Around 10,000 hospitality workers in Saskatchewan could soon be out of work as restaurants shut their doors and hotels become ghost towns amid concerns around COVID-19.
The province declared a state of emergency on Tuesday. “Our industry is evaporating before our eyes and it’s not like anything we’ve ever seen,” said Jim Bence, president and CEO of the Saskatchewan Hotel and Hospitality Association (SHHA).
He said at least 10,000 hospitality workers in the province will likely be laid off, and that number could be even higher. There are around 63,000 hospitality workers in the province, Bence said.
They include hotel workers, servers and bartenders, and staff at big event centres. Public health officials are asking people to stay home if