INSIDE THIS
WEEK Contents
NEWS Hot Stories
Police probe reports of travel fraud; Saga considers selling family holidays; Three firms fail to pay minimum wage; Trade sees summer bookings surge 7%; ‘Don’t charge fees to offset card charge’
WIN!
Round-up Agency backs Reuben’s; Princess delay 08 Royal’s new roles; Anslow joins Cunard 10
Create your own symphony to win a place on Royal ship’s
pre-inaugural page 44
Special Reports Face to Face: Chris Townson, Uniworld Not Just Travel Conference, Reading Connections Luxury Argentina
12 14 16
Executive Lunch: Mature travel market 20 Talk Back
25 Atol ‘disgrace’, easyJet, low pay, benefits
NEWS YOU CAN USE Operator Funway, Sandals, AmaWaterways 27
Operator Inghams, Newmarket, Haven 28 Cruise Uniworld, Hurtigruten, Norwegian 32
FRONTLINE Comment Debbie Marshall, Silver Travel 36
Caught on Camera Pictures of the week 38 Readers’ Lives David Russo, Midcounties 40 Mystery Shopper Inverness, Scotland 46
DESTINATIONS Asia
Hong Kong: Explore its lesser-known side 48 Singapore: Go green with a twin-centre 53
FRONT COVER Cover Star David Russo of Midcounties Co-op PTA in Fort Worth, Texas PHOTO: STEVE HOCKSTEIN
Accessible Tourism Questions to Ask: Tips to aid booking
BUSINESS
Expedia Partner Conference, Las Vegas 70 OTA trials package savings functionality
58 WHAT
LUCY DID THISWEEK
Dec 14 04
A NOTE FROM THE EDITOR Pay fair to attract new talent I
t’s no secret that salaries for entry-level roles in travel retail are low. So maybe it comes as no surprise that
three high street travel agencies were among the 260 employers named and shamed last week for paying under the minimum wage (page 5). To be fair to the three firms, it appears no premeditated
or extensive contravening of the UK’s rules was uncovered. But it is a lesson for all employers that there is
increasingly no hiding place for those who fail to pay a fair day’s wage for a fair day’s work. This is not only true for junior roles; firms are facing
greater demands for transparency about salaries to ensure no discrimination on any grounds, including gender and race.
No one would argue against this, although for
many travel agencies surviving on tight margins, the ever-increasing costs of employing and retaining people can be a challenge. But it’s important that the sector as a whole rises to this challenge. It needs a regular fresh intake of new talent, but this will be harder to attract if a reputation for paying poorly sets in. While for many young people the lure of an exciting
career in travel may be strong, the sector cannot afford to exploit their youthful enthusiasm. Either they will be lost to a competitor or
to the industry completely, leaving firms with the additional cost of hiring someone new. Agents are employed to make sales and
create profit; those who get the support they need to do that pay for themselves.
Lucy Huxley Editor-in-chief @Lucy_Huxley
1
2 3
Enjoyed festive drinks with The Travel Corporation teams – Insight Vacations, Trafalgar and Uniworld
Had a catch-up with Abta chief executive Mark Tanzer, looking back at this year’s conference and ahead to next year’s in Seville
Co-hosted 26 travel suppliers and agents at the first Travel Weekly, Club Med and Inspiretec ski trip to Val Thorens, France
14 December 2017
travelweekly.co.uk 3
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