Hotel workers keep switching jobs for ‘minor salary bumps’ during the US labor shortage, a hotel owner said. Some don’t even show up for their first shift.

• Some workers are getting jobs at hotels but not turning up to first shifts, a NYC hotel owner said.
• He told Fox Business that some staff had left the company for minor salary bumps, too.
• The industry is offering perks like free accommodation and fitness machines amid the labor shortage.
• See more stories on Insider's business page.

Hotel workers are quitting their jobs for better pay during the US labor shortage, making recruitment a huge challenge, the owner of a New York City told Fox Business.

"Hiring has been incredibly challenging," Michael Achenbaum, founder and president of Gansevoort Hotel Group, which owns a 186-room room in NYC's Meatpacking district, told the publication.

He added that some employees weren't showing up for their first ship. He didn't elaborate.

"Not only is finding qualified candidates difficult but there is a consistent acceptance of offers and then no-shows on the first day," Achenbaum.

Read more: How Starbucks is defying the labor shortage crisis with transformative perks, not cash teasers like McDonald's

Achenbaum said that some staff were leaving the Gansevoort Hotel Group to work at other hotels "for minor salary bumps."

Hotels are scrambling to both recruit and retain employees amid the US labor shortage hitting industries from healthcare to hospitality and ride-hailing apps. The lack of workers is causing some businesses to cut operating hours, slash production, and raise prices, and the US Chamber of Commerce said it could hold back the country's economic recovery from the pandemic.

The Labor Department said that about 4 million workers in the US quit their jobs in April - a 20-year record.

Insider's Áine Cain reported that long hours, unruly customers, and low pay have caused minimum-wage workers to quit their jobs in droves during the pandemic. Other reports suggest that unemployment benefits, COVID-19 health concerns, and caring responsibilities also played a role.

Grocery stores and restaurants have been offering perks from higher wages and education benefits to cash bonuses and even free iPhones to attract new hires as the economy reopens and customers return. Some hotels have been offering free accommodation to staff, while Achenbaum told Fox Business that his hotel, the Gansevoort Meatpacking Hotel, gave senior staffers a $1,345 connected-fitness machine when they returned to the hotel after working virtually for eight months.

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