The tourism industry during the coronavirus pandemic
"Nothing is the same." An expression that we hear more and more often lately and which, unfortunately, will accompany us for a long time. After several weeks of quarantine, imposed to stop the spread of the coronavirus, Europe gradually relaxed the quarantine measures, trying to return to normal. Obviously, to a different "normal", to a normality that, at least for a while, for a few months or even longer, will be marked by the current pandemic and the crisis it has generated in the world.
The economy has and will suffer greatly from the coronavirus pandemic, practically, we are reminded of this every day. Tourism is among the sectors most affected by the crisis - with a smaller or larger share in GDP, varying from one country to another.
We are in the phase where, in the midst of the summer season, the countries of the world have tried to relaunch their tourism, cautiously developing all kinds of strategies capable of saving millions of jobs and offering optimal conditions, in terms of safety, to those eager for a vacation.
And Romania, with its tourism potential, started on this path. It is clear that, just like the Germans, the French or the Spanish, the Romanians will spend their holidays in larger numbers than usual in their own country, maybe even in their own region, where they can relax, feeling safe.
The tourism industry is vital for the jobs it provides worldwide. About 330 million people worked in this industry, that is 10% of the total employees. In Romania, about 210,000 people worked in tourism, which means less than 4.2% of the total number of employees in the economy, this being one of the lowest shares in Europe, but also outside of it.
For comparison, the worldwide share was double, in Italy and Spain it was three times higher, and in Greece or Croatia it jumped by 22%. The most dependent state in Europe on the tourism industry was Montenegro where one in three employees worked in the field. The weights went even higher, in the case of the Caribbean islands, even reaching 80-90%.
According to those who manage the BestJobs recruitment platform, in Romania, the number of open positions even decreased by 75% in some fields, such as HoReCa, tourism or events. Companies in these fields were forced to seriously reduce their activity amid the effects generated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which meant sending them into technical unemployment or even terminating employment contracts for a good part of the employees. The data of the Employers' Organization of Hotels and Restaurants in Romania show that, out of the turnover estimated at 3 billion euros for this sector, about 2.4 billion will be lost, while the 320,000 of the 400,000 employees working in the field of hospitality would could be without a job. COVID-19 has also spread to major tourism markets worldwide. As a result, the hotel industry is facing a crisis due to travel restrictions around the world. It is very important for hoteliers to prepare for the return, as there is still a rather large shortage of personnel in the market.
However, there have also been businesses that have bucked the downward trend of their industry and managed to stay afloat while their direct competitors were suffering huge losses. A very good example is that of restaurants that quickly adapted to market needs and started delivering products to the customer's home. Although it is difficult to predict exactly which direction the business environment will go in the near future, we can expect the same instability and uncertainty that we have become accustomed to recently. The dynamics of the market, but also the frequent legislative changes are real obstacles for most entrepreneurs, who have to make huge efforts to quickly adapt to the change and to remain competitive.
Sources:
www.dw.com – The relaunch of Romanian tourism from lockdown to chance
www.zf.ro – How dependent are the economies of the tourism world from the perspective of jobs
www.colorful.hr – How the coronavirus crisis will change the labor market
"Nothing is the same." An expression that we hear more and more often lately and which, unfortunately, will accompany us for a long time. After several weeks of quarantine, imposed to stop the spread of the coronavirus, Europe gradually relaxed the quarantine measures, trying to return to normal. Obviously, to a different "normal", to a normality that, at least for a while, for a few months or even longer, will be marked by the current pandemic and the crisis it has generated in the world.
The economy has and will suffer greatly from the coronavirus pandemic, practically, we are reminded of this every day. Tourism is among the sectors most affected by the crisis - with a smaller or larger share in GDP, varying from one country to another.
We are in the phase where, in the midst of the summer season, the countries of the world have tried to relaunch their tourism, cautiously developing all kinds of strategies capable of saving millions of jobs and offering optimal conditions, in terms of safety, to those eager for a vacation.
And Romania, with its tourism potential, started on this path. It is clear that, just like the Germans, the French or the Spanish, the Romanians will spend their holidays in larger numbers than usual in their own country, maybe even in their own region, where they can relax, feeling safe.
The tourism industry is vital for the jobs it provides worldwide. About 330 million people worked in this industry, that is 10% of the total employees. In Romania, about 210,000 people worked in tourism, which means less than 4.2% of the total number of employees in the economy, this being one of the lowest shares in Europe, but also outside of it.
For comparison, the worldwide share was double, in Italy and Spain it was three times higher, and in Greece or Croatia it jumped by 22%. The most dependent state in Europe on the tourism industry was Montenegro where one in three employees worked in the field. The weights went even higher, in the case of the Caribbean islands, even reaching 80-90%.
According to those who manage the BestJobs recruitment platform, in Romania, the number of open positions even decreased by 75% in some fields, such as HoReCa, tourism or events. Companies in these fields were forced to seriously reduce their activity amid the effects generated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which meant sending them into technical unemployment or even terminating employment contracts for a good part of the employees. The data of the Employers' Organization of Hotels and Restaurants in Romania show that, out of the turnover estimated at 3 billion euros for this sector, about 2.4 billion will be lost, while the 320,000 of the 400,000 employees working in the field of hospitality would could be without a job. COVID-19 has also spread to major tourism markets worldwide. As a result, the hotel industry is facing a crisis due to travel restrictions around the world. It is very important for hoteliers to prepare for the return, as there is still a rather large shortage of personnel in the market.
However, there have also been businesses that have bucked the downward trend of their industry and managed to stay afloat while their direct competitors were suffering huge losses. A very good example is that of restaurants that quickly adapted to market needs and started delivering products to the customer's home. Although it is difficult to predict exactly which direction the business environment will go in the near future, we can expect the same instability and uncertainty that we have become accustomed to recently. The dynamics of the market, but also the frequent legislative changes are real obstacles for most entrepreneurs, who have to make huge efforts to quickly adapt to the change and to remain competitive.
Sources:
www.dw.com – The relaunch of Romanian tourism from lockdown to chance
www.zf.ro – How dependent are the economies of the tourism world from the perspective of jobs
www.colorful.hr – How the coronavirus crisis will change the labor market