Hospitality & Tourism
Almost 15 million Americans work in tourism and hospitality—in hotels, amusement parks, art museums, and restaurants—making it the fifth largest industry in the country.1 Many of these jobs depend on our immigration and visa systems. International tourists create high demand for the tourism industry. Meanwhile, many employers have trouble finding enough American workers to staff resorts, hotels, and attractions. Current policies not only discourage international tourists and business travelers, but also keep American businesses from finding the workers on which the tourism industry relies.
1 Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), “Industry employment and output projection to 2024,” Monthly Labor Review, December 2015. Available online.
Utahns say lack of immigration reform hurts farmers, consumers
Jake Harward, a Springville farmer, has a hard time finding help to plant, tend and harvest his crops and says the need for immigration reform is urgent. “The argument that we’re taking jobs away from others just doesn’t fly in my mind,” Harward said Monday… Read More
So many hotels, so few employees
As plans for more hotels continue to emerge on the Houston scene, some experts are asking how will we staff them, especially when you take into account current immigration laws that don’t provide visas for immigrants to work in the hospitality industry. While work visas are often available for certain… Read More
Immigrant bill could allow Canadians longer stays, boost Arizona economy
Beth Duckett, The Republic July 22, 2013 Every fall, Canadian snowbirds Lyle Pederson and his wife make the trek to Arizona, trading the bitter cold for sunny skies. This year, they stayed a little longer, returning north in May. And while they plan to come back this fall, the 180-day… Read More
Florida tourism may get boost if immigration bill passes
William Gibson, Florida Sun Sentinel June 28, 2013 WASHINGTON — Anybody in Florida who makes a living from tourism stands to gain from a surge of foreign visitors – and their spending money – if an immigration bill passed by the U.S. Senate last week becomes law. Little-noticed provisions would make… Read More
Intro: Tourism
People come from around the world to visit America’s great landmarks and attractions, generating billions of dollars of economic activity across the country. But the country’s current visa system creates long wait times and costly hurdles, both for eager foreign tourists and temporary immigrant workers in the tourism industry. The average… Read More
Can Baltimore Woo Immigrants?
Can Baltimore Woo Immigrants August 20, 2012 …too many cities, too many states are basically putting up a do-not-enter sign.” Regarding the city’s particular outreach to Latinos, and their impact on economic growth, she offered: “We’ve actively recruited Latino immigrants to Baltimore, and when they come here, they’re thriving. Read More
Tourism and Hospitality
International tourists, a potential economic boon, are being deterred from the US by American bureaucracy. And during peak season, businesses must be able to hire the immigrant staff they need. Visitors already know that the United States has it all: beaches, mountains, world-class cities and shopping. That’s why in 2011,… Read More
Immigrant Workers
It is hard to imagine the country’s $700 billion tourism and hospitality industry2 without the contributions of immigrants. In 2015, foreign-born workers made up more than one out of every five workers in the sector—and even larger shares of those employed in more labor-intensive roles.3 In states where tourism and hospitality is especially vital, immigrants represent a significantly larger share of the workforce than the population overall.
Sources:
2 U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, “Table 1: Value Added by Industry,” annual estimates for 2015, accessed October 25, 2016. Available online.
3 Author’s calculations from the 2015 American Community Survey.
Table sources: Author’s calculations from the 2015 American Community Survey.
States Where Immigrants Are the Most Overrepresented in the Hospitality Workforce, 2014
The Role of Foreign-Born Workers in Selected Labor-Intensive Hospitality and Tourism Roles, 2015
More Workers Needed
As the tourism and hospitality industry expands, it will need additional workers to maintain, service, and manage venues across the country. However, between 2010 and 2020, almost 80 percent of all the projected new positions in the industry will require less than a bachelor’s degree.4 This growth is at odds with nationwide demographic trends, as the number of U.S.-born individuals at that skill level is declining.
Sources:
4 Author’s calculations of a straight-line projection using data from the Current Population Survey, 2002-2015.
5 Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), “Industry employment and output projection to 2024,” Monthly Labor Review, December 2015. Available online.
Table source: Burning Glass Technologies
States with the Greatest Need for Hospitality Workers, 2015
The Impact of International Visitors
While domestic travelers still account for the largest share of U.S. tourism expenditures, international tourists are critical to the strength of the industry overall. On average, international tourists spend $4,500 on goods and services each time they visit the United States—making tourism our country’s largest export in recent years.6 That spending has a ripple effect on the broader economy. The U.S. Travel Association estimates that every $1 million spent by foreign visitors creates 6.6 tourism jobs.7 Each tourism job, in turn, indirectly supports 1.5 jobs in related industries such as construction, marketing, accounting, and manufacturing.8
Sources:
6 "Statement from U.S. Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker on President Obama’s Executive Actions to Welcome More International Visitors," Commerce.gov, May 22, 2014. Available online.
7 U.S. Travel Association, “Travel Exports: Driving Economic Growth and Creating American Jobs,” September 10, 2014. Available online.
8 World Tourism Organization and International Labour Organization, “Measuring Employment in the Tourism Industries – Guide with Best Practices,” UNWTO, Madrid, 2014. Available online.
Table source: Burning Glass Technologies
The Current System Hampers International Travel
Since September 11, necessary security measures and visa restrictions have made travel more difficult for many international tourists. One way to increase the number of international travelers to the United States, while still safeguarding security, would be to expand the number of countries eligible for the Visa Waiver Program (VWP). Participating countries must meet stringent security standards for vetting potential U.S. visitors and share information about possible terrorist and criminal threats, general and specific, with the U.S. government. Research finds that when a country joins VWP, the number of visitors from that country to the United States increases substantially.
Sources:
9 New American Economy, "Passport to Future Economic Growth," December 15, 2014. Available online.
10 Ibid.
Reforming the H-2B Visa
Tourism and hospitality companies across the United States depend on immigrant workers to help fill seasonal and labor-intensive jobs that would otherwise remain vacant. In 1986, under President Ronald Reagan, the H-2B visa program was created to allow immigrants to enter the country legally as temporary workers. Unfortunately, as currently administered, the H-2B program is too cumbersome and costly—and riddled with delays—to be useful to many U.S. businesses. Many employers say the supply of available visas is also far too limited to meet actual labor needs.
Sources:
11 Estimate based on figures provided by the H-2B Workforce Coalition and the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Foreign Labor Certification’s 2015 Annual Report.
12 “Immigration Myths and Facts,” U.S. Chamber of Commerce, April 14, 2016. Available online.
Impact on the States
Getting immigration reform right for the tourism and hospitality industry will be critical for many states, particularly those where the sector accounts for a substantial share of the state’s GDP. For example: in 2014, more than one out of every six dollars of GDP in Nevada was tied to the tourism and hospitality industry, as were almost one in 10 dollars of GDP in Hawaii. In Nevada, immigrants frequently hold the kinds of low-level and labor-intensive jobs that not only allow hotels and casinos to thrive, but also help create jobs for American workers at a variety of skill levels.
Table sources: Data on GDP come from the BEA’s estimates for annual GDP by state by major industry sector. Information about jobs comes from the 2014 American Community Survey.
States Most Dependent on a Strong Tourism Workforce, 2014
Top 10 Occupations Most Reliant on Immigrants in Nevada, 2014 (All Sectors)
Make a contribution
Make a direct impact on the lives of immigrants.
