The wages and salaries paid to workers in the hotel sectors across the Caribbean
have drawn the attention of the region’s tourism ministers.
Word of this comes from Antigua and Barbuda’s Tourism Minister, Charles
Fernandez who is among Caribbean tourism ministers meeting for the Caribbean
Tourism Organisation’s annual Tourism Week being held in New York City, this
week.
Fernandez explained that there is an issue of rising costs in the tourism sector
affected by the aftermath of the pandemic, the war in Ukraine, and the rising oil
prices. He said these growing prices are affecting the bottom line in the hotel sector
across the region. However, he noted many hoteliers are seeking to deal with this
by keeping down the salaries and wages paid to their workers.
“You have some hotels that are concerned about the whole aspect of the employees
and their remuneration. As a matter of fact, at the same time, they are trying to get
more per room, they are trying to keep their costs down and one of the ways to
achieve this, as far as they are concerned, is by keeping the salaries and wages of
their employees down,” he further explained.
Fernandez revealed that this matter has been discussed by the ministers and they
believe that this is something that needs to be addressed. “Wages and salaries
should not be the first thing that hoteliers look at to push down and the last to pull
up. We believe that it should be the other way around.” He stated.
The tourism minister noted that the governments give so much in concessions on
behalf of the people of the country and as a result, the governments expect that
their people must not be pushed to the ‘back of the table.’
The Caribbean tourism ministers also discussed rising crime across the region and
its impact on tourism. “We have seen a spike in crime in Antigua and Barbuda,
even though we are still the lowest in criminal activities, one crime is still one
crime too many. Safety is something that we are happy and proud of recognizing.
Travelers today want rich, local, cultural experiences. If the crime is low, then we
can encourage our visitors and locals to go out and sample food at the different
restaurants. Therefore, for us, safety is an issue,” Fernandez remarked.
He emphasized that while Antigua and Barbuda is fortunate to have a relatively
low crime rate and safety is a serious issue, the country cannot afford to let this get
‘out of hand,’
