Retirees roll up their sleeves to serve understaffed restaurants on Sunshine Coast
25 retirees are filling vacancies in seven understaffed Sechelt establishments
After seeing "help wanted" signs outside restaurants on B.C.'s Sunshine Coast for weeks on end, a group of nine retirees decided to step in and fill the vacancies on a volunteer basis.
Brian Coxford, one of the volunteers, said he first realized the extent of the problem when strolling the Sechelt beachfront, noting many businesses were closed because they didn't have enough staff to open.
"This isn't just a Sunshine Coast problem ... This is a serious problem we need to solve," Coxford said on CBC's All Points West.
In the midst of a widespread labour shortage, many B.C. businesses have been unable to fill job openings for months.
That's where Coasters Helping Coasters comes in. The group of nine golfing friends, including Coxford, initially came together to support two coastal businesses.
The group approached the Sechelt Downtown Business Association to offer up their services and were matched with struggling businesses.
The volunteers are rolling up their sleeves and tackling four-hour shifts as servers, dishwashers, doing whatever they can to help.
WATCH | Retired seniors volunteering at restaurants that can't find staff:
According to volunteer Joe Sawer, the group now has 25 volunteers and is helping out seven restaurants.
Tanya Lapsansky, owner of PKLS Burgers, says the help has saved her business. She said that as soon as she reopened the business after closing due to COVID-19, two people immediately quit.
"It's between opening my doors and closing them. So, that's what the volunteers have done for me, they let me keep the doors open," said Lapsansky.
Lapsansky said the possibility she can help others make it through tough times by giving them employment keeps her going. She has recently hired two new staff members but said the volunteers have made getting to this point possible.
Instead of being paid for their service, Coasters Helping Coasters asked each establishment to donate their paycheques to Habitat for Humanity or the local food bank.
As of August 25, the group had raised $1,300, said Sawer.
Coxford says the volunteers are willing to lend a hand for however long it is needed but are looking forward to getting back to golfing.
"This is a temporary situation that we hope will be rectified by people coming forward and taking those jobs and we hope it's sooner than later because that's good for the economy, good for businesses, good for the community as a whole," said Coxford.
"If I can hire people, I would definitely hire them in a second," said Lapsansky.