Persistent economic impacts of pandemic on tourism and hospitality workers: A panel event study

Although extensive research has examined how global pandemics affect the tourism and hospitality industry, there is limited evidence on the long-term economic shocks of the pandemic on tourism and hospitality workers. Using longitudinal data from the Korean Labor and Income Panel Survey (2016–2023), this study investigates the short- and long-term economic impacts of the pandemic on tourism and hospitality workers. Three complementary approaches (kernel density estimation, difference-in-differences, and a panel event study) were applied to capture income distribution shifts and temporal changes. Results indicate Korean tourism and hospitality workers experienced a 6.5% decrease in earnings and a 4.8% decline in working hours relative to the pre-pandemic period, compared with the public sector. Moreover, we find that these losses persist into the post-pandemic period. Moreover, this study documents gender-specific heterogeneous effects. Female workers experience larger declines in earnings and hours, whereas male workers show larger declines in subjective economic status and satisfaction. The overall impact follows a U-shaped trajectory, with a sharp initial decline and a gradual recovery over 3 years.