Formentera’s business owners have been warning for at least two years about the serious difficulties they will have in finding qualified personnel to fill their workforce to be able to provide the service that fits the quality of their establishments. Despite their efforts, many of them, especially hoteliers, offer accommodation to their workers, although they able to do so for all of them.
The reason is the serious difficulties that exist on the island to find housing at a reasonable price, which is complicated when the season arrives since the offerings are focused on tourism, forgetting the need for workers’ residence.
Rental prices are rising and are making it difficult for many companies to fill their workforces. Some are even considering reducing their offer because they cannot find staff to provide adequate service to their customers.
The president of the Formentera Hotel Association, Juanma Costa, points out that although this problem has been dragging on for some years, this season it is getting worse: “We lack staff in all sectors: waiters, reception… even the kitchen, especially the most specialized workers”. Costa points out that they can find staff on the Peninsula “and we do find them but there is the difficulty of accommodation, that limits us. If there were housing we would not have these difficulties”.
“Without a workforce we have to provide a poorer service”
The spokesman of the hoteliers recognizes that this circumstance directly affects the service: “If I need 20 waiters and I only have 15, or I have to reduce tables or give a poorer service”. Costa assures that the problem “is common in the sector” and admits that it has a bad solution: “Either we address the problem for the workforce in a serious way or we will be like this for many years, and we’ll see if it doesn’t get worse”.
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