Blogs

This week, TIAO's President and CEO Chris Bloore joined Amanda Pfeffer on CBC's Ontario Today to talk about the labour crisis that continues to impact tourism businesses across the province. It was an excellent opportunity to highlight some of the positive steps the industry is taking to attract more people into our workforce.

Throughout our meetings and discussions with members and industry stakeholders, we're often asked how critical resolving the labour crisis is to ensure that the tourism industry can reach its full potential, and our response remains consistent. It is as critical as reopening borders and eliminating restrictions on operations during the pandemic. We've got a lot of work to do; but in the same way we cherish and value our customers, we must create a sustainable workforce that makes our employees feel valued and that they're part of something special.

This week, Dr. Jessica Ng, TIAO’s Director of Policy and Government Affairs, spoke on CBC Radio’s Afternoon Drive on how the lack of attainable housing is worsening the labour crisis in Ontario’s tourism industry, making it more difficult for tourism businesses to hire the staff they need and recover more quickly.

For housing to be deemed affordable, a general rule of thumb is that housing costs must represent no more than 30% of pre-tax household income. However, in Ontario, 46% of renters spend more than 30% of their income on housing, underscoring the increasingly limited availability of affordable housing and constraints on the current housing supply in both urban and rural destinations. Limited availability of attainable housing impedes the ability of workers to live close to where they work, impacting local and regional workforce recruitment, retention, and labour dispersion to rural tourism economies. Ultimately, lack of affordable housing limits the recovery, sustainability, and growth of local tourism activity.

In meetings with government and in our 2022 State of the Ontario Tourism Industry Report, TIAO has been advocating for attainable housing solutions, including incentivizing the development of purpose-built rentals in Ontario and requiring municipalities to not only intensify development but approve multi-unit residential buildings as part of their official plans. TIAO will continue to advocate for attainable housing solutions to support Ontario’s tourism workforce.

This week, the TIAO team delivered the inaugural IMPACT Sustainability Travel & Tourism – ONTARIO: A Regional Event, at Queen’s University Biosciences Complex in Kingston, Ontario. In alliance with IMPACT Sustainability Travel & Tourism - SUMMIT Victoria, the regional programming showcased thought-leaders of the tourism industry across Ontario and the globe.

In addition to snapshots of innovation and inspiration, the conference programming included some substantive policy discussions on tourism, labour, transportation, and climate sustainability.  

In the fireside chat with the Hon. Randy Boissonnault, Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance, we heard about the labour crisis, rising prices facing visitors to Canada, and the ongoing efforts to ensure that tourism remains a national priority.

In a panel on labour and sustainability, we heard about the link between paying a living wage, ethical business practices, and workforce sustainability—and the impact of the housing crisis and the rising cost of living on recruitment, retention, and workforce diversity. In the lightning talk and panel on the future of transportation in Ontario, the discussion pivoted to EV infrastructure, bus and passenger rail routes, and the role of sustainable infrastructure in attracting future economic investment. And throughout the conference, we heard about the need for a whole-of-government approach to reach net-zero and the role that tourism can and must play in advancing sustainability.  

We thank our speakers and attendees for a productive and enlightening dialogue this week. TIAO will continue these discussions with government in our policy advocacy in the months ahead. Stay tuned for updates.  

As always, thank you for your continued support. And of course, if you have any questions or comments, please feel free to send me an email at jng@tiaontario.ca.

Jessica Ng
Director, Policy & Government Affairs