5 IDEAS FOR DEALING WITH THE LABOR SHORTAGE

Author: Senior Dining Association 

Everyone is trying to drive more applicants into their Human Resources office through a variety of methods. One SDA member likened the situation to advertising, saying everything is a numbers game. The more you do, the more likely you’ll be successful. A group of SDA members recently shared some ideas.

1. Reach out to your local schools. Hand out flyers. Consider business cards with QR codes linking to your community’s opportunities. Participate in career fairs. Speak to student groups. Take along a package of cookies or something like you’d use when marketing to prospective residents – something that gives an impression of what you do. Look what others are giving out as swag. One SDA member says they’re working with special education students on a work program during school hours. They’re helping in the dish pit, serving residents, doing food deliveries, and things like that throughout the weekday. That gives them 10 students every other day.
2. See if the National Restaurant Association’s ProStart program is a fit for your organization. ProStart is a career and technical education program that unites the foodservice industry and the classroom to teach high school students culinary skills and restaurant management principles, as well as employability skills such as communication, teamwork, professionalism, and time management.
3. Check with local non-profits and churches that may be working with refugees to help them relocate. These people want to work, and they are going to need jobs to be able to sustain themselves and their families. Beyond the influx of Afghan refugees, some areas are expecting large numbers of additional refugees. Church World Services (Hyperlink: https://cwsglobal.org/) is one organization helping refugees and immigrants.
4. Consider a direct mail campaign through your post office. It’s not that expensive, and you can target by zipcode, by where your location is. Your audience is not just the waitstaff if that’s what you’re looking for. It may be a family member or mother or father that sees it and says, “Hey, here’s a job for you.” Include your benefits!
5. One SDA member’s company is looking at Q-1 Visas. The Q-1 is a visa for participants in an international cultural exchange program. Trying to get an international internship program isn’t a quick fix but in the long-term may be helpful. 

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