Colombo, Tuesday 14th March 2023: International Women’s Day 2023 calls on all stakeholders to #EmbraceEquity focusing on the fact that all women should be recognized and celebrated for their diversity and uniqueness. In keeping with the theme, Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts Colombo sector and SriLankan Airlines embarked on a unique project to share knowledge while also recognizing and developing the skills of its female associates.
During Phase 1 of the multi-phased project, three female chefs from Cinnamon Grand Colombo, Cinnamon Lakeside Colombo, and Cinnamon Red Colombo, and three female chefs from SriLankan Catering, a fully owned subsidiary of SriLankan Airlines, were selected to swap places at their respective entities for a period of two days. The ladies were taken through a walk-through of the processes of food preparation for the aviation industry, and at hotel buffets respectively. On day two they were a part of food prep and creating dishes together with the culinary teams. On International Women’s Day the dishes prepared by the Cinnamon team were served onboard Business Class on SriLankan Airlines’ flight UL 503, which departed to London. Similarly, dishes prepared by the SriLankan chefs were featured on buffets at the three Colombo properties.
Speaking on the project Area Vice President Cinnamon Hotels and Resorts Kamal Munasinghe noted, “We are privileged to be joining hands with Sri Lanka’s national carrier to celebrate the diversity and strength of our female associates this International Women’s Day. Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts is commemorating International Women’s Day under the theme #PurpleistheNewPink where we are focusing on looking at the role of women in hospitality in a new light. The diversity that women bring to any organization should not be just celebrated on one day, which is why this project will be an ongoing one where we incorporate different functions that are common to both entities. In future, we will have female, and even male associates from different functions swap roles and learn from each other for the furtherment of the entire hospitality industry”.
Also commenting on the project, Chief Executive Officer of SriLankan Catering Mangala Wijesekera said, “We are excited to partner with Cinnamon Hotels & Resorts to empower women in travel and tourism. Our collaboration will provide employees of both organizations the unique opportunity to trade places with their counterparts and gain a broader insight into the hospitality trade. As an equal opportunity employer, SriLankan Airlines and SriLankan Catering value the women in its workforce and endeavour to create an environment of opportunity and fairness. We have women contributing to all areas of SriLankan Catering and the airline today including in jobs typically held by men such as chefs and aircraft pilots and engineers. I hope that this project will pave the way for greater professional growth for the participating female staff members and future inter-company collaborations committed to the shared goal of women’s empowerment.”
The second phase of the project will involve female operations associates at the Colombo hotels who will swap roles with ground handling staff at SriLankan Airlines for a period of two days, while phase three involves a swap between front office staff and in-flight crew.