Employers are struggling to fill job openings

Businesses are struggling to find workers.

CareerSource said it has a plethora of openings to fill but people either aren’t willing or can’t do the work.

For some people, it’s either a personal or economic reason keeping them from returning to work. Some are dealing with health and safety reasons, all a direct result of the pandemic. The end result is companies are short on staff. The Naples Soap Company, Goodwill, Starbucks, restaurants and hotels are hiring.

“It is an industry that is not going to see any type of relief soon. I foresee that to take place, recovery of a year and a half to two years down the road for that industry to recover,” said Janeth Castrejon, communications manager for CareerSource Southwest Florida.

More than 14,000 people lost jobs in the leisure and hospitality industry in Southwest Florida alone. Many of them have chosen to stay home to take care of children in virtual school, or because they are scared of COVID-19, or, some employers claim, because of the higher unemployment benefits.

“That is enough incentive for the individuals to not actively look for employment,” Castrejon said. “Until we see those… those benefits stop or change, then we’ll start to see a lot more participation of people looking for employment.”

Dave Harding, a recruiter for Best Home Services, can’t wait for that day to get here.

Instead of people coming to him, he’s got to find ways to meet potential new workers.

“We’ve had to change up our game a little bit … we’ve had to try different avenues to get in front of people without getting directly in front of them, if you know what I mean,” Harding said.

If you are in the job market, CareerSource is hosting a virtual hiring event with over 70 employers on April 15.

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