Travel group puts up database on travel employees

The Philippine Travel Agencies Association (PTAA) is creating a database on travel agency employees to serve as reference for members in the hiring of office staff.

PTAA president Jose Clemente III expects the database to further professionalize the travel industry by eradicating and controlling the proliferation of unscrupulous employees who have been moving from one travel agency to another.

 “The database will help guide our members in their hiring of personnel.  We are aware of instances in the past where employees easily found employment in another travel agency after having been caught in some questionable transactions during their previous job,” Clemente said.

The database, to be handled by the PTAA secretary general, is expected to provide its members with a reliable character reference in the hiring of new employees.

The database will be built from a form that will be filled by an official representative from each member of the association.  The information contained will extend from the basic bio-data of an employee to current and resolved cases of their staff.

A PTAA member asking for information on a certain employee will be given a reply slip and will be directed to the employer that submitted the report.

 “With the information contained in the database, the PTAA expects its members to make the correct selection in the hiring of their personnel.  We should never allow a few individuals to tarnish the image of the travel industry which we are promoting,” Clemente said.

The PTAA has over 500 members nationwide including the biggest travel agencies, regional travel groups and associations, tour operators, airlines, hotels, resorts, and restaurants.

Established in 1979, the PTAA is the official Philippine representative to the ASEAN Tourism Association, Federation of ASEAN Travel Agencies, and the Universal Federation of Travel Agencies Association.