Unemployment Benefits Leading To Devastating Labor Shortage

Unemployment Benefits Leading To Devastating Labor Shortage


As could have been predicted, the policy put forth during the lockdowns of paying
people more to stay home than to work, has resulted in desperate consequences for a number
of businesses and industries.


For example, I work with healthcare companies that provide residential care for those
with disabilities, in the form of residential group homes and Long-Term Care (LTC) facilities. This
segment of healthcare has been crushed by the impossibility of hiring and coercing former
workers to return to their positions. These caregivers are not licensed health care providers but
are the assistive personnel that make up the vast majority of the staff (feed, clothe and bathe
residents). I have been hearing story after story of the directors and supervisors of these
facilities working endless hours and being short staffed by as much as 50%. This is creating a
crisis for the residents, whose care will likely be compromised, and for the remaining staff who
are becoming burnt out.


Additionally, this problem is being felt keenly in the food service industry, and not just
local small business owners: On a Friday, my local Panera Bread, where my daughter works,
closed at 3:00 PM because two staff members failed to show up for their shifts. That has got to
be a lot of lost revenue for that store! I cannot help but think that those staff members knew
they are going to be fired and will join many others whose unemployment is garnering them a
substantial wage over their regular work.

 

This is absolutely destructive for our American way of life and is insidiously ushering in
Socialism. Please contact your representatives and tell them to opt out of accepting federal
funds that are crippling the ability of our communities to return to normal.