ORLANDO, Fla. — It’s no secret the Central Florida tourism sector is continuing to grow.

With Universal’s Epic Universe theme park opening later this year, and Disney working on expansions, travelers from around the world have more reasons to visit.

At the State of Hospitality and Tourism conference held by the Central Florida Hotel & Lodging Association, it was reported thousands of workers are needed.

In the next 12 months, another 5,000 hotel rooms alone are expecting to open in Central Florida. CareerSource Central Florida reported in the past 30 days about 7,500 jobs have been posted. That’s a 13% percent increase from this time last year.

Chris Mueller says that 16 years ago, he was the new kid on the block. A new 1,400-room Hilton Hotel with more than 900 employees opened at the time, just a block from the Orange County Convention Center.

Since then, more hotels, conferences, and rides have opened up. And currently, even more are on the way.

“There’s more jobs available then there are people,” said Mueller, who is the general manager at Hilton Orlando. “Most critically we rob Peter to pay Paul. One hotel will steal from another hotel and sometimes people will chase the higher rate.”

The reality is with all the jobs available, moving up quickly is also a realistic possibility in the industry.

“You can start off in housekeeping, then you can become a supervisor, then you can move to front of the house,” Mueller said. “Then you can move into finances. Then you can go wherever you want in this business — you can even get your law degree and be a lawyer in the corporate offices.”

According to CareerSource Central Florida, 80% of all Central Florida occupations are tied to the leisure and tourism industry.

The average entry-level wage in the Central Florida hotel industry is $39,000. That’s $8,000 more than the average Central Florida entry level wage.

“Wages and benefits in this industry have improved,” said Nilda Blanco, the senior vice president of strategic initiatives at CareerSource Central Florida. “The industry continues to respond to the perception and pressure to improve wages. At the end of the day, labor is just more expensive when you look at the cost of everything.”

Dr. Cynthia Mejia is the dean at the University of Central Florida's Rosen School of Hospitality Management. She said with students able to intern at hotels while working for a bachelor’s or master’s degree, by the time they graduate they will have received an average of six job offers. The Rosen School reports a 98% placement rate upon graduation.

“Wages for internships are between $18 and $20 an hour for internships,” Mejia said. “Our graduates are making nearly $60,000 upon graduation, and upwards of $70,000 and $80,000.”