Is the labor shortage another 'new normal'? Experts weigh in
Jenna Intersimone, MyCentralJersey.com
5 min read
Forget a “Help Wanted” sign in the window; Tina Dalamaras, owner of Kitchen American Grill in the Whitehouse Station section of Readington, is wearing it. You can often find her in an apron at her new restaurant, which opened March 21.
“My husband and I will put on whatever hat is needed to get the job done, whatever it takes,” Dalamaras said. “If we need a dishwasher, we jump in and we’re dishwashers. If we need a server, we do that.”
Kitchen American Grill in Whitehouse Station.
But of course, the situation isn’t ideal. The modern American eatery is about 25% understaffed. Dalamaras hasn’t advertised the new business and opened it quietly to not become overwhelmed with customers.
“It’s been hard,” she said. “We get up at 6 a.m. every morning and we are working day and night. We are up at all sorts of hours, and with it being a new restaurant, there’s so much behind the scenes that we have to do. I ask everybody if they know somebody looking for work.”
Dalamaras isn't the only one in need of employees. According to the Middlesex County Workforce Development Board (MCWDB), the Middlesex County unemployment rate is 3.5%, although it has been steadily rising.
Even though the circumstances are vastly different, the labor shortage itself isn't too different from prepandemic times. Before COVID-19 struck, the Middlesex County unemployment rate was between 2.5% and 2.8%.
“Prior to the pandemic, there were also a lot of companies looking to hire people, but they didn’t have much luck simply because the unemployment rate was so low,” said Kevin Kurdziel, director of MCWDB. “There just weren’t people available. The difference now is that there’s a labor shortage because there are people not actively seeking employment as well.”
An ongoing issue?
Job fairs hosted by the Middlesex County Workforce Development Board in years past.
So, like other frightening parts of the pandemic, is this our “new normal?” It depends who you ask, and even still, the answer is yes and no.
Dalamaras, who has 35 years of restaurant experience, remembers always looking for good help.
“Even before this shortage, there was a shortage before that,” she said. “I think it’s going to be an ongoing issue, and maybe that’s why a lot of places have closed.”
But the current labor shortage will improve, predicts Kurdziel, although it will remain to be somewhat of an obstacle for the time being, just like it was before COVID-19.
Job fairs hosted by the Middlesex County Workforce Development Board in years past.
“I think that we will probably see a labor market that was similar to the prepandemic time when there may still be a labor shortage, but it’s not necessarily related to any health concerns,” he said. “It’s related to the workforce development system trying to catch up to meeting the needs of the employers.”
Kurdziel is experiencing firsthand how the workforce development system is trying. He said that because the main complaint the MCWDB is hearing is that employers can’t find qualified applicants, the board is providing tailored training programs and then placing people with employers.
“We put people through courses and place them with employers as opposed to the past, when we just trained people in general programs and hoped someone hired them,” Kurdziel said. “We are trying to engage employers much more upfront now to determine what their training needs are and use that information to produce better qualified candidates.”
Kitchen American Grill in Whitehouse Station.
But more qualified candidates mean more money. Starting wages prepandemic for some full-time positions were about $15 an hour, and now those same jobs are paying up to $22 per hour to remain competitive, Kurdziel said. That’s in addition to signing bonuses, which Kurdziel said was a rarity prior to COVID-19. However, employers also are hoping that higher wages mean higher-quality job seekers.
Dalamaras is having a hard time finding qualified candidates, too, but some of the qualifications she needs can’t be taught.
“It’s not that they need a long resume or a college education,” she said. “They have to have the right personality, and they have to be passionate, no matter what age or what they’ve done before. It’s not about just getting someone in here and saying, 'We have the body.' We want a team.”
Continuing COVID-19 concerns
A Hunterdon County park.
The continuing lack of restaurant employees is partly because of COVID-19 concerns, which some other businesses with public-facing natures have experienced, too. The MCWDB recently held a heavily marketed virtual job fair for 18 day care centers. Fourteen people showed up.
“I think there’s still a fair amount of hesitance because of COVID, so people are carefully weighing what sort of employment they want to take,” Kurdziel said. “It’s about health, and whether or not a person is going to be working in a job where they have significant exposure to the public and other employees.”
Conversely, the Hunterdon County Park Commission is currently hiring four seasonal trail ambassadors, who will be working outdoors, share information about the parks and assist educational staff with programming. They have had no problem finding qualified applicants, said Daniel Bush, head of the division of parks and recreation.
“I think it’s the basis of the job,” Bush said. “If you are going to come work for us, you really want to be out in the environment. I think that draws people to us and just like the pandemic brought people to parks, I think that also helped get us good applicants."
Jenna Intersimone.
Jenna Intersimone has been a staff member at the USA Today Network New Jersey since 2014, after becoming a blogger-turned-reporter following the creation of her award-winning travel blog. To get unlimited access to her stories about food, drink and fun, please subscribe or activate your digital account today. Contact: JIntersimone@Gannett.com or @JIntersimone.
