The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

Help wanted signs are showing up in storefront windows across the nation, with 9.3 million job openings being reported in the United States, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Economists have been studying this most recent employee shortage and the effects the gaping holes in the workforce have had for businesses, workers and consumers.

Locally, businesses have had to adjust to the shortages. Waitsburg Grocery has had to close an hour earlier for nearly a month, missing out on the late-evening sales. In Dayton, Chief Springs Fire and Irons Brew Pub announced on Facebook yesterday that they will be closing at 3 p.m. on Tuesdays due to a staffing shortage. Though the pub will close earlier the pizzeria will keep regular hours. There have also been temporary adjustments due to employees testing positive for COVID-19.

Hospitals are short-staffed as they now need to take care of the normal flow of patients and the recent increase in COVID-19 cases. Community pools have struggled to remain open throughout the summer, many citing 'lifeguard availability' as the need to close. Restaurants in Walla Walla are experiencing difficulties bringing back staff and finding new workers as the inside dining and tourism has been increasing.

The labor shortage is heavily affecting the hospitality industry; a July 8 report from Business Insider showed up to one-third of hospitality workers weren't considering returning to the industry. This comes after many were forced to find work elsewhere due to COVID-19 restrictions on the industry.

The fear of contracting COVID-19 is another concern for many workers who have been out of the workforce during the pandemic. Jobs in retail, hospitality, and other industries that require face-to-face contact with the public are often positions that have limited health benefits. With the increase in COVID-19 and specifically the Delta variant, many workers have held off coming back to these jobs.

Stephanie Aaronson, Vice President and Director of Economic Studies at Brookings Institute suggested it will take time for workers and employers to find each other again and that there may be a mismatch between the types of jobs offered and the workers who are still looking for work right now. She said it is primarily workers with the lowest levels of education and lowest wages who are still lagging the furthest behind their pre-pandemic unemployment rates and that will likely persist going forward.

Economists, including Aaronson, have found some workers have stayed home with their children and might decide to do so for a little longer. People could have made decisions to attend school which will keep them out of the labor force. And finally, although I don't think this is the most important story, there could also be workers who are hesitant to work because they don't feel safe yet, even as more of the country is becoming vaccinated, and that could hold employment back a bit going forward.

According to the Wall Street Journal, some economists, Republican lawmakers, and business owners say enhanced federal unemployment benefits are contributing to the labor shortage because many workers receive more in government aid than they would get on the job. Those benefits-$300 a week on top of regular state payments-are due to expire after Labor Day

While unemployment benefits may have helped low-income workers during the pandemic, many do not want to return to jobs that don't pay a living wage. Forbes reports that there are moves toward worker's rights reform, including making competitive wages and benefits a standard. Other economists believe that the lingering pandemic and its potential to blow again, are holding people back from returning to the workforce as they are uncertain of the future.

Economists at Morgan Stanley strongly believe that caregiving responsibilities may be a big factor in people choosing to stay at home. Last year, as school closed for in-person learning, some parents were forced to quit jobs to stay home to care for their school-age children. Many found themselves acting as teachers or teacher aides after schools moved to virtual learning.

A Federal Reserve analysis from July 2021 showed that loss of jobs due to caregiving impacted women significantly higher than men. Women are more likely to stay home with children due to the closing of childcare facilities and schools going to remote learning. Shortages in childcare have been an issue long before the pandemic and will continue to influence this section of shortages. School reopening may offer more concrete options for stay-at-home-parents, but experts at the Institute for Women's Policy Research say that moms may not return to work for months, concerned about possible school closures as COVID-19 cases continue to surge.

Another factor in the labor shortage may come with the lack of job mobility. Waitsburg was one of many small, rural towns that experienced an influx of new residents who left larger cities, hoping to work remotely in this time of Zoom meetings and cloud computing. As the pandemic looked to be heading towards containment through vaccines and other measures, employers who allowed workers to operate remotely are now asking employees to return to the office.

With so many changes in the economy over the last year, there is not a clear cause or solution to the current labor shortage. Next week, I will be exploring how local businesses have been affected and how they are handling the shortage of available workers.