ANNA MARIA ISLAND – As you browse the shops, dine in the restaurants and check into the resorts of Anna Maria Island, you may notice what’s becoming a familiar sight not just on the Island, but in cities and towns across the U.S.; the “help wanted” sign.
The problem? Not enough workers to fill all the jobs.
According to statistics from ZipRecruiter, even though job postings on the site have surged, participation rates among users remain sluggish at best. There are currently 5 million more job postings on the site than there were at the start of the pandemic, but businesses posting the openings are getting record low responses.
Island businesses seem to be seeing similar results.
“I probably spent $800 to $1,000 on Indeed and didn’t even get a phone call,” said Shawn Waters, owner of Solo’s Pizza in Holmes Beach. “Now I’m going to the high schools because they’re about to get out for summer break. Those kids aren’t on unemployment, because they haven’t had jobs yet.
“When the big crowds come for Memorial Day and the weeks following, I’m just going to have to take the phone off the hook after take-out times get to 45 minutes and focus on the business inside the restaurant,” Waters added. “I don’t want to do this, it costs me a lot of money, but I have no choice. I just don’t have the staff to do both.”
Solo’s isn’t the only Island business struggling to find help in the service industry. There are a lot of rental units on Anna Maria Island, and it takes an army of housekeepers to meet the demand of the record-breaking booking rates at area condos and resorts. Unfortunately for many of these properties, what was once a job for many, is now being done by a few.
“The service industry has suffered during COVID because they’re in a pay scale where they make more money with the unemployment that they’re getting now. Anything between $12 and $17 an hour, in that pay range, you can’t find what you need, but once that ends, there will be a lot of people looking for work,” said Kathy Wooten, general manager of Queen’s Gate Resort in Bradenton Beach.
Nervousness about returning to a safe work environment has also been cited as a reason for not returning to work, as well as the fact that many job seekers may not have yet realized just how much the job market has heated up. No matter the reason for hesitation, the reality is that there are currently more positions available on Anna Maria Island than there were before the start of the pandemic, and filling them is priority #1 for many Island businesses.
