Meliá Hotels International has joined the EXIT Foundation’s corporate volunteer project which aims to promote the employability of young people at risk of social and work exclusion through coaching and mentoring. The #CoachExit project allows participants to receive guidance from Meliá volunteers to help them find the motivation to continue their studies, and also get career guidance within the company which helps increase their self-esteem.
The hotel company took part in the latest edition of #CoachExit in Palma de Mallorca (Spain) for 25 young people aged 16 to 21 with poor qualifications. The project has enabled Company volunteers to represent Company values and increase the confidence of the young participants.
According to Tomas Franquet, director of Corporate Responsibility at Meliá Hotels International, “this project is very positive as it allows young people to see the practical purpose of the academic training they receive, and is an important lever with which to boost their motivation to further their education and get more training.”
For Meliá Hotels International, youth employability is one of the foundations of its Corporate Responsibility model. The hotel chain aims to help develop the talents of young people, with special attention to those at risk of exclusion, improving their access to the labour market through career guidance, sharing know-how, and providing professional experience in real work environments in the hotel industry.
“Participation in this type of projects,” says Franquet, “also helps to remove barriers and generate opportunities for collaboration between companies and associations, as they share objectives which have a significant social impact with all participating companies.”
Since 2013, Meliá Hotels International also forms part of the “Together for Employment” platform, led by the Accenture Foundation to promote a collective strategy among more than one hundred public, private and non-governmental organizations to promote employment, learning and entrepreneurship amongst the most vulnerable groups in society.
Meliá Hotels International is also committed to working in partnership with other organisations, and since 2014 forms part of the Pinardi Federation of Social Platforms to develop an innovative social work model to promote the employability of young people through real work experiences which improve their future possibilities of joining the labour market.
