Small businesses in southern Alberta continue to grapple with the economic fallout of the pandemic, but are now dealing with additional pressures from inflation.
"We've actually had fewer customers this summer compared to the summer when COVID hit. That's directly inflation," said owner of Water Tower Grill and Bar. One Ram Khanal said:
Rising costs put owners like Khanal in an awkward situation. Far fewer customers walk through the doors of his three restaurants in the Lethbridge neighborhood, leaving less cash to offset the inflated prices that must be kept awake. and running.
READ MORE: Canada cut jobs for second straight month in July, unemployment rate unchanged
Eating out is a luxury, so it's considered a luxury," he said. “Nobody eats out because they don't have that much disposable income.”
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Khanal wants to make dining out more accessible. He said he could not download the full weight of the increase to customers for fear of losing it.
This is what the Lethbridge Chamber of Commerce has seen many companies struggle with.
"As inflation rises and interest rates rise, the cost of doing business will continue to rise," said CEO Cindy Bester. "It's hard right now to set some of these target bases without knowing when it will stop?"
And if inflation isn't enough, companies are trying to address it by adding staffing shortages list of hurdles.
"It was very difficult to find staff," Kanal said. "Especially in Lethbridge, because we are so dependent on the university, and we haven't had [students] here in the last two years."
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Economic Development Lethbridge CEO Trevor Lewington said he expects an influx of young workers into the city when the school year starts in September.
“The University of Lethbridge, in particular, is a destination university, with about 70% of the students attending the university coming from outside the region. For some of our businesses, it's a really important source of labor," Lewington said.
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“It will be interesting to see classes resume this fall. and how it will affect the workforce.”
Current conditions in the job market are also putting future employees in the driver's seat.
"It's really a job seeker's market at the moment," Lewington said, adding that there are currently about 5,000 vacancies in the Lethbridge area.
"The average wage rate for these vacancies is about $21.50 an hour, well above minimum wage."
Read more: Canadian wages are rising. Will inflation and interest rates follow suit?
According to Statistics CanadaLabor Force Survey in July, the average hourly wage last month increased by 5.2% year-on-year. rose. As inflation continues to skyrocket, we are looking for other ways to cut costs.
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