As diners return, some restaurants can't keep up with the demand

WASHINGTON (SBG) — From coast to coast, businesses in the United States are struggling to get people to come back to work.

“Our biggest challenge has been being able to find labor," said Carlos Gazitua, the CEO of Sergio’s Family Restaurants in Florida and a member of the Job Creators Network.

As people start to fill restaurants and travel again, businesses need staff and in some cases, can’t keep up.

They’re now hoping to entice prospective employees with extra incentives.

The Silver Diner, a restaurant chain in the mid-Atlantic, is offering a $200 signing bonus and up to 16 dollars an hour to start.

Some say more drastic measures may need to take place to encourage people to get back to work.

"One of the things that I’ve called on is to let people keep the benefits of unemployment to August if they go back to work now and stay until the end of the year," Gazitua explained.

Despite the upward trend in employment opportunities today, the National Restaurant Association says those establishments are still 1.8 million jobs – or 15 percent – below pre-pandemic levels.

Some lawmakers on Capitol Hill blame increased unemployment benefits and the child tax credit.

"We need to be talking about incentivizing people to go back to work," said Rep. Lloyd Smucker, R-Penn. "I want to hear from President Biden how we’ll reverse some of the policies that do the exact opposite of that that are in place right now."

Others say that while it’s necessary to recognize the challenge employers are facing, it’s important to remember why these policies are in place, especially during a pandemic.

"For those individuals who are taking the unemployment benefits, that is the best choice for heir families. But it is also short term. They were only extended to bridge them through these difficult economic times," explained Dr. Tara Sinclair, an associate professor of economics and international affairs at George Washington University.

That monthly child tax credit mentioned is set to begin this July, while the extended unemployment benefits will last through Labor Day.