Last month, even before the Omicron variant of COVID-19 wreaked havoc on the 2021 holiday travel season, the U.S. job market continued its downturn, with December marking the smallest monthly gain of the year, according to the recently released Bureau of Labor Statistics’ December employment report.
Of the 199,000 jobs added last month, 53,000 were in the leisure and hospitality sector (L&H), marking the industry’s second-worst performing month since January 2021. (In November, the sector added 23,000 jobs of the 210,000 overall jobs added nationwide).
Prior to the end of the year, the economy was adding 537,000 jobs per month, on average.
Although it’s too soon to tell how Omicron will affect the months to come, the surge in cases is likely to disrupt hiring in the early months of 2022, according to reporting from the New York Times.
After the report’s release, Tori Emerson Barnes, executive vice president of public affairs and policy for the U.S. Travel Association, released a statement to the travel community:
“The latest jobs report points to an uneven recovery for the Leisure & Hospitality sector, which had its second-worst performance since January 2021,” she said. “The small gains made are not enough to propel the sector toward a larger recovery, as more than 7% of all L&H jobs remain lost compared to just 2% for the rest of the U.S. economy."
The small gains made are not enough to propel the sector toward a larger recovery, as more than 7% of all L&H jobs remain lost compared to just 2% for the rest of the U.S. economy.
“As the spread of the Omicron variant continues to impact travel, there remains a pressing need for Congress to provide additional federal relief and stabilizing policies that will enable the return of business travel, professional meetings and events, and international inbound travel.”
The U.S. Travel Association has several federal relief priorities; among them are a passing of the Restoring Brand USA Act and giving targeted tax stimulus to restore spending on corporate travel, live entertainment and in-person events.
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U.S. Travel Association
