Janesville business owner returns from semi-retirement to help out

JANESVILLE, Wis. (WMTV) – Businesses across Wisconsin say they’re still struggling to find workers, which according to one group, is the result of a pandemic-era federal unemployment program.

The Wisconsin Manufacturers & Commerce (WMC) released a workforce report after surveying more than 250 businesses in the state. The group found 86 percent of businesses are having trouble hiring.

At Janesville’s Wedge Inn Cafe, owner Sharen Hoskins returned from semi-retirement in Florida to bus tables.

“I’m very tired, and I still have to sweep and mop the restaurant,” she said Thursday, 15 minutes until closing. “Now that everyone’s back out, we are so busy here.”

Hoskins said she stepped in because she couldn’t get the help that she has been looking for. She needs several more workers between the cafe and the pub she owns next door, but in May, she said not a single person applied.

“Everyone’s hiring, so if I have an application and send them…

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