Galgorm group hiring 180 staff ahead of reopening

One of Northern Ireland’s biggest hotel operators is hiring 180 new staff members ahead of reopening.

Galgorm, which owns the Galgorm Spa and Golf Resort in Ballymena, The Rabbit Hotel in Templepatrick and Café Parisien and Fratelli’s in Belfast will increase its total workforce to 900 as a result.

The part time and full time jobs will be at sites in Ballymena, Templepatrick and Belfast.

Managing director Colin Johnston, below, said the new roles represent an investment of £5m in annual wages.

“This new initiative confirms our commitment to further developing our world-class hospitality provision and reaffirms our confidence in the sector’s recovery.”

He added that the group was “working towards an April start date for our first new team members” and that it looked forward to the Northern Ireland Executive confirming a reopening date for hospitality.

The Galgorm Spa & Golf Resort is set to hire an additional 94 team members across its accommodation, spa and restaurants, bolstering its 720-strong team.

In Belfast, 60 new team members will join Galgorm’s two city centre restaurants, Café Parisien located in the former Robinson & Cleaver building and Fratelli’s restaurant located in Great Victoria Street.

An additional 26 team members will join the team at Galgorm Collection’s newest venture, The Rabbit Hotel, located in Templepatrick, formerly known as the Templeton Hotel.

Economy Minister Diane Dodds welcomed the news, adding: “This represents a strong foot forward in Northern Ireland collectively forging a path to recovery

“The hospitality industry has faced unprecedented challenges over the last 12 months and our focus now is on ensuring a safe and sustainable reopening of the sector when the time is right.”