Slow summer for Jamaican hospitality workers in US

ANNALE BARTLEY
STAR Writer
For some Jamaican H-2B hospitality workers in the US, what was expected to be a lucrative season has instead become one of uncertainty, as slow business and reduced hours have turned their excitement into disappointment.
The H-2B programme allows US employers to hire Jamaican workers for temporary, non-agricultural jobs in industries such as hospitality, landscaping and housekeeping. The initiative dates back to 1943 when the first cohort of Jamaican workers travelled to the US during World War II to help address critical labour shortages. During the last programme year, more than 12,000 Jamaicans participated in the H-2B programme.
But for Sandra*, who is now in her sixth consecutive H-2B season, this year is the worst, with not even COVID-19 being this bad. She toald THE STAR that the slowdown has been most noticeable in the drastic reduction in working hours.
“Wi use to work like 12 hours, leave out early and come in back in the night, and if I go work at 10 a.m., some days I reach home back like 3 because the business is slow, and everybody is saying the same thing,” she said.
Another worker, Paul*, who is employed in the state of Massachusetts, said he has also witnessed the unusually slow pace of the season. 
“We are three months in the season and July to August is where we mostly make our money and July is almost done and we don’t make half of what we would in the previous years,” he said.
“You see on July 4th (US independence) we would be dealing with some 2,000-plus people for the day, and we didn’t see those numbers. Even so you would see a lot of people in the area, traffic jam was a must. But this time everything was free flowing.”
Paul said that despite the slow season, it’s better than if he was in Jamaica. 
“But it is slow and for me I had some business plans I might have to put on pause,” he said. 
Sandra explained that she and colleagues often discuss what may be behind the downturn, but have found no answers.
“Being here, I can say I think because of the war that happened, that’s one, and then because of the World Cup, most people don’t really visit this area. I can’t say that’s it for sure but even other co-workers feel the same,” she reasoned.
Before the July 4 holiday, Paul said many workers still believed business would eventually rebound. However, after seeing the disappointing turnout, that optimism quickly faded.
“I just feel we have to just make use of what we can because I don’t see it changing from this,” he explained.
However, Sandra said within just two weeks of arriving, she realised something was different.
“I used to land and hit the ground running, and by two weeks in, I would feel the effects and just pull through. But I can’t say I feel burnout you know. I would only have time to do personal shopping on my day off. Now I leave work in the day and can do laundry and other things, that nuh normal at all,” she said. 
She added that many of her colleagues also arrived with high hopes and ambitious financial goals, but the disappointing season has begun taking a mental toll.
“It plays on your mind because you can’t do the things you set out to do. We work here and take care of our business and family back home and now a lot of us have to just put off stuff and will have to reconstruct for the next time.”
Reflecting on previous seasons, Paul said the difference in earnings has been significant.
“For example if I was making $3,000 by this time in the previous season, right now I am not seeing half of that. Last year by this time I would have achieved many of the goals. But now those will be on pause until the end of the season in October and see where we go from there,” he said.

*names changed to protect identity