ROCKPORT, Texas — $14 an hour restaurant wages, sign on bonuses, even stimulus check reimbursement -- these are just some of the incentives to entice workers to available jobs in the Rockport area.
There is a virtual job fair this week and employers are making new offers to get workers.
"We're seeing sign on bonuses. We're seeing stimulus check reimbursement. We're seeing all sorts of creative ideas. But the most thing that we're seeing is that it's driving wages up."
Diane Probst is president and CEO for the Rockport Fulton Chamber of Commerce and is talking about their virtual job fair set for Thursday from 3 p.m. until 6 p.m.
Probst says the biggest incentive from local employers is one restaurant offering a substantial salary increase.
"We hear that one of our local restaurants is offering 14 an hour just to get the people's attention."
The Chamber conducted a similar virtual job fair in March and could not get enough workers for local businesses.
Dr. Jim Lee, an economist with Texas A&M Corpus Christi, says the reasons for the lack of interest in jobs remains the same, including higher than normal unemployment benefits.
"We're talking about 300 dollars a week. That's a lot for the low wage or minimum wage workers."
Lee shared a photo of a local drive in restaurant that was offering twice a month stimulus checks of their own to entice workers to apply for jobs.
"We call it yolo economy right now. We are facing a very different economy than it used to be. And when the unemployment rate, right now it's close to 9 percent. That means we're talking about nearly 1 in 10 people not having any work."
YOLO refers to the phrase 'you only live once' and Lee says young people just aren't interested right now in starting new jobs.
There will be at least 100 jobs of all kinds available this Thursday. For a link to join the virtual job fair visit Workforce Solutions of the Coastal Bend.
For the latest updates on coronavirus in the Coastal Bend, click here.
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