“ The American Massage Therapy Association estimates that 88 percent of massage therapists in the U . S . are women , and the percentages of female estheticians and nail technicians are similarly high , so it ’ s no surprise that COVID-19 ’ s impact on the spa industry workforce seems to be particularly pronounced .”
previous jobs or seek new ones . All of this adds up to what some economists have called the first female recession , or “ she-cession ” for short .
The “ She-cession ” and the Spa Industry
The American Massage Therapy Association estimates that 88 percent of massage therapists in the U . S . are women , and the percentages of female estheticians and nail technicians are similarly high , so it ’ s no surprise that COVID-19 ’ s impact on the spa industry workforce seems to be particularly pronounced . Any economic event leading to worse outcomes for women was always going to have an outsized effect on industries so heavily reliant upon their labor .
The data above also helps to explain why the pandemic ’ s effects on the spa industry workforce has seemed , at times , counterintuitive . In ISPA ’ s August 2020 Snapshot Survey , conducted when most spas had reopened but were operating with reduced levels of staff , nearly half ( 46 %) of all spas were hiring massage therapists , 37 percent were hiring nail technicians and almost a quarter ( 22 %) were hiring estheticians . Those figures were despite just 27 percent of all spas reporting that they had brought all pre-pandemic staff back on board . Of course , not all of those unfilled positions were service provider roles , but many respondents on that same survey noted that it was a challenge for their spas to fill open service provider positions with either pre-pandemic staff or new applicants . That suggests that spas are now having to contend not only with a talent shortage that existed before COVID-19 struck , but also with an applicant pool which may have become much smaller as women left the workforce .
A Different Kind of Recovery
It ’ s important to note that COVID-19 has affected the workforce landscape differently than , say , the Great Recession did more than a decade ago . In that instance , around 80 percent of job losses occurred among men , and women stepped into the breach , often seeking employment to supplement household income . It stands to reason that an unprecedented set of economic symptoms will require a new approach to recovery , both for the economy overall and for the spa industry specifically .
That recovery , of course , will be complicated by uncertainty surrounding broader issues like widespread virtual schooling and a lack of childcare options . The industry ’ s talent pipeline will need to be evaluated going forward as well . A recent report from LeanIn . org , however , emphasizes that employers are in a position to make some shortterm adjustments that can work as a direct response to the outsized burden COVID-19 is placing on women in the workplace . Among their advice ? Be flexible and adjust existing policies wherever possibilities to support employees . As the report notes , when employees believe leaders are supportive of their need for flexibility , they are less likely to consider “ downshifting ” their careers or leaving the workforce . n
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