Adaptation Amidst Unprecedented Change: The Impact of COVID-19 on Accommodation Workers in Negril, Jamaica

Abstract

The COVID-19 pandemic has had significant impacts on Jamaica's tourism industry. In an industry already exposed to a multiplicity of challenges ranging from climatic change to globalization, the imposition of the COVID-19 pandemic is unprecedented in both pace and magnitude. Accommodation workers in the tourism industry are particularly vulnerable to these impacts given the travel restrictions and visitor skepticism which prompted the closure of many hotels. Such vulnerability may be compounded by intersections of gender, age, education, and skill set. A recent study by the International Labour Organization (ILO) (2020) indicates that the accommodation sector in Jamaica is dominated by female workers who are likely to be pushed into precarious employment circumstances. This chapter utilized a concurrent triangulation mixed methods approach to explore the experiences and socioeconomic impacts of COVID-19 on accommodation workers in Negril, Jamaica, and the strategies deployed to navigate challenging circumstances. The main findings indicated that while most persons were able to retain their jobs, the impacts were tremendous as experienced through decreased workdays and work hours with women being disproportionately affected in comparison to men. These impacts also had significant implications for food and financial security forcing a lot of individuals to rely on limited savings or to budget by prioritizing these needs which were among the coping methods identified. Of great importance within the coping methods was the leveraging of social capital, particularly through family networks which resulted in remittances and other resources to mitigate the impacts posed by the pandemic.

Citation

Smith, R.-A., Mahabir, A., Kinlocke, R. and Bassan, J.-L. (2022), "Adaptation Amidst Unprecedented Change: The Impact of COVID-19 on Accommodation Workers in Negril, Jamaica", Bethell-Bennett, I., Rolle, S.A., Minnis, J. and Okumus, F. (Ed.) Pandemics, Disasters, Sustainability, Tourism, Emerald Publishing Limited, Leeds, pp. 15-29. https://doi.org/10.1108/978-1-80382-105-420221002