Good afternoon,
The help wanted signs are everywhere in Delaware, a state with a reported 6.5 percent jobless rate.
According to state Labor Department figures, hit especially hard was the hospitality industry, which saw the biggest pandemic-related job losses of any sector of the Delaware economy.
With vaccines becoming more widely available and travel/entertainment showing signs of a rebound, restaurants, hotels, caterers, etc., are now scrambling to rebuild their staffs.
Another challenge is pay inflation in an industry with a large contingent of entry-level workers. The Delaware General Assembly seems to be moving in the direction of a phased-in $15 an hour minimum wage.
Yet another headwind comes from lingering restrictions on occupancy that limit sales on busy nights.
But the biggest short-term challenge seems to be pandemic-related supplements to unemployment benefits.
The back-to-work situation was summed up well by Jon Taffer, host of the long-running reality series “Bar Rescue.”
Taffer told Fox Business that owners are running into the issue of pandemic-related unemployment benefits keeping potential staff at home.
Taffer noted that programs, such as the Payroll Protection Program, kept many restaurants afloat but did not always reach the most vulnerable businesses without strong banking relationships.
A related issue not mentioned by Taffer is competition from other potential employers.
Our website ran stories about food redistribution company DOT Foods and payment processor Deluxe looking for dozens of additional employees in the past week.
Granted, these jobs may be outside the skillsets and interests of many in hospitality.
Still, one has the uncomfortable feeling that many with a passion for the business have, out of necessity, moved on and may not return right away.
In the end, this may represent the biggest long-term challenge for the industry – Doug Rainey, chief content officer.
