Raising the bar

Posted: Saturday, Jul 19, 2008 - 08:10:31 pm PDT
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By ALECIA WARREN
Staff writer 

SHAWN GUST/Press Allie Stone, 16, a Hot Rod Cafe hostess, makes changes to a seating chart Friday during her shift in Post Falls. Rob Elder, owner of the restaurant, starts entry-level hires at 50 cents above minimum wage as a way of attracting applicants.

While an increase in minimum wage takes effect, business owners already offer employees more to compete with neighboring states and businesses for a withering young workforce

COEUR d'ALENE -- The crowds aren't what to watch out for while peddling concessions at Silverwood Theme Park, advises Jessica Spraktes, though she's labored for hungry hordes every day since she started at the park in May. The real nightmare of full-time fast food is rare but memorable, and makes her nose wrinkle and mouth twist just to speak the words: "sewage backup."

But why would a sprightly 16-year-old work anywhere else? Spraktes not only rakes in wages above minimum wage despite her entry level position, but also scores free park tickets for friends, has flexible hours, and collects corporate gifts for consistent work. If she returns next summer, she automatically lands a 25 cent raise.

As long as her parents keep telling her to pay for her own shopping sprees, there's "no question" she'll work here every summer, Spraktes vows.

"It's awesome," she says.

With incentives like that, why would it matter that Idaho's minimum wage is scooting up to $6.55 from $5.85 an hour next Tuesday?

Well, it won't.

Most employers will read about the minimum wage increase and roll their eyes. Most already offer their staffs at least 45 cents more an hour than the jump will require, and often supplement paychecks with other incentives to keep employees feeling cozy in their positions.

That's because wages aren't just about compensation anymore, at least not in North Idaho. They're about competing to lure in the thinning herds of teenagers available for entry level positions, essential for the manufacturing and service industries dominating the local economy.

More important, minimum wage doesn't stand a chance against the rocketing cost of living.

"I think minimum wage should be at least $8 an hour, just to afford to drive to work," said Bobbie Kelley, general manager at the Shilo Inn in Coeur d'Alene. Starting wage at the Inn is $7 an hour, and Kelley predicted the establishment would never retain employees otherwise as gas and food prices continue to soar. "Seven dollars is the minimum of what people can make to make it worth their while to work."

That phenomenon is spreading beyond Idaho and throughout the rest of the country as minimum wage remains too low to compete with inflation, said Kathryn Tacke, regional economist for the state Department of Labor. North Idaho employers also feel more pressure to raise wages as they compete with jobs in Washington, enticing dish washers and cashiers with $8.07 an hour, the highest minimum wage in the country.

Kootenai County is also in the midst of a painful growth spurt. Non-farm jobs have grown 22.2 percent over the past four years, Tacke said, about four times faster than the rest of the nation.

Such rapid growth spurs an equally strong need for labor, and with the inundation of new opportunities in manufacturing, tourism, call centers, health care and construction, employers are sparring for quality help.

"Part of it, too, is simply that there are fewer young workers entering the labor force than in the past," Tacke said. "There are a lot of baby boomers who will be retiring over the next 20 years, and there will be a lot more competition for workers because we have a smaller group of young folks coming in and a large group of older folks moving out."

Silverwood Theme Park put itself in the lead last fall when it distributed questionnaires to more than 500 teenagers at three county high schools. Aimed at rooting out teenagers' priorities, questions included "how far is too much of a commute?" and "what motivates you to work?"

The answer: Money.

The company now offers $7 an hour starting pay to employees 16 and older. For the month of July, when crowds are surging and temperatures sizzling, the park automatically boosts wages to $7.50 an hour. For the month of August, wages rise to $8 an hour.

"In August, teenagers start thinking, 'do I really want to work more hours, or do I need more time to play before school starts?'" said Nancy DiGiammaro, Silverwood marketing director. "This has made us able to hold them through that crucial time in the season for us when we need them the most."

Managers also dangle flexible hours that can work around music rehearsals or team sport practices. Workers accumulate points for good behavior they can later exchange at the park store for movie tickets, Visa gift cards or a new iPod.

"Our goal is to make a great work experience so that yes, you come here to work and do a job, but we also do a lot of extra things for them that would be fun," DiGiammaro said.

The Pita Pit, which has its flagship store on Sherman Avenue in Coeur d'Alene, also promises more than a steady paycheck to keep people rolling pitas, even with a starting wage of $7 an hour.

One perk to keeping the apron tied: All the free pitas employees can eat.

"Believe it or not, that's a surprisingly big draw for the teenagers and 18- to 22-year-olds we have," said Peter Riggs, vice president of corporate development for Pita Pit. "A lot of them like to eat here to begin with, and if they have a job, earn paychecks and get to eat at Pita Pit for free, that's a nice bonus for them."

The business also tries to maintain a fun work environment, he added, with corporate representatives dropping by on a daily basis to chat with the staff and compliment employees on their work.

"We let them know we appreciate what they're doing, and that starts to boost morale," he said.

A line snaked out the Pita Pit door during lunch hour on Friday. After sliding a sandwich across the counter, Joseph Lanker, 16, grinned and said even with the crowds, he wouldn't work anywhere else.

"All the people here are just really personable, the environment is great," Lanker said. He particularly appreciates how throughout the seven months he's worked there, his manager has kept his schedule flexible around school and other activities. "The free food is huge -- we get to keep our 'mess-up' sandwiches," he added.

Riggs couldn't predict if the Pita Pit would raise wages to continue floating high above minimum wage, a decision to be made later, depending on market trends.

But Rob Elder, owner of Hot Rod Cafe in Post Falls, grimly anticipated that next Tuesday's wage increase would definitely affect his finances.

Only about 40 of his employees earn an hourly wage -- the rest are on tip incomes -- and he's keen on luring the best employees by offering at least 50 cents more than minimum wage.

Right now, most dish washers and other entry level positions start at $7, which he'll have to raise soon to ensure that those soapy sinks stay appealing.

"Politicians think that by raising the minimum wage, everyone will have more money to have on enjoyment and leisure and life," Elder said. "But when business owners' costs go up, what can you do? You pass them on. So when they raise minimum wage, I'm just going to have to sell cheeseburgers for more money."

Entry level workers won't be the only ones expecting a raise, he added.

"Take a prep person, which is a middle level kitchen position -- they're making $7 to $8 an hour," Elder said. "All of a sudden, when minimum wage is bumped up to $6.55, it doesn't look like they're making that much more, so you've got to bump them up, too. It kind of escalates."

Businesses will feel this more sharply on July 24, 2009, when the state raises minimum wage again to $7.25 an hour, Tacke predicted.

Employees should be grateful for their bosses' efforts to offer higher wages and extra incentives, she added, as anyone earning minimum wage would barely be able to scrape out a survival, let alone a living.

"For an individual to live on $6.55 would be a pretty miserable existence," Tacke said. "It would be difficult to meet just basic needs for food, transportation, clothing and a place to live. I'm not sure anyone could do it without living on assistance from family, other sources of income or food stamps."