Yogyakarta (ANTARA) - Hotels and restaurants in Yogyakarta have begun to recall laid-off workers as the tourism industry has begun to recover, the Indonesia Hotels and Restaurants Association (PHRI) in Yogyakarta has confirmed.
"At present, approximately 30 percent from 12 thousand workers in the industry have been recalled to work," PHRI Yogyakarta chairperson Deddy Pranawa Eryana stated in Yogyakarta on Wednesday.
Though hotels and restaurants operators have begun to recall workers, they have not been able to recall all workers as businesses need to continue their operational cost efficiency at the present time, he admitted.
"Nonetheless, we are yet to fully recover from the COVID-19 pandemic's effect as the current situation has compelled the industry to continue cost efficiency measures," the chairperson said.
A decline in the number of guests due to the pandemic and the economic decline have severely hampered hotels and restaurants in the province, as they have to continue to shoulder high operational costs despite diminishing revenues, he pointed out.
Related news: Hotel occupancy in Yogyakarta reaches 90 percent during Eid: PHRI
Hotel and restaurant members of Yogyakarta PHRI have reiterated their commitment to maintaining tourism industry recovery in the province while also supporting pandemic control measures taken by the government, Eryana said.
The association recorded a significant increase in hotel occupancy in the recent four weeks, with occupancy on the weekends reaching 80 percent and year-end reservations touching 75 percent of the hotel's maximum allowed capacity of 70 percent, the chairperson informed.
"We must maintain this improvement by ensuring strict health protocols at our premises to prevent restaurant and hotel members of PHRI from turning into COVID-19 infection clusters," he said.
The chairperson expressed the hope that other hotels and restaurants will have the same commitment to maintaining a positive economic recovery trend.
"We hope the government would enforce strict health protocols instead of curbing travel during the year-end holiday period," Eryana said.
Despite the optimistic outlook for the industry's recovery, hotel operators are yet to offer year-end holiday packages for guests as they are waiting for the central government's regulation regarding travel curbs during the year-end period, he informed. (
Related news: Tourism industry operators vow to comply with PPKM regulations
