HUNTLEY – Parkside Pub located at 11721 E. Main Street announced via its Facebook page that kitchen staff shortages have made it impossible for the sports bar to continue to run at regular business hours.
“With that said, in order to give our kitchen a break, we have decided to temporarily close on Mondays until further notice. Should we find the right fit, we will go back to serving you all on Mondays again,” an Oct. 2 Parkside Pub Facebook post said.
This comes as no surprise as many businesses both locally and nationally have had to make some tough changes to their normal operations due to worker shortage.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics states that while unemployment rates fell to approximately 4.8% as of September, those rates remain well above their levels before the COVID-19 pandemic (3.5% unemployment rate).
Service occupations are still suffering unemployment rates of up to 6.4% as of September.
“As shocking as today’s employment figures are, even more troubling is the decline in labor force. We are in the midst of a worker shortage crisis and the number of potential workers is shrinking,” said Neil Bradley, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce executive vice president and chief policy officer. “Multi-trillion tax and spend proposals in Washington will only make matters worse. It is time for Congress to set that aside and focus on helping Americans get back to work and helping employers fill open jobs.”
JR Westberg, Parkside Pub owner and Village of Huntley trustee, told My Huntley News that the bar had no prior issues filling their hiring needs before the pandemic.
“Seven years ago, we had stacks of resumes and had our pick of the most experienced. Since the COVID re-open, it has been near impossible to find staff. We speculate that during the COVID shutdown, a lot of the industry moved on to other careers thus leaving a large gap in the workforce,” said Westberg.
He continued, “In the past, we would simply ask our current staff ‘Who do you know that is looking for work,’ but as of late, we’ve had to utilize tools such as Indeed to locate candidates. Several ‘no shows,’ and many unanswered requests to interview have been the most frustrating point of the hiring process. We have broadened our horizon to those looking to enter the industry and we are willing to train from no experience.”
Westberg went on to further explained that the lack of resources led to the decision to temporarily close Parkside Pub down on Mondays in order to focus on the health and wellbeing of the current kitchen staff.
“Our schedule is staggered in such a way that our current staff has time to rest and run errands, but it’s still daunting! The time off is more about their health and wellbeing,” said Westberg.
Westberg added that Parkside Pub offers a plethora of employment perks for those looking to apply.
“We offer benefits! Nearly every federal holiday is off and [we] offer extremely competitive pay with a fun work environment. One or two more new hires and we will re-open on Mondays. We’re close to that threshold, but [we] need a little more time.”
For more information on Parkside Pub, visit their website at parksidepub.com.
