Rafal Kotlewski

Name: Rafal Kotlewski
Age: 26
Born: Starogard, near Gdansk, Poland
Time in Scotland: Since June, 2005

Born in Starogard, near Gdansk on Poland's Baltic coast, Rafal Kotlewski started work straight after school and took a series of jobs as a joiner, shop assistant and delivery driver before a spell in the Polish army.

After deciding against a five-year contract with the army, he was offered work in Scotland by his friend Pawel Rozga. Pawel had relatives on the Isle of Islay and was working in a local hotel there.

"A friend of mine came over to Scotland a year before me and told me about this job over here," Rafal explains. "He organised everything and after that I came over to Islay. The idea was to make some money, because I felt there were better opportunities in Scotland than in Poland."

After six months as a kitchen porter in the island's Port Charlotte Hotel, Rafal followed Pawel to The Lochside Hotel in Bowmore, a ten-bedroom hotel overlooking Bowmore Pier and Loch Indaal on Islay, which is famous for its peaty malt whisky.

Rafal says: "My first job was working in the kitchen and then helping to prepare food as a commis chef. After a while I started working in different departments, including the restaurant and reception, and then I became a bar tender."

Impressed with Rafal and Pawel's hard work and willingness to learn, Lochside proprietor Roberta MacNeill paid for both of them to complete SVQ (Scottish Vocational Qualification) Level 3 qualifications in Hospitality and Personal Licence Holders Certificates (required by law in On and Off Sales from 1 September 2009).

Roberta then made Rafal assistant manager in January 2009 when Pawel returned to Poland to work on a building project. The job involves a range of duties including invoicing, preparing restaurant and room bills, taking bookings, supervising and checking all areas, including the bar and restaurant, and supervising the 20 or so full and part-time staff.

"It's a great experience for us to do something different over here in Scotland," Rafal says. "It obviously helps us improve our English and it's really good to have qualifications here too."

Longer term, Rafal is keen to join Strathclyde Police and hopes to take extra classes on Islay to improve his English to the required standard. In the meantime, he is very grateful for the opportunities Roberta and her team have given him.

"For me, they are more like parents than bosses," Rafal says. "They give me a lot of help with different things and if I'm stuck with anything, all I have to do is ask. Roberta has also helped me find books and websites to improve my English, and is always correcting me, which is the best way to learn! I'm looking after them and they're looking after me."