Take a peek inside the RI Hospitality Association’s Economic Outlook Breakfast
Industry leaders discussed consumer economic anxiety and workforce concerns at the annual event, which was held Wednesday.
PROVIDENCE – Rhode Island’s hospitality industry continues to recover from the shutdowns it faced in 2020, although the pace has slowed considerably as new economic factors put pressure on the state’s employees and consumers.
The Rhode Island Hospitality Association hosted a Economic Outlook breakfast Wednesday, detailing to its membership the current statistics on the food service, lodging and recreation industry locally and nationally. Representatives from the National Restaurant Association and Pinnacle Advisory Group, a hotel asset management firm, gave in-depth reports on the hospitality industry’s post-pandemic recovery and predictions for the industry’s near future.
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Employee retention and recruitment remain a top concern
The major theme of the morning was the impact current economic pressures are having on the hospitality industry, especially its workforce. In his presentation on the current state of the restaurant industry, National Restaurant Association Vice President of Research and Knowledge Chad Moutray said that while some sectors have regained the number of employees lost during the pandemic, others have been slower to recover, especially the full-service restaurant industry. Additionally, the number of job openings in the restaurant industry remains greater than the number of unemployed workers able to fill those positions, as it has been since 2021
RI Hospitality Association Chief Operating Officer Heather Singleton, whose presentation specifically highlighted workforce issues faced by the industry, explored these problems in more depth using numbers from a report on Rhode Island Employment Trends and Workforce Issues in 2022-2023, which was published this April. Through this, Singleton noted that while the minimum wage and median wage in Rhode Island are both higher than it is nationally, the accommodation and food services sector had one of the lowest average annual wages of any sector in the state, which Singleton attributed largely to the fact that the sector employs more people under the age of 25 than any other sector. However, the report also showed that the industry is aging, as 15.9% of the sector was identified as being 55 years old or older in 2023 compared to 7% in 2003. In fact, 66% of those employed in accommodation and food service jobs were 25 years old or older in 2023, compared to 57% in 2003.
Singleton also pointed to the lack of employee well-being and engagement as an issue, both for the hospitality industry but also for the nation as a whole. Singleton showcased a recent Gallup report on the State of the Global Workplace, which claimed that 77% of employees globally are either not engaged or actively disengaged with their work, costing the global economy about $8.9 trillion. To combat this, Singleton pointed to training programs the association provides to boost engagement, which the Gallup report suggests could reduce absenteeism and turnover while increasing employee well-being and productivity.
Restaurants and hotels notice increased customer price sensitivity
Both reports coming out of the restaurant and hotel industry that morning indicated a growing split in consumer habits as consumer anxiety over the state of the economy increases. Kate Mashburn of Pinnacle Advisory Group revealed that, on a national level, luxury and upscale hotels and accommodations have experienced continued growth while budget and middle-cost travel is decreasing as consumers are becoming more price-conscious compared to just after the pandemic. Additionally, a survey the National Restaurant Association conducted among restaurant operators indicated increasing concerns about the economy as well as increasingly pessimistic outlooks on general business conditions.
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Statewide, the hotel industry is steady, with year-to-date occupancy rates hitting just one percentage point under the national average of 63% for July 2024, with Warwick’s occupancy rate projected to reach up to 69% by the end of 2024. Mashburn attributes this partially to increased activity coming out of T.F. Green Airport.
Meanwhile, on Aquidneck Island, occupancy rates have decreased since 2023 owing to increases in supply, namely the opening of the Gardiner House in September 2023, the Wayfinder hotel’s phased reopening and Newport Harbor Island Resort’s reopening in April 2024.
Overall outlook still positive for 2030
Despite these concerns, the hospitality industry’s job market is continuing to see positive growth. Moutray’s presentation showed that, by July 2024, employment in restaurants finally surpassed what it had been before February 2020. Similarly, Singleton’s presentation showed that the accommodations and food service sector had the largest change in annual employment of any industry sector in the state between 2021 and 2022.
The report and Singleton’s presentation also projected the sector would increase employment by 35.3% between 2020 and 2030. Within the hospitality sector, employment in Food Preparation and Serving Related jobs is expected to increase the most of any other sector in the state, with cooking, serving, bartending and quick service counter positions among the top in employment increases.
PROVIDENCE — The application period for Rhode Island’s charter schools opened this week, giving families a shot at roughly 3,000 seats projected to be available at charter schools next year.
A blind lottery for available seats will be held on April 1. Charter schools are in high demand in Rhode Island, with roughly 11,000 families submitting 30,000 applications for 2,500 seats lasts year. (Families can apply for more than one school.)
There are about 13,000 Rhode Island public school students currently enrolled in 25 charters, some of which are larger networks with multiple schools.
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Despite the demand, teachers unions and other public school advocates have sought to block the expansion of charter schools, concerned they are financially hurting the traditional public school system. School funding follows each child from their home school district to the charter school.
In this week’s episode of the Rhode Island Report, Chiara Deltito-Sharrott from the Rhode Island League of Charter Schools talks about the future of charter schools in Rhode Island, and provides a rebuttal to comments made by Maribeth Calabro, the head of Rhode Island’s largest teachers union, in an episode earlier this month.
Steph Machado can be reached at steph.machado@globe.com. Follow her @StephMachado.
United Way of Rhode Island accepts initial donations from the Fund’s sponsoring energy companies. (courtesy: United Way of Rhode Island)
PROVIDENCE, R.I. (WLNE) — United Way of Rhode Island announced the Rhode Island Good Neighbor Energy Fund has begun for the 2024 through 2025 season.
The fund helps families that need assistance paying their home heating bills but are not eligible for federal or state assistance.
Since it was founded, the Good Neighbor Energy Fund has aided over 48,250 Rhode Island homes.
United RI says any local households in the state that are in need of funding assistance for energy are encouraged to contact a local Community Action Program agency, or to call the 211 helpline for help locating a CAP agency.
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GNEF eligibility is determined on total income not exceeding 300% of the federal poverty level, and provides up to $825 per household each heating season depending on eligibility, fuel type, and need.
United RI said in addition to sponsors, the fund relies on Rhode Islanders who donate through the “Warm Thy Neighbor” campaign.
Donations can be made through the yellow donation envelope enclosed with monthly energy bills, or by scanning the QR code on the envelope.
Additionally, donations can be given through phone by texting “WARM” to 91999.
For more information, visit United Way of Rhode Island’s website here.
Former U.S. Naval officer Darryl Lindie learned early in his career that taking care of his team was key to accomplishing a mission.
Since buying AASign & Awning in Warwick in 2023, Lindie has applied that philosophy to his business, giving his 30-person team paid days off and other benefits. But one offering remained a little too complicated and expensive: retirement savings.
Not for long.
Legislation approved in the 2024 General Assembly and signed into law by Gov. Dan McKee in September sets up a public retirement savings program for private-sector workers whose employers don’t already offer the investment option. Ahead of its formal launch, state officials unveiled details of the RISavers program at an event outside Lindie’s sign shop on Wednesday.
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Modeled after similar programs in other states, including Connecticut, RISavers automatically opens Roth Individual Retirement Accounts for eligible private-sector workers, set up through the Rhode Island Office of the General Treasurer with help from a third-party account administrator.
“It is absolutely true that anyone can open a Roth IRA or another retirement account whenever they want,” Treasurer James Diossa said. “But it’s also equally true that not everyone has the ability to navigate the financial sector. These things can be daunting and RISavers makes it quick and easy and helps ensure more Rhode Islanders are on a path to stable retirement.”
An estimated 170,000 Rhode Island workers, equal to 40% of the state’s private-sector workforce, don’t get retirement benefits through their jobs, according to information from Diossa’s office. Connecticut State Comptroller Sean Scanlon (left) and Rhode Island General Treasurer James Diossa announced a partnership between Connecticut and Rhode Island, sharing costs for administering their respective state public retirement programs. (Nancy Lavin/Rhode Island Current)
The program also alleviates the burden on small businesses, which have no obligation to match contributions. Their only cost is from processing payroll deductions from participating employees.
Businesses with at least five employees are mandated to make the new retirement program available to their workers, with phased-in deadlines based upon business size. Employers with at least 100 workers must enroll within the first year of the program, while those with 50 to 100 workers have to sign up within two years. All 400,000 businesses that meet the minimum employment requirement must join within three years. Businesses with fewer than five employees can also sign up anytime they want.
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“This represents a win for families, for the state economy, and for the overall well-being of our state,” McKee said.
And, it doesn’t come with any extra costs to taxpayers or extra staffing needs, as touted by House Speaker K. Joseph Shekarchi.
A fiscal note included with the legislation in March 2024 estimated a $311,000 startup cost, split between fiscal 2025 and fiscal 2026, based on comparable startup costs in other states like Delaware and Maine. However, no additional money was used in the nearly $14 billion fiscal 2025 budget to pay for the program, which instead relied on existing funds within the treasurer’s office, according to Rob Craven, Diossa’s legislative affairs director.
Rhode Island will pay a $100,000 fee for Vestwell State Savings, split between this fiscal year and the next, to administer the program. Rhode Island is also partnering with Connecticut, which launched its public retirement savings program for public-sector employees two years ago, to share in administration costs and investment fees from Vestwell.
Which, in turn, drives down the fees for participating workers.
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The program will use Bank of New York Mellon for its accounts, the same financial services company Vestwell uses for its version of a public retirement account.
Since Connecticut launched the MyCTSavings program in April 2022, it has opened retirement accounts for nearly 30,000 state residents, who have invested $33 million, said Comptroller Sean Scanlon, who attended the event in Warwick.
As of June 30, 2024, 20 states had launched, or passed legislation to launch, retirement savings programs for private sector workers, 17 of which (including Rhode Island) automatically enroll eligible workers, according to the Center for Retirement Initiatives at Georgetown University’ McCourt School of Public Policy.
Diossa plans to launch a pilot program with a small number of participants in the spring of 2025, opening up the program to full capacity “shortly after.”
Lindie is eager to sign up, noting the interest among his workers already. He hopes the perk will attract new workers to the growing, design-to-build sign shop.
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“We are looking for a younger generation of talent, and we need these kinds of benefits,” Lindie said.
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