Cape's worker visa shortage threatens tourist season
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A worker serves pancakes at Peacemaker in Brewster. Photo: John Tlumacki/The Boston Globe via Getty Images
Cape Cod's critical summer tourism sector faces new workforce challenges this year as the Trump administration's immigration policies collide with years of persistent housing shortages.
Why it matters: The Cape's $1.2 billion tourism industry, the region's economic backbone, depends heavily on J-1 visa workers from Eastern Europe, the Caribbean, Central Asia and other regions.
- Businesses may have to reduce service or close if they can't staff up enough to meet summer demand.
- The J-1 program provides temporary visas for foreign students to live and work in the U.S.
The big picture: The Cape has around 2,100 J-1 workers, far more than in the low point of 2020, but not even half of the 5,000 foreign students employed in 2018.
What they're saying: "That leaves potentially a 3,000-person permanent hole in our seasonal workers," Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce CEO Paul Niedzwiecki said at a recent housing forum, according to the Cape Cod Times.
Zoom in: President Trump's second term has brought enhanced vetting procedures that have extended visa processing times.
- The administration's proposed travel restriction system could affect several of the countries sending J-1 workers to Cape Cod, such as Russia, Belarus, Cape Verde, Haiti and other Caribbean nations.
Threat level: Even approved J-1 applicants face Cape Cod's worsening housing shortage.
- Stricter enforcement of regulations for J-1 students has cut into the amount of housing employers have been able to provide.
- Chamber of Commerce workforce housing coordinator Christina Arabadzhieva told WCAI that J-1 sponsoring agencies directed 3,000 students away from Cape Cod in 2022 because of the lack of proper housing.
- 22 seasonal workers employed at the Four Points Sheraton in Eastham shared two bedrooms last year, the Provincetown Independent reported.
What we're watching: Cape business leaders petitioned the White House in 2023 for a regional exemption to some visa restrictions for the tourist season.
- And Memorial Day is coming.