Are we having fun yet?

Issue 8.05

February 4, 2022

A Framework for the Future

Members of the State Chamber’s Employer Advocacy Committee met last week for their first meeting of the year. The committee was joined by Secretary of Labor Karryl Hubbard, who gave an update on the Department of Labor (DOL), sharing their policy priorities and current projects. Late last year, the DOL composed a list of five goals or pillars known as the Department of Labor Framework for the Future. Read more >

"Currently there’s around 19,000 active jobs posted on Delaware JobLink

for candidates to research and apply to and about 9,000 resumes for employers to find candidates." - Barry Butler, DE Dept. of Labor

Are We Having Fun Yet?

They say this is one of those good problems. Off-the-chart sales growth can certainly be great. But lack of raw materials and a once-in-a-generation labor shortage are making me wonder, are we having fun yet?

The Delaware beach restaurants had the busiest year on record in 2021. Hundreds of retirees are moving to coastal Delaware weekly and thousands of second homeowners came to their beach houses and stayed. Business at the beach is definitely booming for hotels, restaurants, retail stores, breweries, and entertainment venues. Read more >

"Although this makes the pandemic seem all but over, we’re still feeling the long-term consequences. Supply chain disruptions and labor shortages are threatening to make even the most experienced operators question their life choices." - Scott Kammerer, SoDel Concepts

GUESTS ARE BACK. HOTELS ARE NOT.

SHORTAGES ARE MAKING IT HARDER

FOR THE HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY

Article by The Wall Street Journal

At the Bellmoor Inn & Spa in coastal Delaware, general manager Benjamin Gray planned to welcome back some longtime VIP guests for their 160th stay at the property since it opened 20 years ago. As a perk, the hotel provides a memory-foam mattress topper for the Virginia couple’s visits and Mr. Gray ordered a new one last summer. By the time the couple arrived for their New Year’s Eve stay, nearly six months later, the mattress topper hadn’t been delivered. Read more >

DESPITE SUPPLY CHAIN ISSUES, SHOPPERS 'WON'T GO HOME EMPTY-HANDED'

Everywhere you look now, stories are being written about supply chain disruptions. Many are asking what the impact of these disruptions will be for retailers. Will there be products on store shelves or available online when consumers want them? Will the disruptions lead to higher prices for consumers?

These are certainly the right questions to ask. Supply chain disruptions happen all the time. However, we have never seen disruptions of the degree and duration we are witnessing today. Read more >

RETHINKING RETAIL

STATE CHAMBER RELAUNCHES THE DELAWARE RETAIL COUNCIL

For retailers, the customer is king. For us at the State Chamber, our members are king. This is why we’re renewing our focus on supporting retailers.

In 2021, the Delaware Retail Council—an affiliate of the Delaware State Chamber of Commerce and National Retail Federation—met for the first time in several years to discuss the issues retailers are facing and discover opportunities in which the State Chamber could help improve the retail climate in Delaware. Read more >