by Donald Wood
Last updated: 10:00 AM ET, Mon May 9, 2022
New data from the United States government showed job growth in leisure and hospitality, manufacturing, transportation and warehousing.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics' (BLS) April employment report, jobs in the leisure and hospitality sector increased by 78,000, but totals were still down 8.5 percent (1.4 million) when compared to February 2020.
Leisure and hospitality growth continued in food services and drinking establishments with the addition of 44,000 jobs, while accommodations added 22,000 employees.
U.S. Travel Association Executive Vice President of Public Affairs and Policy Tori Emerson Barnes issued a statement on the April employment report:
"Leisure and Hospitality job gains were the worst since the end of 2020 and represent 1.4 million (8.5 percent) of pre-pandemic jobs remain lost," Emerson Barnes said. "A lack of available workers to fill the 1.7 million job openings, coupled with the lagging recovery of business and international travel spending, continues travel's uneven rebound."
The BLS report found that total nonfarm payroll employment remained strong in April, increasing by 428,000 and beating estimates. The unemployment rate was unchanged at 3.6 percent.
Last month, the World Travel & Tourism Council released the latest Economic Impact Report (EIR), announcing the travel and tourism industry is expected to create nearly 126 million new jobs within the next ten years.
In addition, the report also noted that the industry would be a driving force for global economic recovery after COVID-19, creating one in three of all new jobs expected to be created over the next decade.
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