Georgia Davidson is 25 years old and was born with Down syndrome. She holds two front-of-house hospitality jobs, and one involves serving customers in the dining room of a busy resort hotel.
“I like working with the customers and sharing our food with them, and they really enjoy it,” she says after a lunch service.
Down syndrome is a genetic disorder caused by the presence of all or part of a third copy of chromosome 21. It is usually associated with physical growth delays, and mild to moderate intellectual disability.
Georgia grew up in Blaxland in the NSW Blue Mountains and works part-time in a local café. She is also part of a trainee program at Hotel Etico, a social enterprise that opened recently in picturesque Mount Victoria.
Hotel Etico is in a restored manor house at Mt Victoria. Credit: SBS News / Sandra Fulloon
“It is amazing to be here and I love the team and the staff and have a lot of fun with them,” says Georgia.
She especially admires founder and director Andrea Comastri, who is passionate about creating better outcomes for people living with a disability.
Hotel Etico founder Andrea Comastri with trainee Georgia Davidson (right) Credit: SBS News / Sandra Fulloon
“In our business, trainees are front and centre at the hotel. They're not tucked away to do some jobs behind the scene.”
During the pandemic, the 51-year-old has overcome extraordinary challenges to get the registered charity up and running, backed by seed funding from several philanthropic organisations.
Hotel Etico intern Jacob McAndrew with head chef Adam Taranto Credit: SBS News / Sandra Fulloon
“And so we took the plunge and went ahead, very conscious of the fact that it would be a couple of tough few years ahead of us.”
Despite the COVID-19 lockdowns which forced the hotel to ‘open and close’, he says interviews are already underway to recruit 12 new interns.
Hotel Etico intern Georgia Davidson prepares platters of antipasto Credit: SBS News / Sandra Fulloon
“And they graduate in June so soon another new group of trainees will be starting. And we are doubling the number of interns next financial year."
Miriam Philomena, Director of Inclusion and education at Down Syndrome NSW, describes Hotel Etico as a ‘wonderful initiative’.
“I live in the Blue Mountains and from the moment [Hotel Etico] hit our shores, I thought it was wonderful.
“If only we could magnify this a hundred times and have one in every suburb, to give people living with Down syndrome skills leading to open employment.”
Miriam Philomena and her daughter Bridget Credit: Supplied: Down Syndrome NSW
“Approximately 32 per cent of adults with Down syndrome are employed, yet only 2.5 per cent of those are in open employment receiving an award wage," Ms Philomena says.
"Yet people with Down syndrome make exceptional employees.
“Our vision is to get more people with Down syndrome into open employment, which is a basic human right.”
Founder Andrea Comastri was born in Italy Credit: SBS News / Sandra Fulloon
His views on disability developed as a child, growing up with a friend living with Down syndrome.
“Back then in the 1970s, the [genetic disorder] was not as understood as it is now. So a person living with Down syndrome had few opportunities to become a productive member of society,” he says.
The NDIS-backed Hotel Etico scheme offers trainees paid work experience across a range of hospitality roles including cooking, bar and table service and housekeeping.
“Our trainees are paid under the hospitality award and they're paid within the supported wage system, which identifies their productivity level. And we work towards increasing that productivity level to 100 per cent,” Mr Comastri says.
Intern Quinn Jones at Hotel Etico Credit: SBS News / Sandra Fulloon
“I have a lot more confidence that I'm actually able to do things that before I thought I would never be able to do,” he says.
“I was diagnosed with level two autism, haemophilia and a learning disability. And after changing schools often, I fell behind in my reading and writing.
"Then I came here and started working, and now I can actually do things like make coffee, serve behind the bar, and work in the dining room - even carrying three plates at once.”
“Quinn's an extremely successful story for us, and for himself,” says Mr Comastri, describing Quinn as an 'extremely fast learner with very good leadership skills'.
“He also supports his peers and that peer learning is very much part of the Hotel Etico model.”
Niccolò Vallese in Italy Credit: Supplied: Hotel Etico
Andrea Comastri says he inspired Albergo Etico, which opened in Asti in 2015, employing and training staff with intellectual disabilities. Hotel Eticos are now running in several other counties, as well as Australia, employing dozens of hospitality interns.
The company says that 68 per cent of its trainees move on to open employment.
Niccolò Vallese, meanwhile, is now a professional sommelier, living independently in his home town of Asti and working at Albergo Etico.
As a step towards independent living, trainees have their own dedicated apartment at Hotel Etico in Mount Victoria, with supervision and support funded by the NDIS.
For many, it’s their first experience of living away from family.
“Independent living is part of the Hotel Etico model,” says Mr Comastri.
“And it is another incredible and transformational piece for their lives.”
Quinn Jones agrees: “We are definitely not the same people that we were when we first came here.
“In fact, change is an understatement. We have more confidence and are more able, mentally and physically.”
Mr Comastri aims to gradually transition the hotel to financial independence.
“Within the first three years of operation we aim to become financially sustainable. We will always receive some philanthropic funding but aim to rely on it less, over time.”
With a busy winter season forecast, Mr Comastri is confident that goal is within reach.
Interns learn a range of skills at Hotel Etico Credit: SBS News / Sandra Fulloon
"It is a very inclusive environment, and a joy to come here."
Despite a recent upswing in COVID cases in NSW, Andrea Comastri remains upbeat and says talks are also underway to expand Hotel Etico Australia-wide.
Hotel Etico founder Andrea Comastri has big plans to grow Credit: SBS News / Sandra Fulloon
There’s already interest, he says, from philanthropic organisations and the general community.
“The majority of the barriers [for people living with a disability] are created by society: We have created them. And so it's about changing those barriers,” he says.
