Many jobs remain unfilled in Lakes Region as summer approaches

LACONIA — Dozens of Lakes Region companies will be looking for new employees in fields ranging from waitressing to engineering at a May 1 job fair, but chances are there will be more jobs than applicants.

With the summer tourist season approaching, demand for new hires is intense. The state and local unemployment rate is hovering at about 3 percent, the workforce is aging and foreign workers are having a harder time getting visas.

Karmen Gifford, president of the Lakes Region Chamber of Commerce, which is hosting the jobs fair at the Belknap Mall, said businesses grow when they find good, new employees.

“The businesses have the demand for more work, but they need the employees to get the job done to the level of quality and service they require,” Gifford said.

There is a wide range of openings.

Some require experience such as electricians, plumbers, carpenters and  engineers, but many don’t require college degrees and some include on-the-job training.

“The issue for the last three years is that there are simply more jobs available than job seekers looking to fill them,” Gifford said.

Working at DQ

Some businesses that depend on high school students as employees are now in a pinch because they’ve opened for the season but school is still in session.

At the Dairy Queen on Union Avenue, owner Mike Merrill and his wife, Michelle, were busy serving customers Tuesday afternoon.

They’ve not been able to find anybody to staff the window during the daytime, so business was being conducted via the drive-through lane.

“We’ve been unable to find a day person,” Mike Merrill said. “At least we will have a good core group of kids, but obviously we need more. I’ve got plenty of work here.”

He said he once used foreign exchange students, but that comes with its own difficulties, including the need to find housing for workers.

Governor’s letter

New Hampshire companies often employ seasonal foreign workers with H-2B nonimmigrant temporary worker visas, but this has become more difficult with changes at the federal level, Gov. Chris Sununu said in a letter to Kirstjen Nielsen, secretary of U.S. Homeland Security, and R. Alexander Acosta, secretary of the Labor Department.

“This is having an adverse economic impact on New Hampshire and must be addressed,” Sununu stated. “Historically, the H-2B visas have been awarded on a ‘first-come, first-served’ basis. This visa regime has long benefited New Hampshire’s tourism and hospitality industry, which is one of the largest economic drivers in the state, as well as in New England.

“With the recent change to a visa lottery system, many businesses will be unable to secure the seasonal workforce that they need, forcing them to take such measures as to turn away contracts and agreements totaling hundreds of thousands of dollars in lost revenue.”

Puerto Rican workers

John Stephens, owner of Stephens Landscaping in Moultonborough, employs about 35 people from Puerto Rico, which is a territory of the United States, so no visa is required.

A few of the workers have relocated to the area, while the others are flown in, set up with housing and flown home at the end of the season.

“This allows us to capitalize on just how busy it is,” Stephens said. “There’s so much work out there. The green industry and building in general is through the roof.”

Stephens, who has learned Spanish, said he’s happy with his workforce.

“They are good hands,” he said. “They work hard, show up and are respectful.”