Small travel businesses are in trouble. Unless members of Congress and the White House act soon, more than half (55 percent) of all small travel businesses in the U.S. are at risk of either taking longer than six months to recover or never recovering at all, says the U.S. Travel Association.
Data analytics firm Tourism Economics and the U.S. Travel Association found an extreme threat to jobs supported by travel-related businesses.
"These numbers highlight the urgent need for further legislative measures to provide immediate relief to small travel businesses and their employees, many of which were unable to access earlier rounds of aid," said U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Roger Dow. "Washington acted quickly and aggressively to get assistance out the door in the early days of the pandemic, but the situation remains exceptionally dire on huge swaths of Main Street U.S.A., and more needs to be done."
The organization has laid out a list of priorities for lawmakers that it believes will provide relief, protection and stimulus for travel business and travel jobs.
The U.S. Travel Association noted that more than half of travel-supported jobs in the U.S. disappeared between the onset of the pandemic and May 1. The organization also projected that the overall U.S. economy is projected to lose $1.2 trillion this year because of the drop in travel.
Travel was a top 10 employer in 49 states and the District of Columbia before travel came to a halt due to the coronavirus pandemic.
"We will do whatever it takes to get leaders to return to the negotiating table and advance another deal before the election. Each moment that passes makes it likelier that more small businesses will shut their doors and never reopen-meaning those jobs are gone for good, too."
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