Tourism businesses in Maine fear shortage of workers this summer
File photo / Laurie Schreiber
Most tourism businesses throughout Maine are concerned they won’t have enough staffers for the upcoming season.
Although there is a proposal at the federal level to make it easier for small businesses to hire foreign workers on temporary visas, many tourism businesses in Maine say it’s not coming quickly enough and won’t fill their needs.
According to a Maine Tourism Association poll of its members, only 29% said they have sufficient staff for the coming tourism season.
About two-thirds of those polled said they expect to have half to as much as 90% of the staff needed. Another 9% said they will have less than half of the staff needed.
“I hear from businesses in my area that they have had to adapt to the staff shortages,” said Brian Langley, owner of Union River Lobster Pot in Ellsworth. “They shorten hours or days of operation, not because of a lack of demand but because of a lack of workers.”
Members cited overall workforce shortages combined with not enough people seeking jobs as the primary contributors of the labor shortage. A lack of affordable housing was also cited as a reason.
Even with foreign workers coming into the country on worker visa programs such as H-2B and J-1, there won't be enough workers to fill job openings, members said.
"We must tackle the staffing challenges and we must do so quickly,” said Curt Dale Clark, artistic director of the Maine State Music Theatre in Brunswick. “We want to ensure the record number of tourists coming to the great state of Maine this coming summer will get the great service people expect when coming to Vacationland."
The Maine Tourism Association is the state’s largest advocate for all tourism-related businesses. Incorporated in 1922, MTA members include lodging, restaurants, camps, campgrounds, retail, outdoor recreation, guides, tour operators, amusements, transportation, and cultural and historical attractions. MTA also operates on behalf of the state seven state visitor information centers from Kittery to Calais, and annually produces the state’s official travel planner, Maine Invites You.
An MTA poll conducted in January found that, while 30% of tourism businesses are optimistic that the 2023 season will be better than 2022, just over half thought visitor numbers, revenue and the labor shortage would be about the same.
Some 65% of respondents said they were concerned about the cost of doing business. Next was staffing shortages at 45%, then economic recession at 44%.
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