Hilton Pattaya Supports Youth at the Youth Career Development Program in Partnership with UNICEF as Part of Hotel’s Bright Blue Futures Initiative Team Members Come Together to Bring Stability and Hope to Youth in Pattaya

PATTAYA, Thailand – September 19, 2013 – Hilton Pattaya recently participated in The Youth Career Development Program in partnership with UNICEF, which runs between April 25, 2013 and September 7, 2013 in a show of support to youths in Pattaya, Thailand. To cater to the growing demand amongst local youths for careers in the hospitality industry, community partners including UNICEF have joined efforts to organize The Youth Career Development Program as a way to generate awareness and positively impact these youths. The initiative provides a comprehensive 20-week hospitality training program for selected students in Thailand to equip them with hospitality skills in various departments such as: food and beverage, kitchen, housekeeping and engineering. This is the first time that Hilton Pattaya is participating in this initiative by supporting four student trainees who will be trained on-property under a mentor system.

Hilton Pattaya’s participation in The Youth Career Development Program is part of its support of Bright Blue Futures, a global community relations initiative by Hilton Hotels & Resorts, designed to help young people achieve stability through the delivery of basic needs such as food, shelter and hope through education, life skills development, training and employment. As the flagship brand of Hilton Worldwide, Hilton Hotels & Resorts is contributing to the company’s broader goal of creating opportunities for young people by engaging 144,000 team members across communities in this brand-wide effort.

“The Youth Career Development Program was established to support the growth and development of youths in our community,” said Gerard Walker, director of operations, Hilton Pattaya. “This is a challenge we face globally, and at Hilton Pattaya, we see this as an opportunity to provide the resources we have available at our hotel to help young people reach their full potential.”

Established in 1995, The Youth Career Development Program has provided resources, volunteers and mentors to developing youths in Thailand who experience sex trade issues, lack of proper education and career planning. More than 1,000 youths have been positively impacted by this effort to date, allowing them to lead a more well-balanced, thriving life toward a brighter future.

 

Youths are the next generation of leaders, innovators, employees and world travelers, comprising approximately one quarter of the world’s population. Approximately 200 million youths worldwide live in poverty and an estimated 75 million youths are unemployed. The travel and tourism sector employs 255 million people around the world, and by the year 2022, an estimated 73 million new travel and tourism jobs will be created, providing ample opportunities for today’s youths as they enter the workforce in the hospitality industry. Hilton Pattaya team members believe they can make a difference in the future of Pattaya’s youths through their ongoing commitment to UNICEF.

 

Media can access information about Hilton Pattaya at http://news.hilton.com/pattaya. More information about Hilton Worldwide’s global commitment to create opportunities for youth and a full version of the Creating Opportunities for Youth in Hospitality white paper is available at hiltonworldwide.com/youth. Learn more about Bright Blue Futures by visiting www.youth.hilton.com.