Hotel Industry Employment Loss Due to COVID-19

The travel industry continues to feel the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Hotels are experiencing a direct hit with a significant drop in occupancy rates. The American Hotel & Lodging Association estimates 4 million jobs have been eliminated or will be in the coming weeks. It’s projected 44 percent of hotel employees in every state have lost or will lose their jobs.

In Seattle, San Francisco, Austin and Boston, hotel occupancy rates are currently below 20 percent. Since the middle of February, U.S. hotels have lost $2.4 billion in room revenue. States reporting the highest number of total coronavirus-induced job losses are California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Nevada, New York and Texas.

“The impact to our industry is already more severe than anything we’ve seen before, including September 11th and the great recession of 2008 combined,” said Chip Rogers, president and CEO, American Hotel & Lodging Association. “The White House and Congress can take urgent action to protect countless jobs, provide relief to our dedicated and hardworking employees, and ensure that our small business operators and franchise owners — who represent more than half of hotels in the country — can keep their doors open.”

For a full state-by-state breakdown of job loss figures due to Coronavirus, download the fact sheet.