Hotel Jobs Coming Back in a Handful of Large Metro Areas

(Bloomberg) -- The hard-hit hospitality industry is starting to bounce back from the Covid-19 pandemic -- at least in a few U.S. cities.

August employment in the accommodations sector in five metro areas climbed back to at least 80% of where it stood a year earlier, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data analyzed by Bloomberg News. This compares with about 60% for the nation as a whole.

As consumers stopped traveling and eating out, hotel jobs took a beating. But five cities sprinkled around the country -- Reno, Nevada; Omaha, Nebraska; Denver, Salt Lake City and Atlanta -- are showing signs of recovery as some business and leisure travel resumes.

At the other end of the spectrum, hotel employment remains down by at least 50% from a year ago in nine of 40 metro areas examined.

The worst of the bunch were the Hawaiian resort areas of Kahului-Wailuku-Lahaina at almost 81% below and Urban Honolulu, down 72%. The island has not seen the return of visitors willing to endure relatively long flights from the U.S. mainland or from Asia. Sacramento, Boston and the Washington, D.C., area round out the bottom five cities.

Hotel staff remains about 50% of where it was a year earlier in much of Florida including Orlando, Miami, West Palm Beach and Tampa.

A fuller picture of U.S. employment will be revealed Friday when the September jobs report is published.

Read More: U.S. Jobless Claims Drop While Remaining Above Pre-Virus Level

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