The cost of living and the lack of affordable housing for seasonal staff in the hotel sector is causing problems this season.
Meliá was one of the large chains that were forced to house workers in their own hotels to cope with the problem last year.
With visitor numbers expected to reach at least the same level this year as last, companies are already scrambling to close staffing levels for this season on the assumption that the number of rooms set aside to accommodate incoming staff is likely to be higher.
The record-breaking summers are a challenge for the human resources of the Balearic hospitality sector: the price of housing is keeping seasonal workers from the mainland away.
“It’s a drama but it’s going like this: for many hotels the job offer already includes accommodation,” says the Cala d’Or Hotel Association.
“Before the pandemic, sacrificing rooms was not the norm”.
The lack of affordable housing in the middle of summer is the main cause for the labour shortage.
“Especially in coastal areas like ours, where it is impossible to find accommodation at prices within the reach of workers,” hoteliers point out, warning that the problem threatens to get worse.
And with an ever-increasing volume of arrivals and the need for hotels to be up to the task of offering high quality products and services Mallorca is famous for.
Meliá has no doubt that the lack of manpower is closely linked to the biggest problem facing number one problem.
“It continues to be a very important problem for the entire sector, especially on islands such as Menorca and Ibiza where the authorities should prioritise the housing problem, as aberrant situations are seen every year and constitute a threat to the prosperity and quality of the tourist industry in these destinations,“ the chain points out.
Other large companies such as Iberostar and Barceló have followed in Meliá’s footsteps by including accommodation for their staff.
The chain headed by Gabriel Escarrer prioritises, as far as possible, also offering flats for employees rather than rooms in the hotels themselves.
He adds that, above all, the idea is to try to strengthen its recruitment strategy with job offers that include as many attractive features as possible, not just accommodation: from competitive salaries to training and exclusive benefits.
The Hotel Hotel Federation (FEHM) stresses the problem of housing, is “a handicap that makes us lose competitiveness.”
And the federation blames the large tourist rental market.
It has also called of for more economic and logistical resources to improve “public transport to facilitate the mobility of workers”.
That said, travel agencies in the Balearics are noticing an increase in the pre-contracting of seasonal workers for the hotel and catering sector.
This is according to the president of the employers’ association AVIBA, Pedro Fiol, the Balearic Association of Travel Agents, who said that the figures point to a “good and long” season.