Fáilte Ireland Employer Excellence Awards

Fáilte Ireland’s Employer Excellence Awards recently took place in Fitzgerald’s Woodlands House Hotel & Spa, Co. Limerick.

The awards ceremony celebrated businesses that have demonstrated their commitment to making the tourism industry an appealing and rewarding place to work through their participation in Fáilte Ireland’s Employer Excellence programme. This is the third year of the awards ceremony.

“Our latest figures show that since the programme launched in 2022, it has positively impacted 30,000 employees across the tourism sector nationwide,” said Jenny De Saulles, Fáilte Ireland’s director of sector development. “Employee engagement scores for businesses now in their third year of the programme have grown to 75% – 8% higher than the average across the wider employment sector – with significant improvements made in the areas of induction, reward and benefit, and management involving people in decisions affecting their jobs.”

O’Callaghan Coaches from Co. Kerry received the Outstanding Employer Award, while numerous other businesses were awarded on the night. As part of the programme, a survey was conducted among the staff members of participating businesses, giving them the chance to highlight the strengths of their workplace, along with areas for further development.

Fáilte Ireland is now supporting these businesses to implement the actions identified in its survey, to further enhance employee engagement. The winning businesses completed management upskilling, engaged with HR experts, and were then chosen based on employee feedback.

“The Fáilte Ireland Employer Excellence Awards celebrate the businesses that have set the industry standard for employee engagement and workplace culture,” said Paul Kelly, Fáilte Ireland’s CEO.

“These awards will help drive further improvements in both the quality and perception of careers in the tourism sector.”

The 14 winning businesses are:

Best Employer – Outstanding: O’Callaghan Coaches, Kerry
Best Employer – Large Business: Radisson Blu Hotel Dublin Airport
Best Employer – Medium Business: Sandhouse Hotel, Donegal
Best Employer – Small Business: O’Callaghan Coaches, Kerry
Best Employer – Wild Atlantic Way: Bedford Townhouse, Limerick
Best Employer – Ireland’s Hidden Heartlands: Castle Varagh Hotel, Westmeath
Best Employer – Ireland’s Ancient East: Goldie Fish and Ale Restaurant, Cork City
Best Employer – Dublin: GPO Museum
Best Employer – Attraction: Smithwick’s Experience, Kilkenny
Best Employer – Food and Drink: Orso Kitchen & Bar, Cork
Best Employer – Hotel Group: PREM Group, Dublin
Best Employer – Golf: Lahinch Golf Club, Clare
Best Employer – Adventure: Castlecomer Discovery Park, Kilkenny
Best Employer – Tour Operator: Vagabond Adventure Tours, Wicklow