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The Save Hotel Jobs Act is a critical piece of legislation for our local hotel industry. Travel bans and restrictions due to COVID-19 crippled hotels throughout the nation. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2.5 million jobs were lost in the hospitality and leisure sector, representing a total of 25% of all unemployed people in the United States. This devastation is evidenced through thousands of hotels facing foreclosure or permanent closure. What is most concerning about all of this is that the ONLY major sector within hospitality and leisure to have NOT received direct federal aid is the hotel industry.  Former hospitality employees are leaving the industry to work at Amazon and other larger employers. Hoteliers are now forced to compete with large multinational companies, not just other hotels. Local hotels are having to operate under limited capacity due to lack of staff, and in turn are struggling to meet their bottom lines. However, there is some legislation that could change all of this. Introduced in congress by U.S. Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) and U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist (D-Fla.), The Save Hotel Jobs Act would be able to give hotel owners the option to apply for payroll expense grants which would go directly to their employees. This would help hotels offer better pay to be able to attract staff who might otherwise work elsewhere. Chip Rogers, president and CEO of AHLA, explains the need to pass legislation, saying: “Despite an uptick in leisure travel, midway through 2021 we’re still seeing that the road to a full recovery for America’s hotels is long and uneven. These findings show the economic devastation still facing hotel markets and underscore the need for targeted relief from Congress for hotel workers and small businesses.” To further highlight the need for economic relief, a new July report (see link: https://www.ahla.com/sites/default/files/2021-07/Midyear%20State%20of%20the%20Hotel%20Industry%20Report%2071921.pdf ) by the AHLA has some concerning findings:

1. Nearly 500,000 hotel operations jobs (or one in five) that were lost during the pandemic, won’t be coming back by the end of the year.
2. Hotel occupancy is expected to drop a full ten percentage points down from 2019 levels
3. Hotel room revenue is projected to be down $44 billion this year vs 2019
4. Unrealized tax revenues from hotels will account for a loss of more than $20 billion in state and local taxes over the past two years.

Having learned the full scope of how the COVID-19 pandemic is still impacting our industry, it is imperative for MMHLA members to call and write to our representatives in Congress and let them know how important the Save Hotel Jobs Act is for getting our industry and our country back on its feet again.