The only 24-hour gas station in Charlevoix recently announced it will be closed from 11 p.m to 6 a.m. until further notice due to a lack of employees.
The gas station operates with four full-time employees and can’t find the extra two employees needed for the night shift.
This is only one example of many businesses across Northern Michigan that are having to close down or cut back their hours due to a lack of workers.
Employers are getting creative, offering incentives and enticements that go above and beyond what they would normally offer while competing with each other for a small pool of applicants.
Employee Incentives
Types of hiring and retention incentives can include remote-friendly options, wellness programs, strong paid time off options, hiring bonuses and referral bonuses as reported by Corridor Careers, an organization that helps local and relocating job seekers find meaningful work in the midwest.
Lisa Hoyt, membership director for the Petoskey Area Chamber of Commerce, said many businesses in the area are offering sign-on bonuses and bonuses after 60 and 90 days of employment. Companies are also continuing to increase their hourly wages to stay competitive. Petoskey’s Subway is now offering an $18 hourly wage while McDonald’s is offering $15.
With the state’s $300 weekly extended unemployment likely to be stopped, more people in the area may be motivated to apply for local positions, Hoyt said.
The state House voted last week to stop the weekly payments and it is still being considered in the Senate.
Petoskey’s chamber hosted a job fair recently with more than 40 businesses and only six potential employees attended.
Buffalo Wild Wings in Petoskey is now offering a $450 hiring bonus, to be paid after six months of employment.
Grandpa Shorter’s in Petoskey has a referral program it offers to employees who bring in other hires. They also attempt to entice applicants with a range of benefits, offering, “a flexible schedule, a competitive wage, a store discount … bonuses, treat days at work, staff dinners, Simple IRA, and more,” as stated on its website.
The business is seeking a full-time and part-time year-round employee who can work weekends.
Northwest Michigan Staffing is accepting applications for full-time positions with many companies that offer weekly pay, bonuses and benefits.
EJ Plastics in East Jordan offers paid breaks and a newly added smoking room.
Charlevoix’s Grey Gables restaurant will conduct an interview via Zoom and Kilwin’s is offering store discounts, and end-of-season bonus.
Northern Michigan’s Odawa Casino is offering a $500 bonus for part-time hires and a $1,000 bonus for a full-time hire.
Charlevoix’s Gliks, a clothing boutique, offers a 40 percent employee discount, paid holidays and vacations, 401k benefit plans and a profit sharing plan to prospective employees.
Round Lake Outfitters is looking for summer associates and a part-time assistant manager and offers a 50 cent raise after the first 30 days of employment.
Some employers offer lifestyle incentives; the city of Charlevoix is advertising for a new city clerk and tempts applicants with the the city being “situated on Lake Michigan and Lake Charlevoix … long recognized as a premier Great Lakes resort community.”
DCL, a dust control company, said: “We pay very competitive wages based on experience and qualification for the position, and overtime may be required. Full range of benefits offered including Medical, Dental, Vision, STD, LTD, and Basic and Voluntary Life insurance, and 401k. We are an ‘essential’ employer.”
Precision Edge Surgical Products in Boyne City offers benefits on day one offers paid holidays and insurance on day one.
However, some chose to not compete. Boyne City, Sunnyside Cafe is looking for a full time, year-round line cook and said: “Sorry we do not have sign on bonuses, or incentivising the position with unrealistic promises.”
For employers looking for help with recruitment, Northern Michigan Works offers businesses assistance.
“We can help you attract talent by making your job posting stand out from the rest!” is stated on their website.
In addition, the Northwest Michigan Small Business Development Center provides “consulting, training, and research to assist small businesses to launch, grow, transition, and innovate.”
But in the word of small businesses, resources can be tight. Some suggestions for incentives that don’t cost a lot as taken from the When I Work blog are the following:
- Give them an extra vacation day.
- Give them double time. (Give your employees the option to choose a day when they want to double their breaks. So, instead of just 30 minutes for lunch, they can take an hour.)
- Give them the option of flexibility. (Let your employees create a flexible work schedule, whether it be the hours they work, when they work, or where they work.)
- Create a casual dress day.
- Give away outside services. (Who wouldn’t enjoy a relaxing chair massage during a busy work day?)
Another suggestion was to ask existing employees what they would like to see as an incentive.
Show us the money
There are many reasons for the employee shortage, and depending on the source, the causes range from lack of housing to too much government assistance. One of the main problems is cited as wages not rising to meet the demands of the current living costs.
Michigan’s minimum wage is $9.65, according to Michigan.gov. — and the rate did not increase as unemployment for 2020 exceeded 8.5 percent in the state.
A recent Harvard study concluded that employment for low-wage workers earning less than $27,000 a year dropped 24 percent compared to a 2.5 percent increase for high-paid staffers. Another study suggested that states with more COVID-19 restrictions had higher unemployment rates.
In terms of location, in northwest Michigan, Grand Traverse county outpaces all other county in terms of employers by more than double, according to Networks Northwest.
Networks Northwest compiled the following wage information from northwest Michigan counties (Antrim, Benzie, Charlevoix, Emmet, Grand Traverse, Kalkaska, Leelanau, Manistee, Missaukee and Wexford). Below are some of the examples as they compared wages from 2019.
- Construction laborers in the area average $16.69 per hour, down one penny from 2019’s $16.70 and construction managers salaries are at $50.71 an hour, down from $53.37 in 2019.
- Bartenders average $12.86 an hour (up by 40 cents) and cashiers in the area average $12.44 an hour (up from $11.82).
- Restaurant cooks make an average of $15.31 an hour (up from 2019’s $13.81).
- Dental assistants make $18.43 an hour (down from $18.76) and dentists make $63.63 an hour, down from 2019’s $99.23 an hour.
- Dishwashers pay is up $2 to $12.49 from $10.98.
- Electricians pay went down slightly to $23.09 from $23.35
- Family medicine physicians are at $107.31 per hour (was $110.46 in 2019).
- Waiters and waitresses are $14.26 an hour, down from $15.09 in 2019.
- Web developers and digital interface designers are at $26.58 per hour (up from $25.81)
- Retail salesperson makes $15.26 per hour (up from $14.13).
- Nurse practitioners make $57.86 per hour (up from $54.41)
- Hotel, motel, and resort desk clerks make $13.18 an hour, up from $12.17.
- Firefighters on average make $19.94 an hour, down from the $20.36 an hour they made in 2019.
The shortage in the labor force is not a new thing and has been a problem in the area for several years.
In 2019, the Bureau of Labor statistics ranked reported average weekly wage in Michigan was $1,115, below the national average at $1,185. The following was the average weekly wages for several Northern Michigan counties in 2019:
Antrim: $698
Charlevoix: $905
Cheboygan: $721
Chippewa: $806
Emmet: $878
Grand Traverse: $945
Mackinac: $778
Otsego: $849
Average weekly wages in Michigan’s smaller counties
All 73 smaller counties in Michigan — those with employment below 75,000 — reported average weekly wages below the national average of $1,185. Among these smaller counties, Midland posted the highest weekly wage, $1,167, followed by Kalkaska ($1,055), Calhoun ($1,033), and Jackson ($1,024). Keweenaw County reported the lowest average wage in the state at $584 per week, followed by Ontonagon County at $603 per week, as reported by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Everyone has an opinion
Opinions vary as to what exactly the cause is of the problem. On a community Facebook page regarding a post about the cut back in hours of the 24-hour Charlevoix gas-station, the following statements were made:
“I don’t think the problem is too many people on unemployment it’s more of an issue of not as many year round people to fill the jobs. Then that leads to the housing debate and then to the jobs don’t pay a livable wage. It’s sort of a vicious cycle. The situation is the same all over the country, bottom line take care of the employees you have they are your number one asset,” said Kyle Smith.
Troy Bonar alluded to the work environment and said, “Some people don’t realize how much work that the night shift person does at Holiday (gas station), and what kind of BS they have to deal with sometimes on that shift. Working at a gas station may not seem like it is difficult, but they have a whole different level of stress”
Stacie Weston Burger said, “Maybe it’s because between the ‘Unemployment and Supplemental Benefits’ people can sit home on their butts and get paid $16.40 an hour. Our government is making us a Socialist country and no one cares. Just my opinion.”
Amanda Richelle responded, “I would also say that based off the hours they need covered it could also be a childcare issue for anyone applying for that position.”