On Monday, New York City Mayor Eric Adams praised the management of JetBlue for its commitment to hire 5,000 new employees — many of them from within New York City — to accommodate an expanding flight schedule expected to roll out this summer at the height of tourism season.
According to reports, the new hires represent a significant corporate recommitment to the Big Apple and come as Adams struggles to revive a tourism industry laid low by the COVID pandemic.
“Our economy has been grounded. COVID has devastated us. COVID has left us in the belief that there is no real recovery,” Adams said.
“You are the ambassadors to New York City to help our economic recovery. We have a tourism industry that … $72 billion comes from. Four hundred thousand people are employed in that industry. If we get it wrong — if someone fails to have a good interaction at a JetBlue counter or on a plane, then people don’t want to come back to our city. This is not merely a moment of being employed. This is a moment of finally getting our economy back into flight to turn around our city,” Adams added.
Sources said aside from reducing crimes in the Big Apple, Adams also focuses on getting the tourism sector and economy back on track.
Meanwhile, JetBlue CEO Robin Hayes said that starting this summer, the airline would increase the number of flights into and out of New York from 200 to 300 a day.
“We want to be part of building the economic recovery and the tourism back to New York because it truly is the greatest city,” Hayes said.
“We also can’t wait to break ground on our new terminal,” Hayes added.
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