Government, hoteliers and union leaders have launched a campaign to attract more Bermudians into the hotel industry.

The announcement was made on Friday at the sixth meeting of the group, comprised of Government, the Hotel Owners of Bermuda and the Bermuda Industrial Union (BIU), who joined forces in 1998 to respond to the challenges facing Bermuda's tourism industry.

In a joint statement issued by the co-chairs of the meeting -- Premier Jennifer Smith and Mr. John Pye, Vice President of Fairmont Hotel Owners' Group -- it was said that discussions had focused on specific steps to encourage the continued growth and development of this critically important issue.

The Premier said: "I am delighted at the excellent progress the Government and the hotel owners are making together in a number of areas.

"This is a listening Government and today's discussions represent the fruits of our new co-operative approach.

"I am particularly pleased with the intentions announced today to train a greater number of Bermudians to seize opportunities in the hotel industry.

" I am also greatly encouraged by the plan to enable Bermudians in the industry to gain more directly from their contributions to the success of the hotels under the success sharing scheme.'' Mr. John Pye and his team unveiled at the meeting a number of new initiatives, including a "success sharing plan'' which is an incentive programme developed by and for employees.

The plan was developed by the compensation task force, which included representatives from the Hotel Employers Board (HEB), and the BIU. It will enable employees to benefit financially from the increased success of the hotels.

Antecedents were pleased to hear the good news that during the year 2000 for the first time in a decade, Bermuda's hotels had enjoyed rates in excess of 80 percent for the peak season beginning in May.

Although these are modest gains, they point to a turn-around in the hotel industry and a mid-year snapshot of participating hotels showed that the previous decline had been arrested.

The importance of the Hotel Concessions Act 2000 was also recognised as a catalyst to stimulate investment in improving competitiveness, and a number of hotels said that they were committed to moving forward with significant capital refurbishment as a result of the act.

The conduit alliance, commissioned by the Minister of Tourism nearly a year ago and composed of key stake holders in Bermuda's tourism industry, is charged with accelerating Bermuda's tourism renewal, initially leading up to the Spring 2001 busy season.

The Conduit Alliance report has identified a six month work plan to realise its objectives.

The meeting also heard how manpower and development initiatives were progressing, with hotels adopting schools to help create opportunities for students considering careers in the industry.

In addition, there had been in excess of 35 Bermudians this year so far who had gone abroad for work experience sponsored by local hotels, and there are more to come.

The day-long discussions included presentations on: the current performance of hotels, hotel industry restructuring, the community image of hotels, tourism industry assessment and prognosis, training, human resource planning, and the Hotel Concessions Act 2000.

Concluding the meeting, co-chairman John Pye said: "The spirit of trust and partnership and the commitment to realise the promise of tourism in Bermuda was alive and well in today's meeting between Government and the private sector.''