Representation Matters
BIPOC HOTEL ENTREPRENEURS ARE BLAZING TRAILS, BUT RECOGNITION REMAINS A CHALLENGE Living in a post-pandemic world, BIPOC accommodation owners are feeling the hum of tourists less afraid to travel these days. But it’s also an uphill battle to be recognized. By Carter Hammett
According to a 2021 joint report undertaken by Restaurants Canada and the Hotel Association of Canada, 29 per cent of the hotel industry’s workforce is composed of visible minorities. That number is higher south of the border at 51.8 per cent. But upon closer inspection minority representation drops significantly at the C-suite and VP levels and diminishes even further at the board of director level. Unfortunately, similar Canadian statistics remain unavailable; what is documented tends to focus more narrowly on women and Black representation. There’s no question that events like the death of George Floyd on May 25, 2020, while in police custody and the subsequent rise of the Black Lives Matter movement have raised our collective consciousness about systemic racism. The response from many in the hospitality industry has demonstrated signs of progress, whether through the creation of employment resource groups and/or the establishment of inclusion committees. But another group of BIPOC hoteliers and business people has chosen to go its own way, walking its own path, upholding its own truth; people like Peter Lee, vice president of development with Wyndham Hotels and Resorts Canada. Lee is based in Vancouver and he is one of Canada’s longstanding hotel sector 4
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Winter 2024
executives, a voice of knowledge, reason and the immigrant experience in our Canadian industry. Lee’s career in hospitality began in 1976. After coming to Canada, he first got a job as a delivery person, then about 10 years of food and beverage before he became a night auditor during Expo ‘86. Lee says he wholly embraced his career in the hotel industry and he still does. “I think the best part of my job is meeting people that want to have the opportunity to grow and profit. I've seen that. I've probably done a couple hundred deals in franchising through my life, and I've seen all walks of life come in the door and how they can succeed. Diversity makes our industry stronger by unlocking new perspectives and providing access to new communities that we may not otherwise interact with on our own. That’s the value BIPOC owners add not only in Canada but more broadly to our industry,” says Lee. “From my experience, BIPOC owners bring an amazing sense of pride to the work that they do. They go all in, and they incorporate much of their cultural identity into their day-to-day work. Whether it’s their first hotel or one of several that they own, hotel ownership helps unlock multi-generational wealth, and there’s a sense of pride with BIPOC owners when it comes to making a lasting legacy for their families and communities.”
The Ode. Photo by Curtiss Randolph.
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here has been a growing number of conversations happening in the hospitality industry about diversity and inclusion in recent years.