The Hen House Cafe, a 17-year-old Pueblo West business will not be open this Mother’s Day because the restaurant is still facing hardship from the COVID-19 pandemic s toll on the restaurant.
“The number one effect, now that we are getting back to normal is I can’t hire anyone,” owner Robin Belding said. “Nobody wants a job. Unemployment has extended until September, and they are getting $300 a week so a lot of your part-time people can make more money staying home.”
Belding said the unemployment issue has caused her and her staff to work shorthanded every shift of every day. But it has also caused a trickle-down effect that the restaurant, like many others, battles in every facet of its business.