Hospitality Workers Training Centre

Hospitality Workers Training Centre Contact information, map and directions, contact form, opening hours, services, ratings, photos, videos and announcements from Hospitality Workers Training Centre, Nonprofit Organization, 116 Industry Street, Toronto, ON.

The Hospitality Workers Training Centre supports a healthy and vibrant hospitality industry by offering free training opportunities and career supports to those entering the field or wanting to advance in their careers.

The CNE opens Friday. TIFF runs September 10 to 20. Toronto's busiest stretch of the year starts in three days and doesn...
08/21/2026

The CNE opens Friday. TIFF runs September 10 to 20. Toronto's busiest stretch of the year starts in three days and doesn't let up until conference season ends.

The Ex alone draws around 1.6 million visitors. Last year Toronto hosted 28.2 million and they spent $9.1 billion. Major meetings brought in 378,000 delegates, up 51% in a single year.

At the same time, the job vacancy rate in Ontario's accommodation and food services sector sits at 4.5%, against 2.8% across all industries. If you're short-staffed heading into this, you're not imagining it.

If you're hiring for fall, we can help. Email [email protected] or visit hwtc.ca

Most interview questions are really asking for a story."Tell me about a time you handled a difficult customer." "Describ...
08/20/2026

Most interview questions are really asking for a story.

"Tell me about a time you handled a difficult customer." "Describe a mistake you made." Behavioural questions like these are standard in hospitality hiring, and they're where prepared candidates pull ahead.

You don't need thirty rehearsed answers. You need three stories.

The shift that went sideways. The angry customer. The mistake you fixed.

Keep each one under 90 seconds. End on what you did, not what happened around you. And practice them out loud, because they sound different in a room than they do in your head.

HWTC has trained hospitality workers for over 20 years. Free career coaching and interview prep at hwtc.ca

More than 1 in 5 unemployed Canadians has now been looking for work for six months or more.Statistics Canada put long-te...
08/19/2026

More than 1 in 5 unemployed Canadians has now been looking for work for six months or more.

Statistics Canada put long-term unemployment at 22.5% in April. Between 2017 and 2019, before the pandemic, it averaged 17.1%. So if your search has dragged on longer than you expected, that's the market, not you.

What actually shortens it: starting early instead of waiting, sending fewer applications with more care, and getting your certifications current before an employer asks.

HWTC has worked with hospitality and service workers for over 20 years. If you've been laid off, had your hours cut, or received notice that your job is ending, we can help with career coaching, skills training and certifications, and connections to employers who are hiring.

Find out what's available at hwtc.ca

62% of small employers hire through people they know. 73% of young job seekers are looking on job boards.That's the whol...
08/14/2026

62% of small employers hire through people they know. 73% of young job seekers are looking on job boards.

That's the whole problem in two numbers.

CFIB surveyed small business owners and Canadian youth for its May 2026 report and found the two groups are searching in completely different places. Jobs are getting filled through referrals before they're ever posted.

The report also found that when small employers hire young workers, they rank positive attitude (91%), motivation (84%), and professionalism (76%) ahead of credentials and experience.

So what do you actually do with this?

Keep applying online. But spend real time on your network too. Tell former supervisors, coworkers, instructors, and classmates exactly what you're looking for. Be specific. People can't refer you to something vague.

And ask for an introduction, not a job. It's a much easier yes.

Co-op and internship placements convert to permanent hires 73% of the time, so if you can get in through a placement, take it.

Not sure where to start? Visit hwtc.ca.

Canadians reported losing more than $49 million to job and employment scams in 2024, according to the Canadian Anti-Frau...
08/13/2026

Canadians reported losing more than $49 million to job and employment scams in 2024, according to the Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre. That's more than four times the 2022 total.

Hospitality workers get targeted often, because hiring in this sector moves fast and turnover is high. A quick offer with no interview doesn't feel unusual.

Here's what should stop you:

The offer arrives by WhatsApp, Instagram, or Telegram DM from someone you've never met.

You're asked for your SIN, banking details, or a copy of your passport before you've received a formal offer letter.

You're asked to pay for training, equipment, a background check, or placement. Charging job seekers a placement fee is illegal in Canada.

The recruiter's email is a Gmail or Hotmail address instead of a company domain.

The role involves receiving packages and reshipping them, or moving money through your personal account.

Before you send anything, find the job on the company's own careers page. If it isn't there, it isn't real.

Report scams to the CAFC at 1-888-495-8501.

Looking for work you can trust? Visit hwtc.ca.

A gap on your resume doesn't sink your application. Leaving it unexplained does.Hiring managers notice gaps. When there'...
08/12/2026

A gap on your resume doesn't sink your application. Leaving it unexplained does.

Hiring managers notice gaps. When there's no explanation, they write one themselves, and it's usually worse than the truth.

Give them the real version instead. Two sentences, max:

"My location closed in March and my position was eliminated. Since then I've completed my Food Handler certification and I've been picking up banquet shifts."

That's it. No apology, no blame, no long backstory about what management did wrong.

Three things that help:

Say it plainly. "Laid off" is a normal thing that happens to good workers. Restructuring, closures, and seasonal cuts are not a reflection of your performance.

Don't stretch your dates to cover the gap. Reference checks and employment verification will surface it, and that's a much bigger problem than the gap was.

Show what you did with the time. Courses, certifications, volunteering, casual shifts, caregiving. Any of it counts.

Need help talking about your gap? Visit hwtc.ca to see how we can support you.

Restaurants are where most Canadians get their first pay cheque. Statistics Canada puts 43.8% of workers in food service...
08/08/2026

Restaurants are where most Canadians get their first pay cheque. Statistics Canada puts 43.8% of workers in food services and drinking places under the age of 25, and Restaurants Canada says youth make up over 40% of the foodservice workforce. One in five youth jobs in this country is in a restaurant.

That's a big responsibility. The person training a 17 year old on their first shift is teaching them how to show up, handle pressure, and read a room. Those skills follow them for the rest of their working life.

Fall hiring season starts now. If you're an operator building your team for the back half of the year, we run hiring fairs that connect you with candidates who are trained and ready. If you're looking for work, our career consultants will help you find the right fit, not just any fit.

Reach out. hwtc.ca

Nearly 50,000 people applied for about 5,000 CNE jobs this year. CNE CEO Mark Holland put it plainly: ten applicants for...
08/07/2026

Nearly 50,000 people applied for about 5,000 CNE jobs this year. CNE CEO Mark Holland put it plainly: ten applicants for every position.

So if you didn't get one, that math wasn't about you.

Toronto's youth job market is tight right now, and a rejection email doesn't tell you anything useful about your chances. What it does tell you is that competing on a resumé alone is hard when 49,999 other people submitted one too.

Certifications change that. Food handler, Smart Serve, customer service micro-credentials, WHMIS. They move you out of the general pile and into the shortlist, and they take only a few hours.

Get ready now. hwtc.ca

72% of Canadian hotels report difficulty attracting local workers. That's from the Hotels Canada 2026 Spring Workforce R...
08/06/2026

72% of Canadian hotels report difficulty attracting local workers. That's from the Hotels Canada 2026 Spring Workforce Report, released in May.

The rest of the picture is worth sitting with. 58% of hoteliers expect shortages over the next 12 months. 46% lost temporary foreign workers to expiring permits in early 2026. Among resort hotels, 80% expect to lose TFWs, and 70% named affordable housing as a workforce barrier.

"Many employers are reporting growing concerns about workforce stability and long-term access to international talent, particularly in rural and resort communities," says Beth McMahon, president and CEO of Hotels Canada.

Attracting local workers isn't only a posting problem. It's a training pipeline problem. We've spent 20 years building that pipeline: skills training, micro-credentials, and hiring fairs that put employers in the same room as people ready to work.

If recruitment is your bottleneck, let's talk. hwtc.ca

Every Civic Holiday you get this summer started right here in Toronto.In 1869, city council called for a midsummer holid...
08/03/2026

Every Civic Holiday you get this summer started right here in Toronto.

In 1869, city council called for a midsummer holiday, one single day of rest during the hottest stretch of the year. By 1875, the first Monday in August became the fixed date. The idea caught on so well it reached the British Parliament in 1871, and from there it spread across the Commonwealth.

For a lot of hospitality workers, long weekends mean the opposite of rest. They mean full shifts and packed patios. If that's you this Monday, we see you.

Address

116 Industry Street
Toronto, ON
M6M4L8

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

+18007774982

Website

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