New York City’s lifeguard corps is only at 33% strength; only around 480 of the approximately 1,400 needed. This is the worst shortage of lifeguards in the Big Apple on record.
Parks Commissioner Sue Donoghue sounded the alarm before the city council’s parks committee Monday. Partial closures should be expected until the numbers reach a stable point sometime later in the summer.
“In order to open all beaches and pools we need about 1,400. If we don’t get to a number of around 800 or 900, we would open for one shift of our pools and beaches, so like 11-7,” Donoghue said.
In 2016, the city hired nearly 1,500 lifeguards. Even in 2021, there were just over 1,000.
To try and fix the problem, the city is raising the pay (just like last year) and will also continue to offer free swimming lessons, but it seems like this won’t help reach the number needed. Even with the pay rate hovering around $20 an hour for first-year guards, where are just under 1,000 people coming from to work pools and beaches?
But this is not just a New York City problem. According to the American Lifeguard Association, the entire country is facing a critical lifeguard shortage.
“With over 309,000 parks and pools, not counting open water where the beaches are, we’re seeing half of those are being closed or reducing hours,” said Wyatt Werneth, a spokesperson for the America Lifeguard Association.
He says it’s a problem that has been gradually getting worse due to a lack of visibility of lifeguards in media, as well as a general lack of interest in the job.
But, Werneth says the pandemic was a turning point, and that a lot of effort is needed to reverse its effects.
“The pandemic hit, and that hit us hard,” he said. “That actually eliminated everything. It all stopped. We couldn’t do up close and personal training. And I think a lot of young individuals really gravitated to restaurants and retail, as well as influencers. And they never came back to lifeguarding because there was no interest….I think we need to take a deep look at lifeguarding, and I think America needs to understand that lifeguarding is very valuable,” he said. “It should be treated alongside fire, EMS, police, just like a public safety service [and] not just a part-time job for high school and college kids to come home to. They’re watching your children.”
