In New York City alone, there are just 700 lifeguards available to work at municipal swim spots — less than half the number the city employed just three years ago. Here’s a perfect storm of different factors that contributed to the lifeguard shortage.
If you head to your local pool or beach in the coming days, don’t be surprised to find that it’s closed: A lifeguard shortage of epic proportions is playing havoc with that sacred summer ritual of going for a swim.
Many of those new pools are staffed by lifeguards for the obvious safety reasons. But Fisher notes there’s usually not even a choice in the matter: Insurers will typically make it a requirement. All that adds to the demand and often pits the residential building and hotel operators against municipalities when it comes to hiring lifeguards. And guess who can often pay more? As a result, the city-run facilities sometimes lose out to the private sector.
But there’s yet another wrinkle to this: Many of the visa workers, including those who were employed as lifeguards, were from Eastern Europe — Russia in particular, Fisher says. The war in Ukraine has simply made it difficult for those Russian people to leave, Fisher adds, since they now have a different set of priorities and concerns.
The “Baywatch” effect Remember the old “Baywatch” series starring Pamela Anderson and David Hasselhoff? Not exactly a critically acclaimed show, but it was one that became a pop-culture sensation in its 10-year run . It also put lifeguarding front and center in the public’s mind — and that led to many seeking it out as a job. “We had people lining up around the corner,” recalls Fisher.