More than 4500 young people from Lucerne are starting their apprenticeship these days. It is a special situation especially for young cooks and hospitality professionals.
Roseline Troxler – Lucerne Newspaper
04.08.2020, 5 a.m
For Ivan Djordjevic and Joel Marbach, it means a new phase in life. The two 16-year-olds started their apprenticeship these days. In the newly renovated Hotel Hirschen in Oberkirch, Ivan Djordjevic is training as a restaurant operator, while Joel Marbach is training to be a chef. He said he had a lot of fun cooking early on, while Djordjevic attributes the choice of profession to several trial internships. Despite starting an apprenticeship in an industry that is going through difficult times, Marbach says:
“I am very happy to learn new things, and a good atmosphere in the team is important to me.”
For Djordjevic, teaching means growing up and gaining “greater independence from parents”.
Over 4500 young men and women are starting their apprenticeship in the canton of Lucerne, Switzerland these days. The exact numbers will follow in September, as contracts are still being signed. The vocational and further training department is responsible for checking the teaching contracts. You can expect about as many apprenticeship contracts as last year. t that time there were 4,799. As the communications manager Sandra Kilchmann says, as the total number of contracts, there would hardly be any difference between the previous years for each industry. This is particularly gratifying in industries such as the hospitality industry, which particularly feel the effects of the coronavirus pandemic, Sandra Kilchmann continues.
Anyone who has not yet signed an apprenticeship contract should scan advertisements in the hospitality industry more closely. Although the industry is still struggling with failures due to the coronavirus pandemic, “there are still a lot of open apprenticeships”, as Thomas Tellenbach confirms. He is the manager of G’ART, the hospitality training center in the canton of Lucerne. There, young people are trained in three professions. Tellenbach explains on request: “The catering industry has struggled with young talent for years. It is therefore very important to us not to reduce the number of apprenticeships due to the crisis. »
Markus Wicki, owner of the “Hirschen” in Oberkirch, also sees this. He is currently training five apprentices. In conversation, he says: “We need specialists. Corona does not change this fact. But at most, the shortage due to the pandemic is even worse. » For Wicki it is clear that an investment in young people is worthwhile: “Several former apprentices have returned to my company.” And the “Hirschen” restaurateur explains:
“Allowing young people to start their careers is a good feeling.”
According to Tellenbach, there were significantly more apprenticeships a decade ago than in recent years. The chef or restaurant specialist positions are particularly difficult to fill, while the number of apprentices among hotel communication experts has increased significantly. This profession has only existed in this form for three years.
Despite an overall stable apprenticeship situation in the catering and hotel industry compared to the previous year, the pandemic had consequences for some apprentices. In isolated cases, they could not start their apprenticeship in the original teaching company. According to Thomas Tellenbach, a good solution has been found in another company for these young people. The hotel sector was particularly affected, as some hotels geared towards international guests are currently closed. He emphasizes: “As soon as the original training companies reopen, they take back their learners.”
The catering and hotel industry expects a structural adjustment. Tellenbach says: “Unfortunately, there will be some closings in the short term.” The most important thing now is whether there will be another lockdown. Either way, the operations manager at G’ART is convinced:
“The industry stands together and we help each other to promote young talent.”
Because: “Everyone is interested in preventing a shortage of skilled workers.” Cohesion prevents young people from having to drop out of apprenticeships because their apprenticeship company closes its doors. Wicki says: “We would have the opportunity to add more learners. In the past, we have also taken on learners.
The professional association of restaurateurs, the OdA, also became active. According to Tellenbach, the association wanted to train cooks who could not work in the training company with a three to six-month basic course. But he says: «The interest was too little. For me, that’s a positive sign for the industry. »
Confidence that the situation will change again
Despite the crisis and uncertain future: For Thomas Tellenbach, who once worked as a cook in kitchens on four different continents, one thing is clear: «Covid will be vaccinated at some point. We are confident that the tide will turn in two to three years. New restaurants will go into operation again. Then the doors of the apprenticeship in the gastronomy and the hotel industry are open. » He also refers to a longer-term perspective:
