GREEN BAY, WI (WTAQ-WLUK) – A worker shortage has local businesses scrambling ahead of the busy holiday shopping season.
While many shoppers are looking forward to finding some good deals this Black Friday weekend, many retailers are working around the clock to make sure customers have a good experience.
“It’s a family tradition for so many people go shopping after Thanksgiving dinner and it’s a lot of fun to see those big lines,” said Kohls Store Manager Laurel Worman.
While the Black Friday experience is a thrill for many shoppers, wait times this year could be a little longer, as many retailers are experiencing a worker and have been for quite some time.
Bay Area Workforce Development Board’s Jim Golembeski tells FOX 11..
Just looking at the number of employers advertising there’s a lot of retail and retail supervisor positions which is interesting.”
The Job Center of Wisconsin’s website shows 134 job openings for retail supervisors in Brown County alone. There’s also a need for 31 cashiers and 109 sales positions at stores across the area.
“In a previous generation you had a lot of stay at home jobs, now you have a two-person household, both working hard, no one has time to pick up an extra job,” he explained.
To fill those positions, Golembeski said retailers should put more emphasis on hiring people with disabilities.
“Disabilities could mean a wide variety of things, many would be able to drive or provide retail customer service. I think a lot of employers are hesitant to do that but they need to because they’re out there.”
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