Chewton Pool is facing a critical shortage of lifeguards for the impending summer season that could see the community facility close.
Pool president Sera-Jane Peters said coronavirus restrictions meant regular lifeguards had not been able to complete their annual face-to-face renewal courses, leading to many looking at other industries for work.
"We provide seasonal employment only, and that is the trap," she said.
"Our staff comes on for a limited amount of time and then they go off and get other jobs or study, and then we have to re-employ them all over again each season.
"That seasonality is tricky but this year it's been really bad because they've not been able to get their training."
Ms Peters said they had received junior lifeguard applications but no senior lifeguards had applied, with the pool scheduled to re-open in the last week of November.
"We need at least eight senior lifeguards. I've rung all our previous lifeguards and a lot of them are doing other things."
Ms Peters said she knew of other Central Victorian community pools in a similar situation.
Lessons from lockdowns
Life Saving Victoria has extended current pool lifeguards' normal 12-month qualification period to assist the short-term situation.
Chief executive Catherine Greaves said it was not seeing a widespread problem of community pools unable to re-open due to a lifeguard shortage, but many organisations began job advertisements earlier than usual.
"With the doors reopening and everything happening quite quickly, I think some are in catch-up mode," she said.
"We know that with the pools reopening, the statistics are looking quite similar to last year which is just more or less that backlog [of lifeguard trainings] as opposed to the shortage of people per se."
Golden Square Pool president Sam Kane said they had lifeguards locked in for the upcoming season as they advertised months in advance.
Opening remains the priority
Ms Greaves said Life Saving Victoria would work with the Chewton Pool to avoid a closure.
"I think any pool not able to re-open is a concern," she said.
"At the end of the day, we want people to be in the water and learning water safety."
Ms Peters said the next few weeks would be critical for the community pool.
"If we don't open at all, it will be a serious problem for us because we have to open in order to bring income in," she said.
"Anyone who needs a job, who wants a job, who is willing to train, who can swim — consider getting a lifeguard job."
