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Some pools and beaches will not open on Memorial Day weekend due to a lack of lifeguards. Grady Trimble from FOX Business with more.
The staff shortage has gotten out of hand as fewer lifeguards are on duty in cities across the country ahead of the unofficial start of summer – Memorial Day weekend.
Parks and recreational departments across the country are struggling to find lifeguards to watch over Americans who are ready to return to normal more than a year after the pandemic. Nationwide closings sparked a year-long hiring freeze that paused training and certification programs.
Parks and recreational departments across the country are struggling to find lifeguards after COVID-19 suspended training programs for 2020. (Photo by John Greim / LightRocket via Getty Images)
Austin, Texas last week warned community members that there aren’t enough lifeguards to open all of its pools in early June, citing the need to train, certify and hire more candidates. The watersports department had to close in March 2020 due to COVID-19 and was only able to resume hiring a full year later. There are currently 150 lifeguards for the entire city – that’s only 20% of the 750 needed for full coverage.
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“When we started retraining in March 2021, there were also some restrictions on how many lifeguards we could have in a class,” Jodi Jay, the Austin water division manager, told FOX Business on Wednesday. “It’s going to be a long process. It will probably be a good year before we really recover. We’ll continue to train lifeguards until the end of the school year.”
In Missouri, some Jackson County’s public beaches remain closed due to staff shortages.
“We don’t have enough people applying for our jobs. We’re not just talking about lifeguards. People who work in our marinas, our park maintenance and operations department, ”Tina Spallo, director of recreation at Jackson County Parks and Rec told FOX4KC.
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Other municipalities offer incentives to employ more lifeguards. Easton’s Beach in Newport, Rhode Island offers lifeguards up to $ 20 an hour, and beach workers can also get an additional $ 3 an hour at their hourly rate for working weekends through Labor Day, according to Newport’s website. The city will also reportedly offer reimbursement to lifeguards participating in CPR and first aid certification training programs, according to the Newport Daily News.
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And in Columbus, Ohio, the Aquatic Center in Groveport is offering its lifeguards a referral bonus to motivate them to recruit qualified friends for work, reported WCMH NBC4 Columbus.
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