The waiter became a grocery manager. The conference coordinator works at a software company. And the hotel’s head of sales is now in marketing.
Workers in hotels, restaurants, bars and convention centers in America were among the hardest hit during the Covid-19 pandemic. The blockages and lack of travel have caused many meeting places to close or reduce their staff. Since February 2020, the leisure and hospitality sector has eliminated nearly four million people, or about a quarter of its workforce. In January 2021, 15.9% of industry workers remained unemployed; more than any other industry, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
As a result, millions of hospitality workers – a group that includes everyone from receptionists to travel managers – are trying to start new careers. Some have transitioned to roles that exploit enhanced skills over years of working with the public in high-pressure environments. Others took the opportunity to redo themselves for different occupations. Many remain in conflict over leaving a sector that, they say, continuously provides new experiences and generates lasting relationships.
A year ago, Ellen White was chief trainer at Public Kitchen on Manhattan’s Lower East Side. There, she instructed the restaurant staff on the best points of high-quality service.
Mrs. White supported herself by working in restaurants for almost two decades while working, until she was released from her restaurant job when the pandemic spread last spring. Now, she applies that attention to detail in her work as a customer service representative for a company that processes Covid-19 home tests.