Some Blaine County Businesses Struggle To Find Workers

WATONGA – It’s not always easy to find a job in rural America. But for some Blaine County businesses lately, and rural businesses everywhere, there are more jobs available than workers willing to take them.

This past weekend, for instance, Watonga’s Sonic Drive-In location was unable to open all its stalls and drivethru at the same time for lack of staffing. Melissa Lamle, a shift manager at the Watonga Sonic, provides regular Facebook updates when Sonic has to limit its service capacity.

Lamle started working there four months ago to help her friend Christal Smith, the manager. She started at just 20 hours a week, but her hours ballooned as the staffing shortcomings became more evident.

“People were calling in all the time,” Lamle told the Watonga Republican. “My hours went from 20 to 25, to 30, to 35, and now I’m getting 40 to 45 a week.”

The location decided to start closing some of its stalls so it wouldn’t overextend its current employees and possibly make them leave, too. “That’s the only way we’re not going to have such a big strain on the employees who are loyal, and do show up,” she said. “It’s going to make people mad, and our (service) times aren’t going to be great, but the bottom line is, for the people who want to work, and do work, we need to make it easier so they still come to work.”

Lamle’s Facebook posts often encourage visitors to be courteous to the Sonic staffers, even if service is a little slower than usual. The Watonga Sonic is open from 5:30 a.m. to 11 p.m. and has just 18 employees right now, down from 25 earlier, Lamle said.

She and other local business owners attribute much of the recent staffing problems to federal unemployment benefits that were designed to blunt the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, but have carried over till now despite states like Oklahoma having largely reopened for months.

Some store managers suspect they’ve been receiving applications from locals who have no intention of accepting a position, but need apply for unemployment purposes.

But on June 26, those extra federal benefits ended in Oklahoma after Gov. Kevin Stitt issued an executive order last month to provide extra incentive for Oklahomans to get off unemployment. Stitt approved a $1,200 payment for the first 20,000 approved Oklahomans to apply; the incentive is for applicants who received Pandemic Unemployment Assistance, Pandemic Emergency Unemployment Compensation, or traditional Unemployment Insurance who went back to work.

Applicants for the incentive must complete six consecutive weeks of employment at 32 hours per week or more. According to a KOCO explainer, the time frame for eligibility started in May and lasts through Sept. 4.

Watonga’s Dollar General manager said his store hasn’t seen much of a difference in applications since Stitt’s program was announced.

The Dollar General had a sign up Monday advertising two open positions starting at $9 an hour. Lamle said Watonga Sonic positions start at minimum wage, plus tips.

Oklahoma progressive groups say businesses would have no trouble getting employees if they paid higher wages. “Everybody says, ‘Well, you’re not paying a fair wage,’” Lamle said. “We pay minimum wage, but then tips. And we pay fairly, based on experience, for cooks. I think, you know, any wage is better than no wage at all.”