Posted on: Friday, October 26, 2001

Slumping sales force 70 layoffs at DFS Hawaii

Advertiser Staff

DFS Hawaii, hit hard by the Islands' slumping tourism industry and decline in Japanese visitors, laid off nearly 70 workers yesterday in its first round of cuts since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

The layoffs cut across all lines, from managers to clerks, said Sharon Weiner, DFS group vice president.

While visitor arrivals in recent weeks have showed some signs of recovery, officials have said business remains significantly off for DFS Hawaii.

Duty-free sales, which were down 80 percent immediately after the attacks, still remain down about 50 percent in Waikiki and close to 40 percent for non-duty free items.

Several weeks ago, the company reduced employees' work hours, cutting them by the equivalent of 250 to 300 workers, Weiner said. "We severely reduced hours," she said.

The cuts at DFS are the latest among businesses in the state's tourism industry grappling with slumping visitor arrivals since the September attacks.

The state's two interisland airlines late last month announced more than 600 layoffs, Atlantis Adventures announced 150 layoffs, and American Classic Voyages' bankruptcy left 1,100 cruise workers without jobs.

More than 13,000 people, most of them in the visitor industry, have filed claims for unemployment benefits as retailers, hoteliers and others have laid off and reduced workers' hours.

While visitor numbers to the Islands from the U.S. Mainland have begun to creep back up, arrivals from Japan remain down nearly 60 percent. On O'ahu, where more than 90 percent of Japanese visitors stay, visitor arrivals were down 34 percent in September compared to the same month last year, and are down nearly 4 percent so far for the year.