Tourism and farming employers in Terceira warn of a lack of housing for their workers

Jobs available, housing scarce

Tourism businesses have positions left unfilled due to a lack of accommodation near the workplace.

Farming faces the same problem

Farms struggle to offer housing to workers coming from other parishes.

Holiday lets competing for the same houses

Short-term tourist lets are more profitable than stable long-term rentals.

Calls on the authorities

Calls are being made for housing schemes aimed at workers in strategic sectors.

Tourism employers left with unfilled posts

Managers of restaurants and accommodation businesses in Angra do Heroísmo and elsewhere in Terceira say they have had vacancies unfilled for months due to a lack of nearby, affordable housing for staff. Some employers have taken to offering their own accommodation to workers, setting up rooms within the business itself or in housing rented by the company. Others say this solution is not economically viable for small businesses, forcing them to turn away suitable candidates simply because they cannot guarantee them somewhere to live. The island's hospitality association has raised the issue with the regional government in several meetings.

Farms face the same bottleneck

Farmers and livestock breeders in parishes such as Altares, Biscoitos and Porto Judeu say attracting workers from other parts of the island, or even from outside the Azores, becomes difficult when they cannot offer accommodation near the farm. Some holdings have resorted to caravans or temporary units to house seasonal workers during peak periods. Representatives of the farming sector say this shortfall is limiting the growth of businesses that could otherwise expand production. The problem is worse in parishes furthest from urban centres, where rental housing is practically non-existent.

Holiday lets, direct competition

Property owners in Terceira acknowledge that seasonal lets to tourists, especially during the island's festivals, are more profitable in the short term than renting to a worker on a stable, year-round basis. This economic logic directly shrinks the pool of housing available to employees in the tourism and farming sectors. Some employers have tried negotiating directly with owners to secure homes on an annual basis, offering additional guarantees, without much success so far. The sector itself acknowledges the contradiction of tourism's growth ending up making it harder to find staff to serve it.

Specific requests to the regional government

The island's leading business associations have asked the Azores regional government for dedicated housing schemes for workers in strategic sectors, with stable medium-term rental terms. There has also been talk of making public land available to build housing exclusively for employees in these sectors. Angra do Heroísmo town council has shown willingness to look into municipal land for this purpose, though no firm timetable has been set. Employers consulted insist that without a short-term solution, some businesses could be forced to scale back their operations.