San Antonio hospitality still pays big

SAN ANTONIO – The hospitality industry has maintained its position as one of the city’s most powerful economic engines despite its slightly slower growth during the recession. The hospitality industry’s economic impact trails that of San Antonio’s financial services industry.

With a current workforce of nearly 113,000, the hospitality industry’s overall economic impact climbed to $12.2 billion last year, Trinity University Professors Richard Butler and Mary Stefl estimate in their “Remember the Economic Impact” report.

According to the report, each of the hospitality industry’s four main sectors — restaurant and catering, transportation, lodging and entertainment — experienced double-digit growth over the past decade.

Similarly, the industry’s employment base increased 26 percent since 2001, while direct wages rose much more briskly at 58 percent, to $2.23 billion.

Read more at the San Antonio Express-News.