Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
NYC still struggling with lifeguard shortage as beach season approaches
By
Sophia Chang
Published Apr 26, 2023
Modified Apr 26, 2023
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
By
Sophia Chang
Published Apr 26, 2023
Modified Apr 26, 2023
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
New York City’s beach season kicks off next month — but the top parks officials said on Wednesday the department is still struggling to find enough lifeguards for the second year in a row.
Parks Commissioner Sue Donoghue said during a City Council hearing that the department is on pace to hire about 900 seasonal lifeguards for the upcoming outdoor swimming season, which starts when the city’s beaches open on Memorial Day weekend. Outdoor public swimming pools open in late June.
Donoghue said that’s about the same number of lifeguards the parks department employed last summer, when a staffing shortage limited swimming hours at some pools and beaches.
The number is still well short of the 1,400 lifeguards that Donoghue said she would like to employ. If the city can’t employ at least 900 lifeguards, she said cuts to programming at the city’s pools could be necessary.
“The reality is that the entire nation is still facing a very challenging environment for lifeguard hiring,” Donoghue said. “Despite these challenges, keeping our beachgoers safe will continue to be our top priority.”
Having a reduced number of lifeguards like last summer means the possibility of cutting swim programs like senior swim, water aerobics and lap swim hours, Donoghue said.
“We do that to try and place priority on just the greatest number of individual citizens, having as much of the public be able to access our pools and beaches as possible,” Donoghue said.
As part of the effort to recruit more lifeguards, the city reached a deal with DC 37 on Tuesday to raise seasonal pay rates for new and second-year lifeguards from $16.10 to $21.26 an hour, as well as a $1,000 bonus for working through the summer. In an effort to expand the ranks, the department is also offering a specific lifeguard certification for staff to work at playground minipools.
The ongoing staffing shortage has persisted since last year, when the city offered a temporary 22% pay bump to $19.46 an hour to lure more candidates. The parks department has also reformed the lifeguard test, which a city watchdog has called “unfair" and opaque. The city now uses a new 45-second cutoff on the test, up from the previous requirement of 35 seconds. Applicants also now receive the timed results of their tests, in hopes that those who miss the cutoff time will work on improving their speed for future seasons.
City Councilmember Shekar Krishnan said he’s worried the staffing shortage trend will continue without more effort to teach more New Yorkers to swim and become future lifeguards.
“If it happened last year and it’s happening this year, this is a larger systemic problem with no real end in sight,” Krishnan said at the hearing.
New lifeguard recruitment ended in March, but anyone who worked as a qualified city lifeguard last summer can still sign up for recertification to work this year.
"We are very proud that New York City was one of the only major U.S. cities to keep all our public pools and beaches open for free public use in 2022, and we expect the same result this summer," a Parks Department spokesperson said in a statement.
This story was updated with a comment from the Parks Department.
Tagged
new york city
parks
Sophia Chang
Sophia Chang is a former WNYC and Gothamist reporter.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Man shot and killed on Midtown subway platform Saturday afternoon, NYPD says
Police said they're searching for a person of interest.
By
Ryan Kost
and
Elizabeth Kim
Published Oct 17, 2026 at 1:16 p.m. ET
Modified Oct 17, 2026 at 4:10 p.m. ET
Have you seen this Yorkie? NYPD looking for adorable pup dognapped from her Queens home
Suspects were driving a Subaru Forester, police said.
By
Ryan Kost
News
Have you seen this Yorkie? NYPD looking for adorable pup dognapped from her Queens home
Suspects were driving a Subaru Forester, police said.
By
Ryan Kost
Being reigning champions is weird for Knicks fans, but we could get used to this.
By
Catalina Gonella
Tompkins Square Park is getting a makeover. Some say it's too much.
By
Willow Higgins
Deer are all over New Jersey roads looking for sex, state officials warn
By
Rosemary Misdary
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .