The Atlantica Hotel in Halifax has 238 rooms, but is far from fully booked due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
“We have an occupancy rate of around 30 percent,” says David Clark, manager of the Atlantica Hotel.
Due to the low occupancy, the number of staff in the hotel is currently okay, says Clark.
He says he’s actually looking for some food and drink jobs, as well as some housekeeping positions.
Clark says he is most concerned about what will happen when restrictions are lifted and people travel again.
“When May and June come and the city is full again, I think we’ll be in a workforce crisis,” says Clark.
There are 54 Halifax hotels, all looking for staff from the same pool.
“Even if they are allowed to open, they may not be able to open simply due to staff shortages,” said Patrick Sullivan, president of the Halifax Chamber of Commerce.
Sullivan says there aren’t enough staff to fill all current positions, let alone future ones, and that will force some hotels to close rooms.
“I think the industry is concerned. I’ve spoken to hotels who have said that even if the restrictions are lifted, even if they get full hotels or theoretically full hotels next summer, they have to keep 15 to 20 percent of the rooms closed because they have no staff, to support these spaces, ”explains Sullivan.
Sullivan says these staffing issues are not new. Since the pandemic started in 2020, companies have struggled to fill positions, with the hiring and firing cycle that accompanies each COVID-19 wave reducing the number of workers returning to their old jobs.
“In small, independent companies, the employees are often like a tight-knit team or almost like a family. Hence, it is difficult to see a step in Tim Rissesco, executive director of the Downtown Dartmouth Business Association.
