There’s evidence that part of the problem is supply -- many of these hard-hit firms are struggling to find staff. “It’s more of a challenge than normal.”It’s a paradox -- labor shortages at a time of high unemployment rates -- that has also been a feature of the U.S. labor market recovery. According to the latest data from job posting service Indeed Canada, listings in the food services sector are up 72% from pre-pandemic levels, suggesting strong demand for bartenders, kitchen help and servers. Weakness in hospitality jobs “does temper expectations of when we get back to pre-pandemic levels,” Sri Thanabalasingam, an economist at Toronto-Dominion Bank, said by phone. While some economists are pushing back their forecasts for when employment returns to pre-pandemic levels, it’s only by a month or two -- for now.

Source: The Edge Markets August 06, 2021 18:22 UTC