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Over 50s Soar To New Heights as easyJet Launches Cabin Crew ‘Returnship’ Initiative
www.nitravelnews.com
September/October 2024
Belfast City Airport Welcomes Three New Fire Service Apprentices
THREE new recruits have joined Belfast City Airport’s fire service as part of its prestigious ‘High Flyers’ Apprenticeship Programme. Aoibh Carroll from Camlough, Jay Sempey, from Newtownards and Nicole Dallat from Newtownabbey will gain invaluable on-the- job experience and qualifications throughout their two-year apprenticeship as part of the highly skilled fire service at Belfast City Airport.
Paddy Hughes, Airport Fire Service
EASYJET is launching a new recruitment drive for cabin crew with more over 50s, careers changers and those looking to ‘unretire’
among those being encouraged to apply.
The airline has launched a new initiative dubbed ‘Returnships’, after new research showed that three quarters of over 50’s (74%) agreed that this was the perfect time for a new career and 67% have considered returning to work. As part of the campaign, the airline will offer free online cabin crew career info sessions and a hands-on cabin crew training taster session at its London Gatwick cabin crew training centre, to give those considering a new career the opportunity to find out more about the job from the airline’s crew training and recruitment experts. Since launching its first campaign in 2022 to show that anyone with the right skills regardless of their age can become cabin crew, the airline has seen the number of new hires over the age of 50 more than double, while the number of over 60s joining as cabin crew has increased four times over. With the latest ONS data* showing
that the employment
rate for those over 50 is increasing again, easyJet wants to encourage more of this experienced and skilled demographic to apply for the hundreds of cabin crew roles available for 2025 in many of easyJet’s bases across the UK, to bring their valuable experience to the profession.
New research by the airline of 2000 Brits over 50 revealed that 67% of over 50s have considered returning to work and nearly half (46%) have considered a new career. The significant majority agreed that the main reason for doing so would be to take on a new challenge (82%), while 77% agreed this would be to have many experiences as possible and two thirds agreed the change would be to pursue a dream job (66%).
When asked what their main motivation would be, over a third said they enjoyed working and keeping busy,
while a similar
number wanted to find a role they were passionate about (30%). 74% agreed the perfect time to make a career change was after 50, with 63% saying this was down to the wealth of transferrable skills and experiences they’ve acquired that are valuable for many careers, while 40% said they had more freedom,
for example because children have left home. Looking for new experiences
(37%), lots of variety (35%), and learning new skills (34%) polled top of the things over 50s are looking for in a new job, while 31% said they wanted the chance to meet more people.
Despite more than half believing they could offer problem solving skills (54%), strong communication (48%),
great interpersonal skills
(47%) and the ability to train others (46%) in a new career, when asked why they had not yet taken the leap over a quarter (28%) believed they were at a disadvantage against younger candidate and 20% didn’t know if they would qualify. In fact, when it came to becoming cabin crew 71% of those survey believed that their age would stop them being accepted for the job, while 16% believed that they could not apply above the age of 30. Half (49%) mistakenly believe the role would have to mean being away from home for long periods of time and nearly a third (32%) said they thought it wouldn’t offer them the flexibility they were looking for. A quarter (24%) believed that they would need to learn a second language in addition to English to be considered for the role. easyJet’s ‘Returnship’ initiative
will offer those who are curious about the career but thought it may have been out of reach the opportunity to learn more about the job and application process directly from easyJet’s recruitment and training experts, as well hearing from those cabin crew who made the move themselves in their 50s.
Manager at Belfast City Airport, commented “We are thrilled to be welcoming three new recruits to our highly coveted High Flyers Apprenticeship Programme. “Now in its eleventh year, High Flyers has gone from strength to strength, with 100% of our apprentice firefighters progressing to full time employment. “We had a record number of applications this year, all of an exceptionally high calibre, however, Aoibh, Jay and Nicole stood out as remarkable candidates. “We look forward to working alongside these talented young people and helping them fulfil their ambitions to become fully qualified firefighters.”
Designed to tackle youth unemployment in Northern Ireland and offer opportunities to those aged 17-24, the High Flyers programme has proven extremely popular since its launch, reinforcing the growing demand for specialised training and employment opportunities in Northern Ireland. A comprehensive and dynamic programme, High Flyers provides a platform for local talent to thrive in a rewarding career by offering a unique pathway for individuals to upskill and further develop their existing strengths and talents.
Belfast International Airport Awarded Silver Level in Business Biodiversity Charter
provides an important framework for organisations to implement initiatives and assess their overall impact on biodiversity. “We have been working hard over the
last three years to transform land into an area filled with natural beauty to boost biodiversity called
BELFAST International Airport, member of VINCI Airports, has been awarded silver level in the Business Biodiversity Charter, an external assessment of an organisations commitment to improve biodiversity conservation in Northern Ireland.
With around 70% of its airport platforms composed of natural environments, preserving biodiversity is one of VINCI Airports’
Biodiversity Charter is an initiative of responsible business network Business in the Community in partnership with Northern Ireland
The Charter helps businesses implement biodiversity initiatives and provides external recognition of measures already in place to ensure that plants, animals, bugs, bacteria, habitats and humans can thrive and work effectively and in balance.
Kevin Napier from Belfast International Airport commented on the
delighted to be recognised for our commitment to biodiversity. This Charter
Seasonal Cabin Crew Campaign Off to a Flying Start
HAYS Travel’s cabin crew recruitment campaign has attracted record engagement and applications, just days after launching. First trialled in 2023, the initiative invites cabin crew
– who would normally seek alternative employment in the winter – to apply for customer-facing roles in Hays Travel branches across the UK, during the peak January sales period.
Last year 148 cabin crew went through a rigorous training programme to prepare for roles working with colleagues in Hays Travel branches, who welcomed the extra support. Jonathon Woodall-Johnston said:
“Colleagues in
branches loved having cabin crew alongside them. Not only are they exceptional at caring for our customers, they are also calm under pressure, and have excellent
product and destination knowledge.” “The response to our campaign has been outstanding.
In just three days we have received over 450 applications from cabin crew, who keen to join us for the winter season.” Hays Travel intends to offer 400 successful applicants
fixed term contracts – typically six months – working in one of its 490 retail branches. This year’s campaign includes posts on TikTok designed to encourage cabin crew colleagues to see themselves pivot from live on board to life in branch. These posts have already attracted almost forty thousand views and hundreds of likes. Hays Travel’s recruitment team is working through the applications already received and those that follow, with the next step being interviews in September.
accolade; “We are wildlife charity Ulster priorities. The Business & Wildlife.
situated close to our car parks. In that time, we have introduced several projects give back to the environment. “Millenium Wood has been reinvigorated by coppicing Ash trees, which improves the overall health of the woodland area, allowing other plants to flourish. Part of this phase also involved planting over 200 native tree species such as hazel, rowan, alder and native bulbs and wildflowers. Additionally, we are continually evaluating the quality of soil to prevent soil erosion as part of our overall biodiversity strategy. “We have created a space that wildlife and
plants can flourish, even our employees have experienced the health and wellbeing benefits by getting involved in initiatives including a recent butterfly count bringing staff who would not normally work alongside each other together. As a responsible business we will continue to work alongside partners such as Belfast Hills Partnership and Antrim & Newtownabbey Council to ensure everything we do is meaningful and impactful.”
‘Millenium Wood’,
Southeast Asia to be Easier Reached by UK Travellers as British Airways and Bangkok Airways Team Up
BRITISH Airways customers now have a wider choice of Southeast Asian holiday destinations, thanks to an increase in flights from London to Bangkok, and an expanded codeshare partnership with Bangkok Airways.
The airline announced earlier this year that its direct route from London Gatwick to Bangkok will return on 28 October 2024, operating three times per week to the Thai capital. As of this week, the service will increase to up to five times per week between January and March 2025. Furthermore,
existing codeshare partnership with Bangkok Airways has been expanded to open up five new destinations across Thailand and Cambodia,
customers to connect seamlessly in Bangkok onto: •
Thailand •
(USM), Thailand •
(CNX), Thailand •
(SAI), Cambodia allowing
(PNH), Cambodia •
Phuket (HKT), Koh Samui Chaing Mai Phnom Penh Siem Reap
Customers will have the option to incorporate a stopover in Bangkok into their journey before continuing onto their final destination on the same ticket.
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