More than half the nation’s hotel owners are worried they’ll lose their holdings to foreclosure because of the pandemic’s sales wallop, according to research released Wednesday by the American Hotel & Lodging Association (AH&LA).
The survey also revealed that 87% of owners have laid off employees because of the freefall in business, and 36% have yet to bring back a single displaced staff member. Fewer than one of every three lodging properties (29%) is operating with 20% or less of its pre-pandemic staff. At the other extreme, only one in four has restored at least 60% of their early 2020 workforce.
“It’s hard to overstate just how devastating the pandemic has been for the hotel industry. We have never seen a crisis of this magnitude,” Chip Rogers, the AH&LA’s CEO, said in a statement.
The research was released as lawmakers in Congress were struggling to hammer out a new trillion-dollar-scale COVID-19 aid package. The hotel business is one of the industries that is seeking direct relief instead of a broader stimulus package.
The restaurant industry is another.
“Every member of Congress needs to hear from us about the urgent need for additional support so that we can keep our doors open and bring back our employees,” Rogers said.
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