Faro, Portugal, May 13, 2025 (Lusa) — According to industry sources, the use of foreign lifeguards, mainly from Brazil and Argentina, and early recruitment of these professionals have enabled beach concessionaires in the Algarve to complete their teams in time for the bathing season.
The bathing season kicks off on Thursday in Albufeira, the Algarve municipality with the largest number of beaches, and several concessionaires acknowledged to Lusa that it remains difficult to recruit lifeguards, which is why they have opted to hire these professionals early.
Luís Martinho, from the Association of Industrial and Similar Concessionaires of the Algarve Coastline (AISCOMA), points to the "lack of interest" of Portuguese people in the activity, as it is seasonal and not recognised as a profession, as reasons for this difficulty.
"A few years ago, we had young people looking for work during the three-month summer school holidays, but the extension of the bathing season to six months has significantly reduced demand," he noted.
According to the businessman, who has concessions on several beaches in the Algarve, "it is not a profession with a guaranteed future, nor is it possible to make a living from it all year round". Even so, he has managed to keep the same lifeguards for several years at the concessions he manages.
"The protocol [of the Shipwreck Rescue Institute] that exists with Brazil has helped, especially on larger beaches, which work with associations, but even that only covers the bathing season," he pointed out.
Luís Martinho believes that the future may be complicated, defending the importance of valuing the profession so that more young people want to follow it.
"If the profession is not recognised, it will be increasingly difficult to ensure our beaches are safe," he warned.
António Vaz, concessionaire at Praia dos Salgados in Albufeira, told Lusa that he did everything to ensure he was prepared for the bathing season. He started looking for lifeguards in January and now has a full team, including two lifeguards from Brazil.
However, hiring is a "problem across the board for all concessionaires," he acknowledged, considering that every year "it is always more difficult," especially in the Algarve, where there is "a big problem" with accommodation because of the housing prices.
Jorge Azevedo, from the Albufeira Lifeguard Association (ANSA), said that the problem with recruitment remains the same as in previous years, because there is less and less demand from young people for this activity, compounded by the fact that some people work for one or two years and then leave.
However, the "problem has been mitigated" by hiring accredited professionals from Brazil and Argentina, two countries that have contributed "greatly to ensuring the safety of Portuguese beaches".
"Most of the concessionaires in the bathing areas are obliged to recruit lifeguards under the protocol with Brazil to ensure beach safety," he pointed out.
He added that in Albufeira, the situation is different "because the municipality has a year-round beach safety plan, which means that some of them work all year round and do not have to go on unemployment". However, for others, the activity remains seasonal.
The Portimão Water Rescue and Lifeguard Association (Rocha Rescue) indicated that it has not encountered difficulties in hiring lifeguards, due to the early start of recruitment and the use of foreign professionals.
According to Nuno Fernandes, the association representative, early planning is "fundamental", and the recruitment process "begins immediately after the end of the previous bathing season", as the concessionaires' integrated plans must be submitted by the end of March.
He said that the exchange with Brazil makes up for the lack of interest in the profession among Portuguese people, since winter in Brazil coincides with summer in Portugal.
"So they work here for five or six months and then go back to work for the rest of the year in their home countries," he concluded.
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