wellesenterprises/Getty Images
- Michigan State University said it had shut dining halls to the public because of the labor shortage.
- MSU also said it planned to slash opening hours of two cafeterias and two Starbucks outlets.
- It had "severe staffing shortages," it said, and was competing for workers with local businesses.
- See more stories on Insider's business page.
The labor shortage has forced Michigan State University (MSU) to close its dining halls to the public and slash the opening hours of two cafeterias.
The university said in a statement last week that it had "severe staffing shortages" in its culinary services team. The university said its residential dining halls would remain open only for people with MSU-issued ID cards.
Two cafeterias in student halls on campus and two Starbucks outlets in the university would reduce their opening hours, it said.
The changes went into effect on 24 September.
The university said that some of the changes could remain throughout the fall semester. The college said it was "competing for the same available talent" as local businesses.
The news comes as many businesses across the US say they're struggling to find staff because of the labor shortage. Some say that people don't want to work anymore - but workers say they're quitting their jobs for better pay, more benefits, and improved working conditions.
MSU described the decision as a difficult one, but said it would reduce the impact of both labor and food shortages.
MSU told ABC Detroit on Friday that its culinary services team needed about 470 full-time workers, 2,800 student workers, and 800 temporary and on-call employees to be fully operational. It did not say how many staff members it was short of.
The team dwindled when students returned home after in-person classes stopped in 2020, MSU told ABC Detroit. The student workers picked up jobs elsewhere, and hadn't come back, leaving gaps in the workforce, MSU added.
MSU didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from Insider.
