Thoughts on the labor shortage
The other day I was at my favorite newsstand in Portland.
The clerk is a colorful guy, always with an opinion about the Bruins, Sox or Patriots.
Topic of the day was the labor shortage.
He had a minor leak in the coolant system of his truck. Stopped at VIP Auto to see if they could fix it — simple job, he tells them, replacing a small valve and tightening the clamps, five minutes tops. They tell him, “We’re booked up through the end of the day.”
“It’s a five-minute job,” he tells them.
Maybe he could fix it himself, it’s suggested.
“Sure,” he says, “Can I borrow a wrench or a pair of pliers?”
You’re going to have to pay for those, he’s told.
“Can you believe that?” he says to me, exasperated.
“Hey,” I say, “That’s why they call it VIP, not DIY.”
That was the end of that conversation, but not the end of the conversation on the labor shortage.
I don’t know if that’s even the situation at VIP, but you see signs of the labor shortage everywhere, from the gas station on Route 1 in Falmouth that eliminated its Sunday hours, citing a lack of workers, to the restaurant in Port Clyde that took over an hour to serve dinner to construction projects that are being delayed because contractors can’t find skilled workers.
There’s data showing that wages are increasing, and Maine is seeing its seasonal influx of summer workers. But the need for workers persists in Maine, where the population is static and getting older.
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