Human Resources ‐ Factor of European Union Competitive Advantage as a Tourism Destination

Abstract

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is the analyze the impact of human resources in tourism on the competition of the European Union (EU) and the EU members as tourism destinations. The aim of this paper is quantifying the impact of the number of employees and level of their education on destination competition. The paper comprises the following segments: a) analysis of specific characteristics of human resources in tourism in the EU; b) testing the correlation between the destination competitiveness of the EU and number of employees in tourism; c) analyzing the impact of the education of employees in tourism on destination competitiveness of EU; d) testing the correlation between the destination competitiveness of the EU members and number of employees in tourism; e) analyzing the impact of the employees in tourism by education on destination competitiveness of EU members during the period from 2008 to 2017. Design/method/approach – The paper relies on comparative analysis, correlation analysis and regression analysis as well as PANEL analysis. Findings – The results of the analyses indicate that highest level of education of employees in tourism, in relation to other levels of education, has the most important influence on destination competitiveness in the EU and the EU members. Practical implication – In the paper special attention was paid to use the appropriate methodology to identify and quantify the impact of employees of human resources on the competitiveness of the surveyed countries as tourist destinations. Originality/Value – The paper indicates the importance of education of human resources on destination competitiveness.