Millions of tourism jobs at risk: will New York’s industry survive?

STATEN ISLAND, NY – Updated forecasts from the USTravel Association and Tourism Economics predict that the country’s economy could lose 5.9 million travel-related jobs by the end of April due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) which paralyzes the travel industry.

Latest projections indicate that the situation is getting worse, as the agency’s projections just one week earlier predicted a loss of 4.6 million jobs, 22% less than current updated projections.

The coronavirus crisis is hitting the travel economy hard, and it is hitting it as quickly, said US Travel Association President and CEO Roger Dow. These new figures highlight the extreme urgency of financial relief for travel companies, 83% of which are small businesses so that they can continue to pay their employees. Not only are workers currently suffering, but if employers are forced to close their doors, it is not known when or if these jobs will ever return.

The estimated loss of travel-related jobs alone would more than double the US unemployment rate from 3.5% to 7.1% by the end of April, according to the US Travel Association, with an expected loss of l travel-related economic impact of $ 910 billion, seven times worse than the impact of September 11.

Businesses can’t keep their lights on if they don’t have customers, and they don’t have customers because of the actions that are necessary to stem the spread of the coronavirus. The resulting closings will pay the heaviest toll for front-line workers who can least afford to lose their jobs. Wait staff, housekeepers, dealers, etc., said Dow.

New York is particularly vulnerable to travel-related job losses due to city and state dependence on foreign and domestic tourism as a major cog in the local economy.

James Parrott, Director of Economic and Fiscal Policy at the Center for New York City Affairs at The New School, told the New York Times that the city is likely to lose up to 500,000 travel-related jobs.

According to Parrott, the industries most likely to be affected are hotels, restaurants, rental vehicles, museums and other cultural institutions.

Fred Grapstein, president of the New York Hotel Association, told The Times that city hotels have been forced into mass layoffs due to the drastic drop in tourists and business travelers.

What you see, unfortunately, is the layoff of all staff, both union and management, said Grapstein.

LOCAL TRAVEL AGENTS

Staten Island travel agents and local tourism professionals say their business has been put on hold due to the coronavirus.

Our business is essentially in triage mode right now, with legitimately concerned customers who contact us 24 hours a day to reschedule their vacations, many of which have been planned for over a year, said Thomas Mottola, co-owner, Mottola Family Travel, Independent Agents with Glass Slipper Concierge, Westerleigh.

Heather Pastore, owner of Castleton Corners Manhattan Greeterz Walking Tours, recently told Advance / SILive.com that its tourism business has seen a dramatic drop in business.

Tourism is extremely affected by this, as all of our main New York destinations linked to tourist routes are closed due to coronavirus. This affects us because most of the walking tour businesses are independent or family owned and operated, she said. We are forced to reduce or reorganize our schedules.

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