Staggering Tourism Employment Losses Far Exceed Overall Economy

Tourism employment decreased for the second month in a row in November, falling by 34,400 jobs, a 2.1% decrease from October. (Data is from the week of November 8 to 14.) Unlike last month, when employment losses were concentrated in…

Tourism Losing Workers Daily, Hampering Recovery

Although labour is not at the forefront of many agendas right now—where liquidity and financial relief must remain the priority since they are the lifeline keeping businesses open—the fact is that the workforce is a monumental and complex challenge that…

Action Required as Tourism Employment Recovery Reverses

In October, tourism employment decreased by 70,400 jobs, ending five months of tourism employment recovery. Tourism employment usually decreases in October, but since 2001 the average decrease in employment between September and October has been a mere 0.8%. This year,…

The Devastating Impact of COVID-19 on Canada’s Tourism Sector

The COVID-19 pandemic forced enormous change on the Canadian economy with very little advance warning. New protocols and restrictions were put into place to slow the spread of the deadly virus. Since COVID-19 closed international borders, Canada’s tourism numbers have…

Just Released: Key Benchmark for Tourism Employment

Commissioned by Tourism HR Canada and produced by Statistics Canada, the Tourism Human Resource Module (previously the Provincial-Territorial Human Resource Module), provides statistics on the number of full-year jobs in the tourism sector. This information will provide an important benchmark…

Latest GDP Data Reveals Pandemic’s Ongoing Impact

Last Thursday, Statistics Canada released the latest data on monthly Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by industry. The data for August 2020 showed that total economic activity in Canada had recovered, but was not yet back at pre-pandemic levels. The following…

Tourism Business Recovery Subdued

The closing of businesses has hit the tourism sector particularly hard, and the recovery has not been as strong as in other industries. Statistics Canada tracks the number of businesses opening, closing, and remaining active.[1] Closing businesses are those that…

Tapping the Tourism Talent Pipeline

By Joe Baker, Tourism HR Canada Board Member and OTEC’s Strategic Advisor Originally published in Canadian Lodging News As we experience change in seasons, the challenges ahead of the Canadian hospitality and tourism industry are continuously formidable. And so are…

A Long Road to Recovery: September Tourism Employment and Fall Outlook

In September, tourism employment increased slightly by 4,200 jobs. This was the fifth month of increased employment since it began to recover in May. It is very unusual to see tourism employment increase in September. Since 2001, when our customized…

Watch: Growth, Interrupted Webinar Available for Download

Tourism HR Canada is delighted to share a recording of its latest webinar, Growth, Interrupted: Navigating COVID’s shock to Canada’s tourism workforce. President and CEO Philip Mondor leads this one-hour presentation, sharing insights into the ongoing impact of COVID-19 on…

Tourism Employment Remains Suppressed Until 2023

Since COVID-19 struck Canada’s tourism sector, tourist activity has plunged to unimagined levels. During the summer, the highest weekly average occupancy rate for hotels in Canada only reached 42.9%[1]. Passengers on major Canadian airlines for the month of June reached…

Growth, Interrupted: Navigating COVID’s shock to Canada’s tourism workforce

Join Tourism HR Canada President and CEO Philip Mondor for this free one-hour webinar sharing insights into the ongoing impact of COVID-19 on the tourism workforce. In early 2020, Canada was on track to employ 2.2 million people in its…