Narrogin hospitality businesses buckling under weight of staff shortages

Staff shortages are taking a toll on Narrogin’s hospitality businesses, with owners and managers in a perpetual state of looking for workers amid a lull in backpackers in WA. “Help wanted” pleas are a common sight on Facebook community pages and job advertising websites and in shop windows as businesses struggle. As in other parts of the State, Narrogin is grappling with staff shortages compounded by the lack of backpackers in WA, Narrogin Chamber of Commerce executive officer Kerry Bryant says. “The Wheatbelt has got one of the lower unemployment rates, so we need people to come into town and work,” Ms Bryant said. “A lot of the people moving to Narrogin are doing it for a tree change and they want to semi-retire, so they’re not really filling the vacancies. “I really think people are going to have to come into town to fill those gaps or it’ll have to be kids who have finished school and have decided they’re not going to university or are doing a trade. “Australians are starting to travel again, and unless there is people or backpackers coming in to replace them, there’s going to be a shortfall.” Most of Narrogin’s hospitality businesses have advertised one or multiple positions since June, including cafe Est 1978, which sought four “all-rounders”. Other businesses that have been searching for staff include the Duke of York, the New Cornwall Hotel, Fortune French Bread and the Narrogin Nursery, Cafe and Gallery. New Cornwall Hotel manager Harkirat Singh said the business was feeling the pressure. “We are very understaffed right now and it’s been that way for the last few weeks to months — we are just not getting enough staff,” he said. “I’m a manager but I’m running food and drinks right now and having to work extra hours to make up for it. “We are looking for anyone, whether that’s bar staff that can help us pour drinks, run food and take orders. “Even if they haven’t got the skills, we can train them.” There has been a 136.2 per cent increase in the number of vacancies advertised between February 2020 and May 2022 in WA, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The top industries looking for staff in Australia in May 2022 were accommodation and food services; administrative and support services; public administration; and safety, electricity, gas, and water and waste services. Narrogin Nursery, Cafe and Gallery owner Mike Brown said recruiting for the cafe side of his business had proved difficult. “We run a multitude of businesses under one roof. We run a gift shop, cafe, nursery and landscaping business,” he said. “With the nursery, we are about half a person short, so we’re not bad and we’ve got good qualified people these days and we are lucky with that. But the cafe has really had some dramas with regards to staff, the number of staff, the people available, the quality of the people who are available, and the list just goes on.” Mr Brown said finding skilled and motivated workers was a challenge. “The quality of the junior staff — not my junior girls because they are quite good — I mean the junior staff who have applied that are straight out of school is not what it used to be,” he said. “I had a backpacker walk in the door last week and she can do everything. She’s amazing and I think to myself, ‘why can’t our kids seem to do that?’.” The shortage of rentals and affordable housing continues to be an issue for workers coming into town. As of August 12, there were eight rental vacancies advertised in Narrogin on realestate.com.au. Duke of York Hotel owner Denise Bird, who with husband Doug Monish took ownership of the venue a month ago, said the business used to employ a lot of backpackers. She said they were in a fortunate position to be able to house their staff in the hotel. “Before COVID-19 there were lots of backpackers working here,” she said. “We can put staff upstairs in the hotel. We have 15 rooms, so we can work out a deal and make it quite reasonable for them. Where other businesses might not have that versatility that we’ve got in that way, that does make a difference for us with hiring staff. “I think because we don’t tend to have any backpackers coming in, it’s making a big difference for businesses who used to rely on them.” Ms Bird said they were fortunate to have 21 staff members on the payroll, but other businesses were not so lucky. “The cost of labour is the biggest cost to the business and the wages are going up again, which might mean putting the meals up $1 each,” she said. “We are looking at modernising the business and harnessing technology as much as we can, such as putting QR codes on the tables for people to order from, which helps to free up staff elsewhere.”