MIAMI, Florida (CMC) — The Miami-based Caribbean Hotel and Tourism Association (CHTA) has called for interventions to accelerate Caribbean tourism recovery, warning that while regional tourism industry stakeholders are encouraged by growing signs of a recovery on the horizon, and most businesses have reopened or are planning to, many tourism-related businesses will remain challenged to return to pre-pandemic employment and operation levels.
CHTA on Sunday said that lost revenue, little measure of recovery support and stimulus, coupled with added expenses – including covering carry-on costs to support employees, ongoing utilities, financing and other operating expenses – have placed many hotels and tourism-related employers at risk and threaten their ability to recover, or recover quickly, over the coming months.
“The downside effects of a slower recovery could have an even more damaging impact on Caribbean governments and businesses, and threaten the return to work for many in a region where tourism has been the economic mainstay,” said Vanessa Ledesma, CHTA’s acting chief executive officer and director general.
“Ironically, the region is well-positioned to recover quickly because of Caribbean tourism’s strong appeal and proximity to major travel markets where consumers are anxious and have already begun to escape,” added Ledesma, expressing optimism about the region’s recovery but, at the same time, expressing concerns cited in a COVID-19 Tourism Business Impact and Recovery Survey recently conducted by CHTA.
According to the survey, about 14 per cent of industry stakeholders indicated they are likely or highly likely to permanently close as a result of the pandemic, while 37 per cent indicated that permanent closure is a possibility.
Ledesma said this news comes at a time when most Caribbean hotels and tourism-related businesses either have reopened or are planning to reopen in the coming months.
CHTA said its outreach was the third in a series of surveys that the trade association has undertaken over the past year.
CHTA said the surveys have measured the impact of the pandemic on the region’s largest industry and have helped to guide CHTA, the industry, policy makers and support institutions, as they consider policies, operational practices, marketing and communications strategies, training and support efforts aimed at accelerating and stimulating tourism recovery.
The initial survey results last year helped to guide the industry in putting in place health safety protocols and operational practices, in collaboration with the Caribbean Public Health Agency and the Caribbean Tourism Organization, CHTA said.
It said these protocols, together with effective policies by many of the region’s health authorities and governments, have contributed to the Caribbean’s success in containing COVID-19 to a level below the global average.
According to CHTA, the recent survey results indicated that 38 per cent of Caribbean tourism-related employers were able to keep employees on staff at some level throughout the pandemic, with 78 per cent of employers incurring the labour costs at their own expense without government support.
Thirty-two per cent indicated their government was able to provide some level of support for impacted employees, the survey said.
As they look to recover, employers cited a range of added costs they are incurring to put in place the necessary health safety protocols to protect employees and guests, according to the survey.
These include the purchase of personal protective equipment (PPE) and supplies; new technology to support health safety measures; construction, materials and furnishings to retrofit public areas (eg, reception areas, restaurants, retail spaces, and spas); and the cost of COVID-19 testing equipment and supplies for employees and guests.
The survey said that only 11 per cent of employers reported receiving any tax or duty relief to support the purchase of new health safety-related equipment, materials and supplies, “placing an added financial burden on the cash-strapped businesses,” according to CHTA.
It said employers cited a number of areas where support would help to minimise the threat of closure and speed up recovery.
These included increased marketing and public relations efforts by industry and government; unemployment support for those employees who still have not fully returned to work; tax credits to support the rehiring of employees; electricity relief; collaborative efforts to stimulate the return of airlift; low-interest, soft loans and payment deferrals from banks; and tax relief and payment deferrals.
