Southern California theme parks, restaurants and other retail outlets are scrambling to fill openings as COVID-19 restrictions loosen and the summer season approaches.
Many employers, struggling to find enough workers amid a reawakening economy, are offering higher wages and incentives to lure new hires.
Raging Waters, one of the Southland’s most popular summer attractions, canceled its 2020 season over continued uncertainty surrounding COVID-19 restrictions. The San Dimas theme park is gearing up to reopen May 29 at 25% capacity.
Marketing director Al Garcia said the park is looking to hire some 600 seasonal employees, including everything from lifeguards, food and beverage workers and cabana servers to people working in maintenance, sales, marketing and other retail positions
The 60-acre park, with more than 50 slides and attractions, is midway through its hiring push.
“We recently raised our starting rate for all positions to $15 an hour,” Garcia said. “It had been $14 an hour. We’re also offering a sign-on bonus.”
That comes in the form of a family four-pack of season passes — one for themselves and three more for family or friends, providing that they get hired and complete the orientation process before May 30.
Job seekers can apply for the openings at ragingwaters.com/employment. Guests who wish to visit the park are required to make advance reservations at ragingwaters.com.
Six Flags Magic Mountain and Hurricane Harbor are looking to fill a much bigger hole. The 262-acre theme park and 25-acre water attraction need to hire an estimated 2,000 workers, according to spokesman Jerry Certonio.
“We started that in mid-March when we knew we would be reopening April 1,” he said. “And our water park will open May 15, so the hiring will continue.”
The twin attractions employ a broad demographic, including young job seekers who are in high school or college, and retirees looking to supplement their income.
“People want to work here because it’s fun and our schedules are flexible,” Certonio said. “Many employees learn skills they can take into other careers. This is a great first job.”
Select jobs pay up to $15. Those who wish to apply can visit www.sixflags.com/jobs.
Newly released figures from the state Employment Development Department show employment in Southern California’s arts, entertainment and recreation sector was down 74,000 jobs in March compared with February 2020, or 57% of pre-pandemic employment.
Restaurants were down 165,400 jobs from February 2020, or 76% of pre-pandemic employment.
On a broader scale, a hiring report from Snagajob.com shows job demand is strong across nearly all industries, with employers posting 96% more job openings nationwide than a year ago. CEO Mathieu Stevenson said many businesses are struggling to find enough workers.
“Part of it is the resurgence in hiring demand,” he said. “But it’s also because there are fewer people looking for work than before the pandemic.”
Snagajob’s research shows that 75% of hourly employees who had worked in lower-wage jobs aren’t motivated to find work because they’re receiving more money through federal stimulus and state unemployment benefits than they were while working.
“There’s also an ongoing health and safety concern of working during the pandemic,” Stevenson said. “When asked what their biggest concerns were, that ranked equal to employee benefits.”
Struggling to find employees
Marie Callenders Restaurant & Bakery is struggling to find people to fill its openings, according to John Bowler, vice president of operations.
“Hiring is very difficult,” he said. “There aren’t a lot of applicants. That’s a problem we’re seeing throughout the industry. It’s a very tight market.”
Marie Callender’s operates 30 restaurants. Most are in California, although three locations are in Nevada and one in Utah.
“We need at least two to five people at each location,” Bowler said. “Some of our franchisees haven’t been able to open their dining rooms yet because they’re having trouble finding people.”
Information about job openings at Marie Callender’s locations can be found at www.job-applications.com/marie-callenders-job-application/.
A new report from One Fair Wage, a national nonprofit representing tipped sub-minimum wage workers, finds that 53% are considering leaving their restaurant jobs, with the overwhelming majority citing low wages and tips as a core reason for seeking new employment.
Snagajob’s study said fast-food restaurant openings are down 30% from pre-pandemic norms. That’s because they’re still operating at limited capacity and have been gradually taking on more workers as restrictions are rolled back, a company representative said.
Conversely, openings for warehouse and logistics jobs are up a whopping 189% as a result of a massive surge in e-commerce buying. Sales at brick-and-mortar stores have taken a dive during the pandemic, as leery shoppers have opted to stay away from crowded places for fear of contracting the virus.
A job fair at the mall
Businesses at The District at Tustin Legacy outdoor mall are also looking to hire. Mall management held a job fair on Thursday, May 6 at the AMC Fountain Courtyard, 2437 Park Ave. with more than 20 retailers participating.
They included the AMC Tustin 14 theater, Claire’s Boutique, Ike’s Love & Sandwiches, Lucille’s BBQ, Milano Shoes, Nothing Bundt Cakes and The Winery Restaurant, among others.
Shannon Campbell, the mall’s marketing director, said the need to fill openings is acute.
“Everything across the entire state will be opening up at once,” she said. “This is unprecedented. All of these businesses need to bring people back.”
Campbell said The District has fared better than many retail outlets because roughly 70% of its tenants have been considered essential businesses under California’s COVID-19 guidelines and have remained open during the pandemic.
Still, she admits restaurants have taken a hit.
“I’ve heard that from outside The District as well,” Campbell said. “But we have very loyal restaurant employees, so we’re lucky with that.”
Business expansion
In other cases, hiring is related to expansion.
Clothing giant Burlington Stores is looking to fill more than 100 full-time positions at a new distribution center that will be opening May 17 in Riverside. The nearly 900,000-square-foot facility will be equipped with the latest pallet technology and will be one of the company’s largest facilities.
Burlington will hold a hiring event from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday, May 13 at the new facility, at 21600 Cactus Ave. First- and second-shift openings are available for full-time warehouse workers and supervisors, and job offers will be made on the spot.
Base wages will range from $16 to $18 an hour and the positions include health benefits, a 401(k) plan, flexible shift choices and opportunities for performance-based bonuses.
Staff writer Jonathan Lansner contributed to this report.
