Workers, workers everywhere, but none are here to work.

Now that more and more Americans are getting vaccinated and the illness is threatening fewer lives, businesses are starting to open back up again. Unfortunately, businesses are facing a problem of supply and demand, preventing us from enjoying the things we took for granted in 2019: eating out at restaurants, going to the movies, enjoying local attractions, and even buying groceries in person.

Of course, most industries are used to supply chain interruptions: an incident on the other side of the world causes a shortage of some vital item, which increases costs and limits profits in a far-reaching butterfly-effect. But with the desperate job searches of the recession of the early 2000's still too fresh in our memories, it's bewildering to consider how we now have an abundance of jobs but a shortage of workers.

It's easy to see that the math doesn't add up. More people are unemployed than ever before, but there are not enough workers to fill all of these vacant jobs. Restaurants are still closed despite finally being allowed to operate at increased or even full capacity again because there aren't enough employees to keep them running.

The first scapegoat is unemployment benefits and the debate for increasing the minimum wage: People earn more money on unemployment than they would working full-time at minimum wage. The second is work ethic: People are lazy and they don't want to work. Why work when you can get paid more to sit home and do nothing? This logic makes sense, so it's the default rationale that everyone assumes must be the answer to our current problems, and most people don't stop to consider the problem beyond this Kindergarten-level reasoning. While receiving monetary income is essential to, well, existing, receiving a paycheck isn't the only reason people work. As we've seen the past year-plus, Americans actually despise staying home. So, what's keeping them from working?

I'M GLAD YOU ASKED!

It's not as simple as, "Just show up for work!" Many of these job openings are in food service, where the peak working hours coincide with the most hectic part of most parents' days. Even for a 2-parent household in which at least one parent only works until 5pm, kids need to be transported from school and helped with their homework, dinner has to be figured out and the kids need to be fed and bathed and put to bed early so they can be up early for school the next day. And we haven't even started thinking about what happens when your child is sick and can't attend school...

Our country relies on parents either having enough money for childcare* or having family members available to do it for free, and so many people aren't lucky enough to be in either of those situations (ESPECIALLY now, after millions of those grandparents and caregivers have died of Covid).

Schools and businesses could both work to make this easier for parents: school could adjust their hours and offer flexible classroom times, for example, in addition to the before- and after-school care programs that were essential for working parents before the pandemic.

Until employers recognize that they need employees at least as much as the employees need jobs, businesses with hours beyond the 8-5 will continue to rely on a very small pool of applicants who are able to meet the employer's needs without having any of their needs met beyond a paycheck.

Are any of these employers saying to prospective applicants, "Here's what we offer for parents to help so that you can work," or "Your family is important. How can we support that?"

Show me an employer who provides a symbiotic employer-employee relationship that is seen as mutually beneficial instead of believing the employer is doing the employee a favor by allowing them to work, and I'll show you a business that has no shortage of staff and great retention rates, regardless of what they pay.

*Many families qualify for free childcare, but the parent has to provide diapers for the child while they are there. Diapers are a necessity for all young children but are not covered by WIC, "food stamps," or any government benefit, so if a parent doesn't have cash for diapers, they have no choice but to stay home with their child. As a result, many parents (usually women) lose their jobs, are unable to receive promotions, or are unable to pursue higher education. You can help by donating diaper bank (find one on the National Diaper Bank Network) or giving diapers to the food bank, and by telling your elected officials that addressing diaper need is a priority. Learn more here: https://www.jlabq.org/diaper-bank/