Airport foot traffic has been ticking up across the U.S. since the beginning of the year, reflecting a growing number of fully vaccinated travelers and public confidence in the decline of Covid-19 cases and deaths across the country. It’s a welcome change for airport retail and restaurant operators, who took a major hit from the coronavirus pandemic in 2020. But even as sales continue to ramp up, concessionaires are struggling to find enough staff to open all their stores, let alone keep them staffed for the long hours traditionally required by airports. “Just the callbacks, and staffing at a rapid pace that's quick enough to ramp up to the airports' recent increase in traffic, has been the biggest challenge,” Crews Hospitality President and CEO Nick Crews said. 
Passenger volumes through U.S. airports have been rising since the beginning of the year, but received a noticeable bump around mid-March, when people opted to travel for spring break. That upward trend has continued into summer, which is typically the busiest period for travel.The U.S. Transportation Security Administration screened…  Read the full story here. | 
