KEN IGE / KIGE@STARBULLETIN.COM
While hotels are nervous about losing tourists, the beach at Waikiki was packed yesterday.
Hotels, union The war with Iraq is barely underway, and already major Waikiki hotels have met with union representatives to talk about how to cut costs and deal with possible employee layoffs in the event of a prolonged tourism slowdown.
in talks
Both sides anticipate a drop
in tourist arrivals due
to ongoing warBy Tim Ruel and Craig Gima
truel@starbulletin.com, cgima@starbulletin.com"It's an ongoing discussion," said Jason Ward, researcher for Local 5 of the Hotel Employees & Restaurant Employees union. "At this point, we're not considering any kind of concessions."
Local 5 leaders met for about an hour yesterday with representatives of the Sheraton, Ilikai, Marriott and Kahala Mandarin hotels.
"We're just trying to be proactive," said Keith Vieira, senior vice president of the company that manages the four Sheraton hotels in Waikiki. "We want to find ways to keep as many people working as possible."
Both sides emphasized that layoffs are not imminent.
"They were posing various things which would be concessions," Ward said.
If business steadily weakens, Sheraton would prefer to cut working hours than to lay people off, Vieira said. Any permanent layoffs of union workers need to be negotiated with Local 5, Ward said.
For now, it looks as if the impact of "Operation Iraqi Freedom" on Hawaii tourism will be more like the impact of the 1991 Persian Gulf war than 9/11, said Joseph Toy, head of consulting firm Hospitality Advisors LLC.
"I think the psychology of fear is not as pervasive in any way," said Jim Barahal, president of the Honolulu Marathon Association. "Certainly 9/11 was all that was on anybody's mind."
After the terrorist attacks, airplanes were grounded, tourists were stranded, and for days, the news networks replayed video of planes smashing into the Pentagon and World Trade Center. Japanese arrivals to Hawaii were cut in half, and are still recovering to this day.
Some Local 5 workers who were laid off after 9/11 still haven't gotten their jobs back, Ward said.
In contrast, at the time of the six-week 1991 Gulf war, Japanese arrivals to Hawaii fell by 40 percent for a two-month period, then recovered almost instantly.
Some Japanese tourism businesses say their Hawaii bookings have declined by double-digits in the past month or so, in part because the buildup to the Iraqi war has been so highly publicized, but also because of a bad economy.
Hawaii arrivals from Japan were down year-over-year by 24 percent on Wednesday, and off by 29 percent yesterday, according to preliminary data from the state Department of Business, Economic Development and Tourism.
In the first 20 days of the month, Japanese arrivals were down by 8.9 percent year-over-year, which is not good, considering that arrivals last year were already depressed by 9/11.
The lingering question is how long and intense the war with Iraq will be, and whether it will lead to more terrorist attacks.
"It's really uncharted waters that we're going into now," Toy said.
On Wednesday night, the Hawaii Visitors & Convention Bureau posted a message from Gov. Linda Lingle on its Web site, in which Lingle reassured tourists.
"As America's only island state, Hawaii enjoys the peace of mind that comes from U.S. security standards ... but in a unique island setting," Lingle said.
"You'll find that this unique American destination is a secure and enchanting set of islands in a stressful world."
There were still plenty of Japanese visitors at the international arrivals area of the Honolulu Airport yesterday, but airport greeters said business has dropped off in the last week.
Tourists arriving from Japan had mixed feelings about traveling just after the war with Iraq started.
"Of course we were worried," said Chi Tsuji, who arrived from Tokyo yesterday for a three-day visit. "However, we planned this a long time ago and this is the only time we can visit."
Tsuji said they were on a waiting list for the flight to Honolulu and it cleared a few days ago.
Yui Takahashi said she wasn't worried about the war while on vacation. She said her flight to Honolulu from Japan was about 70 percent full.
"Hawaii will be OK," she said.
Kris Kim, who arrived from Oregon a day earlier, was waiting at the airport to pick up his in-laws who arrived from Korea for an eight-day family reunion in the islands.
His in-laws were a little afraid, but he encouraged them not to cancel their trip.
"(Terrorism) could happen (back home) or here, so what can you do?" he said.
In the departure area, Lois Shawback, who was headed to Japan after a stopover here, said she was more concerned about the mysterious worldwide respiratory ailment than the threat of terrorism.
"I had a girlfriend who didn't want me to leave. She said if you get it (the illness) don't bring it back home," Shawback said.
Bob Sutterfield, who was traveling to Japan and Thailand, said as a cancer survivor, he wasn't worried about terrorism or a mystery illness.
"I knew (the war) was coming and even that didn't bother me."
For now, visitors arrivals to Hawaii from the mainland United States are making up the loss of Japanese tourists, but there are signs that a bigger drop in travel could begin if the war deepens.
"We have people inquiring at the moment as to cancellation fees," said Ken Phillips, spokesman for Pleasant Holidays, the travel agency that sends the largest number of tourists to the state.
Just this week, Pleasant Holidays announced that customers who cancel their trips up to four days before their departure will receive a travel credit that must be used before Dec. 15.
Lingle letter
The text of Gov. Linda Lingle's message on the state's tourism Web site:Aloha. With all of the concerns about world events, I want to assure you that Hawaii continues to welcome visitors from around the world. In fact, Hawaii is especially appropriate as a place for vacations and meetings in these unsettled times.
As America's only island state, Hawaii enjoys the peace of mind that comes from U.S. security standards ... but in a unique island setting.
Certainly, there may be some concerns about traveling during times of international tension. Check the Hawaii Web site -- gohawaii.com -- for up-to-date information. Of course, when you visit gohawaii.com, you'll also find all of the exciting activities, attractions, resorts and sites that you can enjoy in these islands of aloha.
If you've been thinking of getting away from it all, there's no better place to do that than Hawaii. E komo mai. Come visit us. You'll find that this unique American destination is a secure and enchanting set of islands in a stressful world. --Source: Hawaii Visitors & Convention Bureau Web site
Office of the Governor
