ARTRC News

Welcome to the ARTRC news page. Here you will find the latest in news, reseach and statistics regarding regional tourism in Australia. If you wish to receive regular updates regarding the Centre's activites and the latest regional tourism news subscribe to our newsletter. We also have an archive of news items.

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Latest News

• Remote Regional Labour Markets
• ARTRC reviews Federal Government Program for Indigenous Business in Tourism
• 2008 Australian Regional Tourism Convention

Remote Regional Labour Markets

Many remote areas in Australia have a limited economic base however the tourism and hospitality industries can provide opportunities for economic development and employment in many of these areas. In order for the tourism and hospitality sector to be sustainable in these areas there is a need to develop and retain a skilled labour force.

The ability to maintain a satisfactory labour force has become increasingly difficult to achieve. For example, the Tourism Transport Forum (TTF) in 2006 found that remote regional hotels experienced a rate of labour turnover more than twice that of their urban counterparts.

The tourism and hospitality industries are highly labour intensive with wages making up approximately 25% of total operating costs overall in the sector (ABS, 2004) and up to 35% of total operating costs in the hospitality and accommodation sectors (ABS 2005). In the year 2006-7, employment in the tourism industry rose to a record 482,800 persons.

Clearly there are important economic and employment benefits for remote areas, and in order to maximise the benefits from tourism and hospitality there is a need to better understand the labour markets in these areas.

• ARTRC Director Jeremy Buultjens and SCU Researcher Grant Cairncross recently returned from a research trip to Birdsville where they examined the characteristics of remote regional labour markets in order to identify and understand the facilitators and barriers to maximising labour productivity in regional Australia.
• Improved knowledge of the labour market in these areas, it is hoped, will lead to improved productivity and a more viable future for the industry. 
• Results of this research are expected to be released by mid to late 2009 after two other remote locations, Alice Springs and Broome, are also studied in order to determine comparisons, contrasts and any examples of best practice.

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ARTRC reviews Federal Government Program for Indigenous Business in Tourism

ARTRC Researcher Deb Gale has been working with the Department Resources, Energy and Tourism (then DITR) to undertake a review into the Federal Government’s Business Ready Program for Indigenous Tourism (BRPIT).

The mentoring program, implemented by the Federal Government in 2003, was designed to support emerging and established Indigenous tourism businesses by selecting business mentors to assist Indigenous entrepreneurs in their ventures. Mentors impart knowledge, skills, and assist Indigenous entrepreneurs to develop their management, business and strategic planning skills helping to ensure the businesses are able to operate sustainably.

Indigenous culture is seen as a unique draw card for both domestic and international tourists and participation in the tourism industry was identified in the tourism white paper as a key means for overcoming Indigenous disadvantage; however past Government attempts to provide programs facilitating tourism development have been relatively ineffective.

This project aims to establish a body of independent research on issues affecting the development and long term sustainability of Indigenous tourism businesses. Researcher Deb Gale also hopes it will assist in informing government policy and program design, increasing the effectiveness of the BRPIT to develop Indigenous tourism in a sustainable way.  

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2008 Australian Regional Tourism Convention

Plans for this year’s Australian Regional Tourism Convention are progressing well and will take place over three and a half days in South Australia’s Barossa region from 9-12 September, at the Novotel Barossa. We once again thank Tourism Australia for their continued support for the conduct of the Convention.

‘Taking Tourism Into the Future’ is this year’s overarching theme following the 2007 ARTN Forum which highlighted ’future proofing’ as a primary concern for the regional tourism industry – how to take the industry into the future, in light of the challenges presented by skills shortages, changing consumer patterns and climate change.

Facilitated workshops and discussion forums will feature prominently this year, providing valuable opportunities for delegates to discuss the issues raised throughout the plenary sessions. Feedback from previous Conventions reveals the workshops are regarded as an important feature of the Convention; providing a real opportunity to share solutions to common issues across all regions. Four concurrent workshops are on offer, and will examine: how to attract and retain calibre staff in the midst of a labour skills shortage; the future of tourism distribution channels; adapting to changing consumer behaviour; and environmental corporate governance. Delegates will be asked to bring along four challenges from their region with the goal of finding solutions through small group discussion.

Field trips play an integral role in the Convention program, providing practical examples of discussion topics. Three options will be provided featuring: Food and Wine Tourism, sampling the best of Barossa produce; Sustainable Natural Tourism which journeys into the Murraylands/Riverland; and an Unspoilt Refuge which takes in the natural beauty of Kangaroo Island. (Please note that this final trip will incur a $200 to cover costs of a charter flight). Further information is available from the Convention website

Registrations for the 2008 Australian Regional Tourism Convention are now open. Delegate fees are $935 for the full Convention program, including the Welcome Function, Gala Dinner and a field trip. Members of the Australian Regional Tourism Network (ARTN) are eligible for a reduced rate of $825. ARTN members are also eligible to attend the ARTN workshops scheduled for Tuesday 9 September. Non-members can attend for $100 (see the website for further details).
For information about subscribing to the ARTN go to ARTN Website.

Further details will be made available shortly. Keep checking the Convention website for updates.

ARTRC Archived News can be found using the following links

News Archive 1 - (October 2007)
News Archive 2 - (January 2008)
News Archive 3 - (May 2008)

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