Hotels in southern Gran Canaria struggle to house their staff amid a shortage of affordable housing in San Agustín

Hospitality business associations in southern Gran Canaria warn of a growing struggle to fill waiting, cleaning and reception positions at establishments in San Agustín and San Fernando de Maspalomas, in the municipality of San Bartolomé de Tirajana, due to the shortage of affordable housing near the tourist area.

Wages that fall short of rent

According to hotel sector sources, the average wage for a hospitality worker in the area is not enough to cover the rent on a flat in San Agustín or Playa del Inglés, where competition from holiday lets and second homes bought by foreign buyers has pushed rents up to levels similar to those in the capital.

Workers living an hour from their jobs

This situation forces much of the sector's workforce to live in inland municipalities or the metropolitan area, such as Vecindario, Telde or even Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, and to commute for up to an hour each way by public transport to reach their jobs at hotels on the southern coast.

Housing proposals for workers

Some hotel chains have begun exploring employee housing schemes, such as leasing entire blocks of flats at subsidised rates for their staff, a practice unusual until now in the Canary Islands' tourism sector and one that reflects the scale of the housing access problem in the island's main tourist area.

A call to the authorities

Tourism employers' associations have pressed the Gran Canaria Cabildo and San Bartolomé de Tirajana town council on the need to release land for subsidised rental housing aimed specifically at service-sector workers, in line with similar schemes already in place in other tourist destinations across the country.