Hilton Daytona Beach Oceanfront Resort
Photograph ©2018 by Brian Cohen.
Brian Cohen·
2019 Novel Coronavirus
··3 Comments·5 min read

$250 Billion Bailout Requested by Lodging Companies

Not to be outdone by the commercial airline industry, executives and representatives of the lodging companies in the United States has requested $250 billion in assistance as a result of the economic impact which they have suffered due to the current 2019 Novel Coronavirus — which is also known as COVID-19 or 2019-nCoV — pandemic.

$250 Billion Bailout Requested by Lodging Companies

The request for $250 billion includes $150 billion to allow owners of hotel and resort properties to continue to pay off their loan payments and to support employees who are being laid off — tens of thousands of employees of Marriott International, Incorporated alone are reportedly being furloughed without pay but will receive benefits — while another $100 billion would go to providers of recreation and retailers as two of numerous examples of suppliers.

The chief executive officers of ten lodging companies met with Mike Pence — who is the current vice president of the United States — yesterday, Tuesday, March 17, 2020 to request urgent “assistance to keep hotels from shuttering” and to protect millions of employees of the lodging industry from losing their jobs.

a screenshot of a hotel
Source: American Hotel and Lodging Association.

“The impact to our industry is already more severe than anything we’ve seen before, including September 11th and the great recession of 2008 combined,” stated Chip Rogers — who is the president and chief executive officer of the American Hotel and Lodging Association, which ironically boasts about being All Together Powerful — according to this official press release from the trade organization. “The White House and Congress can take urgent action to protect countless jobs, provide relief to our dedicated and hardworking employees, and ensure that our small business operators and franchise owners — who represent more than half of hotels in the country — can keep their doors open.”

A decline of 30 percent in the occupancy of guests at hotel and resort properties could result in the loss of as many as four million jobs, according to this study from Oxford Economics and the American Hotel and Lodging Association — “with $180 billion of wages and a $300 billion hit to the GDP — crippling the hotel industry, the local communities they serve and the U.S. economy.”

Hundreds of hotel and resort properties worldwide have already temporarily shut their doors — and more closures are certain to occur.

As to whether the complete request of $250 billion by the lodging industry will be fulfilled remains to be seen.

Airlines for America had submitted its proposal of requests on Monday, March 16, 2020 in this document — which calls for both $25 billion in grants for passenger airlines and $25 billion in loan guarantees and tax relief for the first three months of the year — after air travel from China and most of Europe was blocked by the United States; and after a significant reduction in domestic travel because of concerns pertaining to the spread of 2019 Novel Coronavirus.

Summary

After what seems to be a vast array of countless devaluations and cuts of benefits overall to customers — that’s us — in recent years during when the economy was booming, lodging companies are already now joining airlines for financial assistance…

…and the worst of this artificial man-made economic disaster — which could easily have been avoided, in my opinion — has not even reached its full impact.

See also

Tell you what, lodging industry: I just might — just might — consider agreeing to the assistance if you clean up your act as to how you treat your customers.

A good start would be eliminating those deceptive mandatory resort fees and similar junk fees you charge your guests. Keep those intact; and you do not deserve any assistance, in my opinion.

This article is the latest in a series pertaining to the 2019 Novel Coronavirus in an effort to get the facts out with information derived from reliable sources.

Other articles at The Gate which pertain to the 2019 Novel Coronavirus include:

Photograph ©2018 by Brian Cohen.

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3 Comments

  1. Hotels are basically real estate trusts that have enjoyed very favourable tax treatment so (with the exception of ma & pa properties like most Best Westerns, a coop of indies) there should be no government “bail out”. Any government assistance must go directly to front line employees to supplement normal unemployment benefits. Same for cruise operators, most of whose ships are not even registered in the US to evade responsible regulation and employee treatment.

    Airlines are somewhat different given the lifeline they provide and within North America the vast distances covered between major cities and the lack of rail or even bus alternatives to move people and time sensitive goods. Relief in the way of fees and fuel taxes should be considered but beyond that just direct aid to laid off front line employees.

    If it’s true most Americans don’t have much more than $400 in savings for occasions like this, then it’s people first, corporations further back in the line (and corps are not people for these purposes).

    Reply

  2. Give them the money and then charge them (Government Bailout) resort fees? I could see their faces. They show up at the meeting to get the $250,000,000,000 in cash and “only” given $175,000,000,000. When they ask why we explain that there is an urban destination charge to cover the cost of “extra” benefits they will get with the loan/hand-out like “free” fax service, carbon credits to offset their office visit, complimentary water fountain water in all government office hallways during their visit and “free” upgraded premium wifi while on property.

    Maybe make them agree to basic consumer-friendly rules around this industry would be a good idea during this process like:
    Upfront pricing that is all-inclusive (No extra nickel and dime fees after the fact)
    Loyalty points never expire
    Bar soap and little bottles of shampoo put back in the bathrooms
    Better room artwork
    Doors that don’t self-slam between 9 pm and 7 am

    Reply

  3. No bailout. Bankrupt them. The bondholders will become bre owners.

    There is a bankruptcy process in capitalis countries. Why is it not followed?

    Why are capitalists looking for handouts while rest of us have to follow the law. Ask a republican this, but to get a truthful answer tie him upside down and beat him like a pinata.

    Reply

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