Making Non-Career Jobs Attractive to Younger Workers

As most hospitality industry managers in the U.S. are already aware, there is a growing and persistent shortage of labor available for service-sector, non-career jobs, the very jobs so vital to the industry. In most cases, recruitment efforts for these jobs are targeted toward younger workers, those under age 25. The authors explore issues regarding the attractiveness of non-career jobs in the eyes of young persons and suggest that, in addition to factors related to the job itself (pay, hours, type of work), the type of procedures used by employers to make selection decisions are equally influential. Recommendations are made concerning how hospitality employers with non-career positions to fill can maximize the chances of successfully staffing their organizations.

The influence of simulated disability slides and audiotape messages on college students' attribution of personality characteristics

The purpose of this study was to examine the attitudes college students have toward those with physical disabilities and what personality characteristics they attribute to physical appearance. One-hundred-one introductory psychology students at FIU were randomly assigned to one of three groups: control--no disability group, a group that viewed five slides of peers with disabilities, and a group that viewed the disability slides and heard their voices. All subjects rated the individuals' perceived personality. A one-way ANOVA revealed that those in the visual and audio disability group rated those with disabilities significantly higher in friendliness, attractiveness, and assertiveness than those who rated the individuals without disabilities. Those in the visual and audio disability group rated them higher in self-esteem than those in the visual only disability group. Since voice can have such positive effects on first impression, an occupational therapist can work on improving communication skills of those with disabilities.