Recession-Resistant Travelers, Hotel Worker Discontent and Air-Traffic Controllers

Skift Take

Today’s podcast looks at travel slowdowns, hotel labor unrest, and good news in air traffic control.

Rashaad Jorden

Good morning from Skift. It’s Tuesday, September 24, and here’s what you need to know about the business of travel today.

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Episode Notes

Concerns have grown in recent weeks about how a potential recession could impact travel. But while the travel industry isn’t recession-proof, it could be recession-resistant, reports Senior Research Analyst Pranavi Agarwal.

There are signs of weakness. The Skift Travel 200 Stock Index is up only 3% since the start of the year, and travel executives have noted of a slowdown in demand on recent earnings calls. 

But Agarwal writes travel today could be a little more insulated than it has been in the past. Spending on travel is still discretionary, but it is more important to consumers than ever before. She cites travel’s emergence as a more fundamental need coming out of the pandemic as one reason the industry is recession-resistant.    

Next, the U.S. hotel industry is bracing for widespread work stoppages as 40,000 hotel workers have contracts that have expired or will expire by year’s end, writes Senior Hospitality Editor Sean O’Neill. 

More than 1,500 San Francisco hotel workers went on strike on Sunday, demanding improved pay and working conditions from Hilton, Marriott and Hyatt. Gwen Mills, president of labor union Unite Here, said the lapse in contracts has set the stage for more strikes across the hotel sector if issues remain unresolved. 

Finally, the Federal Aviation Administration has hit its air-traffic controller hiring goal for the fiscal 2024. But the agency is still dealing with a shortage that may last for years, writes Airlines Reporter Meghna Maharishi. 

The FAA had set a goal of hiring 1,800 air-traffic controllers, and the agency has beat that target. However, the FAA is still short roughly 3,000 air traffic controllers despite a hiring surge last year. In addition, United Airlines CEO Scott Kirby said he doesn’t expect the shortage to be resolved anytime soon.