes it hectic for the employees to continue due to lack
of proper training and orientation system in majority of hospitality industry.
Recommendations
From the above, the useful recommendations to possibly overcome the issues identified in the
study are to imply specific steps and practice the same in long term practices. First of all, it is
required to test the employees for the long term stability followed by adequate training program
so that employees can handle situations in pressurised and critical situations. It is also needed to
introduce incentive and added perks to the employees that work efficiently and provide
additional services (Karatepe, 2013). In addition to this, it is required that there is a job rotation
system followed by incentives so that employees will enhance new skills and have new
opportunities for career growth. Multitasking and managing work in pressurised situations is the
key to sustain in hospitality environment (Robinson, Kralj, Solnet, Goh, and Callan, 2014). at
last there is need to improve the status of the employees to overcome the issue as it leads to huge
loss of valuable time and resources of the Park Hyatt.

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References
AHA, (2009). AUSTRALIAN HOTELS. Retrieved form:
http://aha.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/PWC-Hotel-Industry-Report-20092.pdf
Australian Government (2015). AUSTRALIAN TOURISM LABOUR FORCE REPORT: 2015-
2020. Retrieved from: https://www.tra.gov.au/Archive-TRA-Old-site/Research/View-all-
publications/All-Publications/australian-tourism-labour-force-report-2015-2020
Bryman, A. & Bell, E. (2015). Business research methods. USA: Oxford University Press.
Bryman, A. (2016). Social research methods. UK: Oxford university press.
DeTienne, K. B., Agle, B. R., Phillips, J. C., & Ingerson, M. C. (2012). The impact of moral
stress compared to other stressors on employee fatigue, job satisfaction, and turnover: An
empirical investigation. Journal of Business Ethics, 110(3), 377-391.
Hair Jr, J.F., Wolfinbarger, M., Money, A.H., Samouel, P. & Page, M.J. (2015). Essentials of
business research methods. UK: Routledge.
Herrera, C. (2017). Unfair treatment is common at hotels, workers say. For managers, it’s a
balancing act. Retrieved from:
https://www.miamiherald.com/news/business/article150910822.html

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HRS (2018). The HRS Retention Series: Staff Turnover Costs & Retention. Retrieved from:
http://www.hospitalityrecruitmentsolutions.com.au/employers/articles/The%20HRS
%20Retention%20Series_Staff%20Turnover%20Costs%20&%20Retention.pdf
HYATT (2018). Investor Relations. Retrieved from: http://investors.hyatt.com/investor-
relations/financial-reporting/annual-reports/default.aspx
Karatepe, O. M. (2013). High-performance work practices, work social support and their effects
on job embeddedness and turnover intentions. International Journal of Contemporary
Hospitality Management, 25(6), 903-921.
Mackey, A., & Gass, S. M. (2015). Second language research: Methodology and design.
Routledge.
Nadiri, H., & Tanova, C. (2010). An investigation of the role of justice in turnover intentions, job
satisfaction, and organizational citizenship behavior in hospitality industry. International
journal of hospitality management, 29(1), 33-41.
Robinson, R. N., Kralj, A., Solnet, D. J., Goh, E., & Callan, V. (2014). Thinking job
embeddedness not turnover: Towards a better understanding of frontline hotel worker
retention. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 36, 101-109.
Tnay, E., Othman, A. E. A., Siong, H. C., & Lim, S. L. O. (2013). The influences of job
satisfaction and organizational commitment on turnover intention. Procedia-Social and
Behavioral Sciences, 97, 201-208.
Walliman, N. (2017). Research methods: The basics. UK: Routledge.

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Wolfe, N. (2018). Australia needs to fix its hospitality reputation before infrastructure boom.
Retrieved from: https://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/food/restaurants-bars/australia-needs-
to-fix-its-hospitality-reputation-before-infrastructure-boom/news-story/
b063a400d02c106714a6bd1b0c4c1f53
Workplace info, (2006). Staff turnover a major problem in Australian hotel industry. Retrieved
from: http://workplaceinfo.com.au/termination/resignation/news/staff-turnover-a-major-
problem-in-australian-hotel-industry