The WORKing Together Conference is an annual event that brings together over 500 Oregon businesses, educators, public agency leaders, community-based organizations, elected officials, and workforce professionals to explore local, state, and national best practices, emerging workforce trends, and innovative solutions.

As a part of a partnership between Travel Oregon and the Oregon Hospitality Foundation (OHF), the two organizations team up to provide a hospitality presence and programming at this annual event. This year all OHF staff members participated in the event helping present two hospitality-focused sessions in tandem with Travel Oregon.

The first session, The Tipping Dilemma, provided as a main session, focused on the practice of tipping and how its continued evolution affects worker earnings, customer experience, and business sustainability. Jason Brandt, ORLA President & CEO, led a panel of restaurant owners through a series of questions meant to showcase the economic and cultural factors that affect tipping and how it impacts the industry. A special thanks to ORLA members Connors McMenamin, Ken Henson, and Treva Gambs for participating in this session.

A second session titled Next Gen Hospitality: Building Oregon’s Workforce from the Classroom Up showcased how innovative and hands-on education is transforming rural and coastal communities by connecting students to real-world opportunities in hospitality and other key industries. OHF’s ProStart Manager, Courtney Smith, discussed the current initiatives of the Foundation to a room full of workforce development professionals outlining how they can get involved. Joining her was moderator Marcus Heinz, who discussed the Oregon Coast Visitors Association’s high school seafood butchery program, Jeremy Strober who outlined Nestucca High School’s Introduction to Tourism and Hospitality program, and Patrick Clarke who covered Siletz Valley High School's coveted culinary program. 

It is imperative that the hospitality industry consistently show up at events like these. By demonstrating who we are and what our needs lie, we can help direct more time, attention, and resources to caring for and growing our workforce. To that end, OHF and Travel Oregon are leading the way in hospitality workforce development.

Interested in getting involved? Contact Ella Sturdevant at esturdevant@oregonrla.org or Rebecca Donley at rdonley@oregonrla.org.