Do consumers want workers in the travel industry to wear masks?
Many countries have scrapped mask mandates entire on airlines including the US, UK and several EU nations.
But masks are still compulsory in airports and planes across Asia and in places such as Australia, travelers are allowed to depart from the country without a mask but must wear one on a returning flight.
Given the variability of travel rules and masking requirements from destination to destination, YouGov polled over 19,000 consumers from 18 global markets on their perceptions of masks being worn by workers in the travel industry.
Globally, two in five consumers say they want to see staff and employees in airports, airlines and hotels wear masks (40%).
Support for mask wearing in the travel industry tends to be highest among consumers in APAC. More than half of APAC consumers say they want to see airport (55%), airline (52%) and hotel (55%) workers wear masks. Hong Kong (65%), China (62%), India (57%), Indonesia (57%) and Singapore (53%) lead the region in their propensity to say they want to see workers across the travel industry wear masks.
And in Australia, 41% of consumers say they want people working in the travel industry to wear masks.
North Americans hold disparate views of mask wearing by staff across the travel industry. Half of consumers in Mexico say they want travel industry workers to wear masks (51%), falling to 46% in Canada. Consumers in the US are the least likely in the region to say they want to see people in the travel industry wear masks (30%).
Perceptions towards mask wearing in hotels, airplanes and airports varies greatly in Europe. Across the region, 28% of European consumers say they want staff in the travel sector to wear masks.
Consumers in Italy (52%), one of the countries hit hardest in the early days of the pandemic, are the most likely in the region to say they want to see masks worn by employees followed by Spaniards (36%), Germans (31%), and Britons (31%) by some distance.
By contrast, consumers in Denmark (6%), Sweden (13%) and Poland (14%) are the least likely both in the region and of all markets surveyed to say they want to see workers in the travel industry wear masks.
Methodology
The data is based on the interviews of adults aged 18 and over in 18 markets. All interviews were conducted online in April 2022. Data from each market uses a nationally representative sample apart from Mexico and India, which use urban representative samples, and Indonesia and Hong Kong, which use online representative samples.
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