Hi and good morning, Mr. Chair and members of the committee.
Thank you for inviting me to appear today.
My name is Susie Grynol. I am the president and CEO of the Hotel Association of Canada.
The tourism and hospitality industry shut down for two years during COVID. We did our part to keep Canadians safe. We are extremely grateful for the government support that kept us alive. It is the reason we have an industry today. Thank you.
However, those two lost years scarred the tourism and hospitality sector. One million employees left our sector in the first two months of COVID. Today we are still short 200,000 workers. According to our member survey that was in the field yesterday, 50% of our members are limiting available rooms today in our off season due to labour shortages. Think about that: Half the hotels in this country are operating under capacity because we don't have enough people.
As we approach our summer high season, our worker shortfall is projected to grow to 360,000 workers. That is two to three times higher than any other sector. It's a problem that will not solve itself without government intervention.
As a result of COVID, we also lost two years of planned development and growth. We have lost major international events. We have lost new hotel capacity and new attractions. Canada fell from fifth in the world in our global competitiveness ranking to 13th. We are falling behind countries that pivoted more quickly to meet the now surging global demand for travel.
That hurts not just the tourism sector but also the Canadian economy as a whole. We are Canada's largest service export. We employ one in 10 Canadians. We operate in every region and riding in Canada. There's not a single part of Canada that does not see tourism as a source of economic strength and civic pride.
Top-of-mind interest in travel to Canada is greater than ever. Google searches are up 100% for travel to Canada. U.S. bookings are outpacing 2019 levels by 111%. However, Canada needs a strategy to turn top-of-mind interest into action. We need to eliminate the barriers created by the lost years of COVID. We need to rebuild a devastated sector and position it for growth.
The industry is waiting for the much-anticipated tourism growth strategy that was announced in budget 2022. The government has a choice to make: Will the tourism growth strategy be a significant investment in tourism attractions, infrastructure and people, or will we have to watch as Canada continues to fall behind?
To work, the tourism growth strategy must include the following.
We need to rebuild our workforce. We are doing everything we can domestically to recruit Canadians, but more is needed. The first thing we can do is around the lowest-hanging fruit. We have newcomers arriving into Canada daily, many of them from Ukraine. Previously, we partnered with the government on a bridge program to mobilize new Canadians into available hotel jobs. We are recommending a relaunch of this program, called “Destination Employment”, to help with our immediate staffing needs.
Next, tourism peaks every year in the summer. We need to be able to access a seasonal workforce. We are asking for a dedicated stream of seasonal workers, similar to what is done in the agriculture sector.
However, our needs are not just seasonal, and they are not short-term. We have permanent positions for all skill levels available year round. We recommend that we find a pathway for short-term workers who want to stay and build a life in Canada. We also need to better align our longer-term immigration criteria with in-demand positions.
On investment, the government has an opportunity to co-invest in new tourism attractions and experiences so that we can capitalize on the top-of-mind international interest in Canada. We need to keep marketing our Canadian brand to the world. We need to build back our business event segment. We need to ensure that we have enough hotel capacity to support this growth.
Committee members, please don't let two lost years turn into a lost decade for tourism and hospitality. Our industry showcases the best of Canada to the world. We are an inclusive, safe and beautiful country, a model for other nations. We are unique in welcoming newcomers across partisan lines.
Tourism is the opportunity to share with the world everything beautiful about Mississauga, Calgary, Joliette, Burnaby and Winnipeg. We can build attractions that Canadians can enjoy and share with visitors from around the globe. With the right strategy, we can seize this incredible opportunity to celebrate Canada in all 338 ridings.
Thank you.