Zuma raises lifeguard pay and eyes competition for La Oliva and Pájara beaches

The lifeguard company Zuma, based in Tenerife, wants to break into Fuerteventura and also aims to dignify a sector plagued by precarious conditions.

Its administrator, Raquel Carrillo, told La Voz de Fuerteventura that the firm has raised its workers’ economic conditions even though the increase was not reflected in the tender contracts.

“What we want is for the sector not to disappear,” Carrillo said, warning that many professionals “have become tired and have moved to other categories where, obviously, they earn more.”

In this context, she emphasized that Zuma has chosen, as far as the tenders allow, to “improve salary levels so they are better off and, of course, continue their lifeguard careers.”

In Lanzarote, she added, the improvement amounts to approximately €250 net per lifeguard, bringing monthly earnings to €1,550. Zuma already provides services along the coast of Puerto del Carmen and, after signing the contract, will soon start in Arrecife.

The company’s stance aligns closely with the main demands of lifeguards in La Oliva—currently dependent on the Red Cross as the awarded service provider, a contract that has been rescinded and will remain in force until the next award.

Key demands include:

• Salary improvements in the upcoming tender
• Dignified working conditions
• More resources to cover the coastline
• A safe, stable service capable of handling the pressure on key beaches that are vital for public safety and the municipality’s tourism image

The collective lamented that only four professionals are covering all of the Corralejo dunes this Tuesday, highlighting the shortages they have been denouncing.

Carrillo insists that the current agreement does not differentiate between a pool lifeguard and a beach lifeguard.

“We also don’t see it as fair that there is no salary distinction between the two categories,” she said, stressing that the training and demands are not comparable. “A beach course takes about a year to complete, or even two years if it’s a PFAE, whereas a pool course is just one week and 40 hours,” adding the additional danger faced by beach lifeguards.

With this principle as its banner, Zuma positions itself as a company that does not only compete for public contracts but also seeks to address, at least partially, a historic grievance of the profession.

“We will submit bids for all the current tenders in Tenerife, Lanzarote, and Fuerteventura,” Carrillo announced, pointing to the processes planned for La Oliva and also for Pájara, where the current contract expires at the end of the year.