Chris Beck, a 911 operator, navigates multiple screens while dispatching emergency personnel.

Butler County's jobless rate sits a full percentage point higher than it was before COVID-19 arrived in the United States.

Despite that, employers are scurrying to find workers in a manner not seen in some time.

The response from businesses has been to increase wages, diversify benefits and become creative with recruiting employees, said Jordan Grady, executive director of the Butler County Chamber of Commerce.

There's not one universal solution. Some companies already offer competitive wages and benefit packages, needing only to better advertise openings, while others may have “help wanted” signs, but need to better entice applicants to choose their company, Grady continued.

And much as there isn't one solution on the business side, there isn't one cause for workers to be pickier, hold out longer or leave their current employer for another.

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Chris Beck, a 911 operator, navigates multiple screens while dispatching emergency personnel. Nathan Bottiger/Butler Eagle