Estimated Job Losses Continue To Grow: WTTC

Based on its own research, the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC) says that the number of job losses due to COVID-19 have increased by over 30% in the last four weeks, growing to an estimated 100 million job losses in the travel and tourism sector.

The WTTC has alerted G20 tourism ministers to the staggering extent of the crisis, as they gathered by virtual conference late last week. Of the 100.8 million jobs at risk, almost 75 million of them are in G20 countries.

Its analysis also shows a sharp escalation in the economic loss to the world economy, up to US$2.7 trillion of GDP, from US$2.1 trillion just a month ago.

And the punishing impact of the COVID-19 crisis has led to over one million jobs already being lost every day.

Gloria Guevara, WTTC president & CEO, said: “This is a staggering and deeply worrying change in such a short time. In just the last month alone, our research shows an increase of 25 million in the number of job losses in Travel & Tourism. The whole cycle of tourism is being wiped out by the pandemic.”

Guevara added: “We have alerted the G20 Tourism Ministers, meeting today, to the extent of the crisis and advised on how governments need to step in swiftly to support and protect our sector.”

Go to www.wttc.org for more.