HAVE you heard the phrase: ‘The Staff of Life’?

It’s a biblical text (Isaiah 3:1) which refers to the basic foods we eat, particularly bread.

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However for many local businesses, it has an entirely different meaning.

You see, attracting staff and retaining them is a major and increasing problem.

But why?

Toni Rudder of Paul’s Fresh Bake at Tanilba Bay said, “We just can’t recruit bakers and counter staff are very hard to come by,” she said.

“I’ve noticed a shift in attitude of applicants since the Covid pandemic.

“Many don’t want to work the hours we need them and they want jobs to fit in with their own agendas.

“It doesn’t work that way in business,” she stated.

Next door at Tilligerry Quality Meats, Glen Curry has the same problem.

“Qualified butchers are very difficult to find and the wages and conditions they demand can be very hard for small family businesses to sustain.

“I’ve noticed young applicants have a different attitude to work than when I started off.

“Some have an ‘entitlement’ attitude and want to work on their own conditions which are not able to be met,” he added.

Both businesses have reduced their operating hours due to staff shortages.

Meanwhile in Lemon Tree Passage, Jo Gordon from Tanilba Bay Tyres and Mechanical is finding it almost impossible to hire a motor mechanic.

“We put a $350 advertisement on SEEK,” she said.

“There were 3000 hits on the item but not one applicant.

“We are now offering a $500 ‘spotter’s fee’ to anybody who can refer a mechanic to us.

“After three months of work both the spotter and the mechanic will get $500 each.

“That’s how hard it is to find somebody to do the job,” she remarked.

Geoff WALKER