Aquatics Guide - 2022 - 4

Lifeguard
Shortages
Challenge the
Aquatics Industry
By Michael Butson and Dr. John Tower
A
shortage of aquatic center staff, such as lifeguards, is an international
issue. Regions, including the United States, Canada, South
America, Australia and the United Kingdom, are experiencing a
shortage of aquatic staff due to constraints brought on by the coronavirus
(COVID-19) pandemic. Demand is now higher than ever for aquatic
staff, but the applicants are just not available. Aquatic facilities and programs
across the United States have been closed due to the inability to recruit and
maintain lifeguards. Recently, NRPA has described several strategies being adopted
in the industry to overcome lifeguard shortages. These strategies include
employing retirees and teachers to work as lifeguards, as many teens have
lost interest or found better paying jobs. Additionally, areas across the United
States have increased the hourly pay for lifeguards from $8.50 to $10 and lowered
the minimum age from 16 to 15 to alleviate a staffing shortage. There is
a need for park and recreation agencies to consider the recruitment process to
attract and retain lifeguards as part of their human resources (HR) strategy.
Many Australian lifeguard positions
in the largely casual workforce
remain vacant even though
COVID-19 constraints are being lifted.
According to Royal Life Saving
Australian Capital Territory - an
organization committed to the development
of swimming and water
safety skills for children of all ages
(tinyurl.com/29pnyumk) - there is
4 Parks & Recreation | A QU AT IC S GUIDE 2 0 22 | PARK S ANDRECRE AT ION . OR G
residual hesitation in the community
to be engaged with individuals in
the work setting. Lifeguards can be
required to interact with unknown
individuals as part of their responsibilities,
so some people are reluctant
to take on the role for health
and safety reasons. The shortage of
lifeguards puts pressure on aquatic
and recreation centers (ARCs) and
managers, causing ARCs to cancel
programs and/or close temporarily.
A pre-COVID-19 study sought to
explain the recruitment and selection
process and identify reasons for
lifeguard turnover from the Victoria,
Australia ARC managers' perspective.
Figure 1 identifies the eight
steps in the recruitment and selection
process used to guide this study.
This
study
highlighted
that
a
https://www.tinyurl.com/29pnyumk
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