YORKTOWN, Va.- According to experts, there are fewer people in the labor force post pandemic, creating a problem for small businesses who are looking to hire.
Bob McNab, an economics professor at Old Dominion University, said there’s a vicious cycle going on right now. In order to attract employees, businesses are raising wages, but that has a domino effect.
“Costs are rising for businesses, those costs get passed on to consumers, who then try to find higher wages to offset those cost increases,” said McNab.
Grunow’s Kitchen in Yorktown told News 3 they’re looking to hire.
“It’s not just about the bottom line anymore, it’s about being able to stay open,” said Jane Massey, chef manager.
Massey said they’ve had to adjust their hours because they don’t have the staff to cover.
“We’ve had to make amends, we’re only open for lunch now, I would love to open for dinner I just can’t feasibly do it at this point,” Massey said.
McNab said this is what small businesses across Hampton Roads, and Virginia as a whole, are seeing- there’s just not enough people to work.
“The pool of people who are out there looking for jobs or are working is smaller, so employers are competing for a smaller pool of labor,” McNab said.
