Jasper, Alta., tourism expected to rebound this summer, but businesses struggle to find workers

As the general manager of the Jasper SkyTram, Todd Noble has a great view of the Rocky Mountains. Despite that perk, he's having trouble attracting employees. 

Noble typically needs to bring on up to 40 staff during the summer; this year, he's still searching for up to 15 employees to work at the business that takes guests in the small Alberta town up the side of the mountain in a tram car.

And that could be a problem — while pandemic restrictions reduced attendance the last few years, this summer, Noble said he's expecting to see pre-pandemic tourist levels of 150,000 to 160,000 guests.

"The frustration comes in where you've taken the time to recruit, you've taken the time to set up the interview, you've had the interview and then it just all seems to fall apart."

The problem is not an isolated one. Trevor Bamsey owns Rocky Mountain Collective, a cannabis shop in Jasper.

Right now, he needs between eight and 10 employees for his Jasper location; a "we're hiring" sign is kept up all the time.

"We're always looking for new applicants," he said. "We're fully staffed right now, but that changes on a whim … They're coming and going quite a bit."

Bamsey said the situation takes a toll.

"The time and the effort and the money that we put into training a great employee — and then all of a sudden, they're just gone, like that."

Evy Mermingis, the manager of Bright Spot Family Restaurant, is looking for at least three servers and one cook. 

She hasn't taken a vacation since before the pandemic because employees have been hard to find, so she works constantly.

"Seven days a week. Probably 10 to 12 hours a day, 16 in the summer."

Bamsey and Mermingis said that despite the worker shortage, they will continue to run their businesses as best they can, but acknowledge that trying to compensate for not having all the employees they need can be demanding.

"I've been doing it a very long time so I'm pretty used to it," Mermingis said. "But it does take a toll on you for sure."