US Summer Pools Closes Due to Lifeguard Shortage

Aside from formula milk and tampons, there is another nationwide shortage the country faces: lifeguards to police local pools in the U.S.

The shortage of lifeguards is forcing local pools across the country to close for the summer. Major cities like New York, Chicago, New Orleans, and other parts of the country are now reducing their hours of operations or shutting down is pools as the shortage of lifeguards continues.

Lifeguard Mott Eliyahu told BBC that the shortage is real.

As per American Lifeguard Association, a third of the pools in the U.S. will be affected by staff shortages. The estimate is expected to increase to half by September.

Eliyahu said he had never seen a higher demand for lifeguards than ever before. In Long Island, New York, he said that pools are getting into bidding for lifeguard services. A typical lifeguard pays $16 per hour and is now offering $20 per hour. Pheonix, Arizona, pools provide a $2,500 incentive bonus to the next hired 500 lifeguards.

"It is a crisis"

Bernard J. Fisher II, director of health and safety at the American Lifeguard Association, says that "it is a crisis." He said the reason for the shortage is that there is a need to train more lifeguards to rebuild the supply of lifeguards before the pandemic.

He added that before COVID-19, around one million certified lifeguards were available to work each summer. Since the pandemic, fewer people were swimming or training to be guards.

Lifeguards require recertification every two years. The industry attracted fewer recruits during a pandemic, and many members of its workforce could not renew their qualifications. Also, Fox News says that many lifeguards reportedly found other higher-paying jobs while the pools were closed.

Lindsay Mondick, a water safety expert with the YMCA, a youth sports and hostel chain, said another problem is the lack of student visas. Many lifeguards are students from overseas. When the U.S. limited the issuance of student visas in June 2020, the number of lifeguards also dwindled. Despite the loosening of visa restrictions, the shortage remains. The COVID-19 and the tight labor market have exacerbated the issue, Mondick noted.

Due to the profession's high demand and limited supply, Ms. Mondick said that YMCA is offering bonuses, increasing the pay, and offering full-time instead of part-time positions.

Kayla Stickelman, 19, a lifeguard in an apartment complex in New York, said she is considering several higher-paying offers. She is also encouraging her friends to apply for the jobs, but most of her friends are not interested because the certification is expensive.

In Chicago, some have also blamed the shortage on the mishandling of sexual assault and harassment complaints within the city's lifeguard program. As per The Guardian, the incident led to an investigation and the resignation of several park district employees.

Training and certification

Fischer said that simply increasing the wages may not solve the crisis because the problem stems from not enough people training to be lifeguards. He added that if cities cannot find ways to recruit more lifeguards for local pools, people may head to pools unmonitored or find more dangerous swimming options to relieve themselves from the summer heat.