As parents, we have all heard how important it is to have a sufficient number of lifeguards at our public pools. We have all heard this for years! Unfortunately, this blog article that I’m writing is about a bit of bad news today… Houston’s public pools are experiencing a severe lifeguard shortage. This problem is likely to last for a number of years!
It is Not Only a Houston Problem
It’s not just Houston that is facing this problem. It is a problem all across most of our nation. This is the reason many of our local pools have not opened up, even though the summer heat is here.
The city says that since the pandemic here, it has been hard to recruit a sufficient number of lifeguards. There are 37 public pools but the city has only 36 lifeguards working. There are suppose to be 6 lifeguards at each pool. You do the math, there are not enough lifeguards to open all the pools for the summer.
Leroy Maura Jr. is with the city. He is the superintendent of Parks and Recreation for the city of Houston. He said prior to the pandemic, they recruited most of their lifeguards from local high schools. That had to stop during the pandemic.
Leroy says they normally have about 180 lifeguards at all the public pools. About 150 of these are lifeguards that are returning from the previous years. This year was much different… only about 30 returned.
“We were only able to recruit about 50 new lifeguards this year”, says Maura. That wasn’t because they didn’t have the funds. There was no interest in the new jobs.
The city is trying a new incentive. They are offering a $300 bonus to anyone who completes the lifeguard training and agrees to work. This is the first time the city has made such an offer. The city is also trying to raise the new hire starting rate from $13.00/hour to $18.00.
In the meantime, the city is opening only a few pools. They are also trying to rotate which pools are open and for how long.
It is going to be a hot, humid summer!
Problems Like This Often Cause Bigger Problems
I know the city is trying their best. Unfortunately, I’m afraid a problem like this will cause even bigger problems. A lifeguard shortage means that there will be even fewer eyes watching our children in the water.
I see this as a safety problem. This is a really good reason why I am urging all parents to please get your children trained to float and/or swim. If you can, do it now!
Life Saver Survival Swim School, LLC is one of the leading schools in Houston that teaches young children how to swim and float. Please sign your children up for one of our upcoming classes. You can sign them up here. You can also call me, Bonnie, at (832) 366-3008 if you have any questions. Or, of course, you can email me.
Teaching your children to swim and/or float is important. If you don’t want to sign them up at our school, please find another school and sign them up there. It is important, especially this year!