Simcoe Muskoka businesses struggle to find staff as job seekers dwindle

BARRIE, ONT. -

As businesses try to recover from a year and a half of restrictions and guidelines, they're faced with a new hurdle.

Yvette Wicksted, owner of the Bull and Barrel Pub, says a shortage of workers is forcing her Barrie restaurant to close twice a week.

"We're trying to get full service up and running again and I'm having a hard time filling these spots," says Wicksted.

"Right now, I actually only operate five days a week because if i'm not going to give good service, I'm just not going to be open," she says.

It's a struggle many owners are now up against as the economy reopens.

"It's not just the restaurant sector that we are hearing about. We are seeing it in manufacturing and some of the more executive positions as well," says Paul Markle, executive director of the Barrie Chamber and Commerce.

According to Statistics Canada, the country added 94-thousand new jobs last month, with the majority in Ontario.

Still, the Barrie Chamber of Commerce says benefits like CERB are keeping people from returning to work.

"With CERB ending, I think that's obviously not the only reason people aren't coming but it's certainly a big factor in helping to get people back to work," Markle says.

It's not just Barrie. Across Simcoe Muskoka, the number of people looking for jobs is at an all-time low.

Martina Wahl, team leader at YMCA Simcoe Muskoka Employment Services, says the amount of job seekers is lower than what she's seen before.

"In a normal year, we would have 150 to 160 job seekers, but we've got 50 at the moment," Wahl says. "What we see is people reevaluating their life and making career choices different from what it was before."