The pandemic labor crunch is turning endemic. A year and a half into COVID and many businesses report they’re still having trouble hiring enough workers to stay fully staffed.
LSU Economist Dr. Loren Scott told WWL he surveyed 200 state firms for the upcoming 2022-2023 Louisiana Economic Forecast and every single one said they’re having hiring problems. Scott noted there’s one group, in particular, that isn’t putting in applications these days.
“There’s been an unusual drop in the number of people 54 and older who are not reentering the workforce, they have dropped out of the workforce and not returned,” said Scott.
Scott said businesses are starting to adapt to this new reality, realizing it may just be the future. One of those adaptations is a big ramp-up in investment into automation and computers. He said that’s even happening in traditionally people-centric industries like service and hospitality.
Because of that you probably need to start getting comfortable with spending more time in front of a screen, even when you go out to a nice restaurant.
“Instead of going into a restaurant and being individually waited on by a waiter you will look at a computer and on the computer it will show what is on the menu and you will choose,” said Scott who said that shift is already well underway in fast food restaurants.
Scott said if these conditions continue businesses are going to have to start paying workers more money, particularly to entice the 54 and older crowd who took an early retirement.
“Interesting things happen when you start raising the wage rate, people start changing the way they think about work, and suddenly work begins to pay off,” said Scott who added that with increased wages will come some increased costs for consumers.
