A new member poll by the American Hotel & Lodging Association found that almost all hotels are dealing with a staff shortage (AHLA).
A staff shortage is being experienced by 87 per cent of poll respondents, with 36 per cent of them reporting it to be severe. Forty-three per cent of respondents cite housekeeping as their most significant difficulty, making it the most critical staffing challenge.
Those numbers are slightly better than in May, when 97 per cent of respondents to an AHLA member survey said they were short-staffed, 49 per cent severely so, with 58 per cent ranking housekeeping as their biggest challenge.
Hotels are providing a variety of incentives to potential employees to fill open positions:
- 81 per cent have increased compensation,
- 64 per cent are offering more flexibility with hours, and
- 35 per cent have improved benefits.
However, 91 per cent report that they are still unable to do so. Compared to May, when there were 12 openings per property, respondents are now working to fill an average of 10.3 positions per property.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that the number of hotel workers was down by around 400,000 as of August compared to February 2020. Currently, more than 115,000 hotel jobs are open across the country as hotels strive to cover many positions lost due to the pandemic.
Hotel workers now have unprecedented career opportunities due to these staffing issues. Through June of 2022, the average national wage for a hotel employee was above $22 per hour, the highest on record. Average hotel salaries have risen more quickly since the outbreak than average wages across the economy as a whole. Additionally, benefits and flexibility are at an all-time high.
The AHLA Foundation’s “A Place to Stay” multi-channel advertising campaign is now running in 14 cities, including:
- Atlanta,
- Baltimore,
- Chicago,
- Dallas,
- Denver,
- Houston,
- Los Angeles,
- Miami,
- Nashville,
- New York,
- Orlando,
- Phoenix,
- San Diego, and
- Tampa.
Its goal is to assist hotels in filling open positions and increase awareness of the 200+ career pathways available in the hotel industry. Visit thehotelindustry.com for more information about the campaign.
“Today’s tight labor market is creating unprecedented career opportunities for current and prospective hotel employees, and AHLA and the AHLA Foundation are working tirelessly to spread the word. With hotel wages, benefits, flexibility and upward mobility at historic levels, there has never been a better time to work at a hotel than the present,” said AHLA President & CEO Chip Rogers.
Methodology: AHLA’s latest Front Desk Feedback survey of nearly 200 hoteliers was conducted September 12-19, 2022.
About the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA)
The American Hotel & Lodging Association (AHLA) is the sole national association representing all segments of the U.S. lodging industry. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., AHLA focuses on strategic advocacy, communications support, and workforce development programs to move the industry forward.
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