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The “2G plus” rules in Germany are a challenge for the gastronomy and tourism sectors.
Due to the rapid spread of the omicron variant of the coronavirus, the German authorities agreed to implement a rule that only allows those who have been vaccinated or recovered to enter restaurants and bars, who must also present a certificate that they have received the booster dose, or a negative test for COVID-19. The application of these new measures represents another problem for the battered German tourism sector, since it is feared a massive drop in demand and even the impossibility of operating profitably under the aforementioned regulations, so that some companies would have to close.
“The situation is once once more dramatic for many of our members,” said Ingrid Hartges, executive director of DEHOGA, the German Hotel and Restaurant Association, in an interview with DW. Hartges fears further revenue losses from the rules. more restrictive, and believes that the measures are disproportionate, since figures from the Robert Koch Institute for Virology, the highest German authority on the matter, show that tourism is not a sector that especially drives infections during the pandemic. which indicate that, from January to October 2021, tourism lost regarding 42 percent of sales, compared to 2019, the year before the pandemic.
Effects of the pandemic on tourism
Small companies in the sector were especially affected. “The market is totally reorganizing itself at the moment,” researcher Claudia Brözel of the Eberswalde University for Sustainable Development tells DW. Large tour operators and airlines navigated the pandemic waters better thanks to generous support. of the German government.
The effects on the different sectors of the tourism industry in this country vary quite a bit. Hotels in popular vacation spots, for example, have benefited from a surge in interest in summer travel, with demand for some of them even higher than before the pandemic. So it’s no surprise that traders view the coming year with cautious optimism.
In contrast, lodgings typically used for conferences and business trips in some cities, for example, had to deal with a two-year decline in sales. The lack of guests might also continue following the end of the pandemic. Most experts assume that many business trips will be replaced by virtual meetings in the future, even following the pandemic has passed. “We learned that we don’t need all these trips,” says Claudia Brözel. “If the tourism industry wants to survive, it will have to innovate,” she adds.
decrease in jobs
But even if the sector manages to survive the pandemic, other big problems await. One of the most serious is the shortage of employees. This phenomenon already existed in 2019, and the pandemic caused even more sick leave. Many workers have turned their backs on jobs in tourism, preferring, for example, to work in the automotive industry or in commerce.
In October 2021, the Federal Employment Agency recorded a decrease of 82,000 employees in the tourism sector subject to social contributions since the start of the pandemic, says Ingrid Hartges. The director of DEHOGA asks that training be increased, that training be paid better and that more recognition be given to employees, as well as a non-bureaucratic solution to the immigration of specialized workers from abroad.
Researcher Brözel blames not only the pandemic, but also the characteristics of the tourism sector: “Tourism is known for the amount of work involved and the low pay,” she stresses. “If you want to attract workers, you have to increase the attractiveness of the offer.
Slow end of mass tourism?
In many parts of the world, the pandemic has caused tourism authorities to rethink their strategies. Tourist-ridden cities like Venice have used the past few months to put systems in place to regulate visitor numbers and prevent overcrowding.
An increasing number of providers are focusing on sustainable offerings that prioritize quality over quantity, even if that means travel becomes more expensive. According to Claudia Brözel, this trend is also necessary to make the sector survive in the future. For too long, companies relied on discount prices that made travel profitable only for the masses, he says. “Now the suppliers have realized that mass tourism does not bring more money to the cities, but simply exceeds their possibilities.”
(cp/ers)
Author: Felix Schlagwein
