Tour guides not allowed to work freely in ASEAN

Laborers in the hospitality sector except tour guides will be allowed to work in the ASEAN markets of their choice when the ASEAN Mutual Recognition Arrangement on Tourism Professionals (MRA-TP) takes effect.

According to the agreement, Vietnamese will be able to take 32 types of jobs in the travel industry excluding tour guide in other ASEAN nations after the ASEAN Economic Community is established in 2015.

Many think that tour guides would be permitted to move freely within the ASEAN bloc, but this is wrong, said Hoang Quoc Viet from the Vietnam Tourism Occupational Skill Standard (VTOS) Organization under the Vietnam Tourism Certification Board (VTCB), at a conference on MRA-TP in HCMC last week.

“Only local tour guides are competent to introduce their countries to foreign visitors,” Viet explained and added that MRA-TP would strongly affect the development of the local tourism sector when it comes into force in 2015.

Viet said employees would be able to choose up to 32 job titles in hotel and travel areas in the region. These included front office manager, supervisor and receptionist; room and laundry service managers, executive chef and sous chef; food and beverage director; and director of sales and marketing, among others.

As MRA-TP helps set up common standards in human resource development among ASEAN countries, it will support employees of the hospitality sector to work in the region depending on qualifications and tourism certificates. Noticeably, MRA-TP is expected to improve labor quality in the region.

However, Vietnam seems to respond slowly to MRA-TP though there is no much time left for the agreement to take effect.

The nation still has many things to do to capitalize on the opportunities of MRA-TP. As the tourism sector is dependent much on other sectors such as culture, labor and society as well as relevant regulations.

SGT