Finding staff is a major challenge for businesses in every sector – but why? Greg Nathan, founder and director of the Franchise Relationships Institute, shares some ideas.

Business owners may well be asking where all the people have gone, he says.

Greg has found three possible drivers that can explain what has happened to 20 per cent of the workforce.

The stress epidemic driving staff shortages

In winter, a surge of Covid-19 cases left businesses consistently short staffed, and set up a vicious cycle of stress on those left to hold the fort. Many will ask whether it’s worth it and look elsewhere.

“There are also growing numbers of people suffering from mental disorders that are interfering with their ability to work. In particular, young people aged between 16 and 34 are seeking help with anxiety and depression in record numbers. Working women are also reporting that they are disproportionately shouldering additional parenting pressures compared with men,” Greg reveals.

“Consider the implications of all this for high-stress jobs that don’t pay particularly well and rely mainly on young people and women – think healthcare, aged care, child care, teaching and hospitality. No wonder many are reassessing their options.”

‘Quiet quitting’ is now a thing

Greg points out the quiet rebellion in which some people with jobs are employing avoidance tactics for tasks they believe may create stress or anxiety.

“This has been referred to on social media as ‘quiet quitting’, defined as doing the bare minimum to get by without getting sacked,” he says.

“As a business owner, I find the idea of staff mentally and emotionally checking out of their job to avoid stress a little sad. Surely we can find more creative and socially desirable strategies to help people work diligently, pay their fair share of taxes and enjoy a satisfying personal life.”

Boomers are vanishing

Young people aren’t the only ones reassessing their options, points out Greg. Record numbers of Baby Boomers are retiring – and that’s a major contributing factor to the staff shortages.

“In the US, over 70 per cent of people who left the labour force during the pandemic were over 55. After all, Boomers who own their own homes and have accumulated other assets can afford to opt out.”

So what’s the answer?

Greg draws on a recent PwC report, What Workers Want. This found that support for wellbeing was second only to remuneration.

“This suggests we need to focus on creating more fulfilling and less stressful workplace cultures,” he says.

Franchisors need to help Boomers retain their passion, or help them implement a succession plan, he suggests.

“Helping them exit in a financially and personally satisfying way, [allows] a new generation of franchisees can enjoy the challenges and benefits of business ownership.”

This is an edited version of the article first published in Inside Franchise Business magazine, Spring edition, available to download here.