N.B. businesses struggle to find staff during peak tourist season
New Brunswick businesses in the tourism corridor of Route 114 are desperate for workers, even as the summer season slowly winds down.
In Alma, next to Fundy National Park, two of the village's larger restaurants were closed Wednesday due to staffing issues.
The Tipsy Tails was closed Tuesday so employees could get at least one day off. Closing for a day costs owner Jeremy Wilbur thousands of dollars in lost revenue.
"When you're closing in peak season, in a seasonal business, it really hurts financially. We've got people coming from away that are coming just to eat at the restaurant. When they show up and see that the door is closed and they're only here for one day, they're disappointed," said Wilbur.
It's a bad situation, but Wilbur knows it's not unique to the region.
"I've got friends in Ontario that own restaurants, top chefs, and they can't get staff. When I grew up in the business, you would work almost for free for those chefs, and now they can't even get people as well," he said.
They're short-staffed up the road in Hopewell Hill too at Broadleaf Ranch.
The ranch and adventure business' co-owner, Wendy Hudson, praised her staff, many of whom are cross-trained and help in other departments when needed, but she could still use three or four more people.
"It's really not just tourism and it's really not just between Hillsborough and Alma. It's Air Canada, it's all the trades. Everyone is wondering why it's so difficult to find workers, regardless of what line of business you're in," said Hudson.
In Hillsborough, Briggs Maple owner David Briggs lost a few employees earlier this summer. He's in desperate need of replacements and is clearly frustrated.
"Very. We don't have a lot of population in this area to work from," said Briggs. "Anybody who's out there is either employed or retired. It's not easy."
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