On July 4, I went out to lunch with my mother and her twin sister. We were greeted at the door with a half-empty restaurant and a nervous apology; there would be a one-hour wait, as there was only one server available for the day.
In storefronts, restaurants and businesses throughout our community, the “Help Wanted” signs have lingered for months. Some organizations have cut back on hours of operation, some have increased starting wages or offered incentives to staff taking on extra hours, and some have even posted reminders to their clientele to be kind to their servers as fewer staff try their best to meet the demand.