For an area with record unemployment, hotelier Nic Quinn can't believe how hard it is to get staff.
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"I saw that story the other day about the Hunter's highest unemployment since the pandemic started and couldn't believe it," said Quinn, part owner of a number of hotels in Maitland including The Bank, Rutherford, Windsor Castle and Bradford.
"I reckon we've got 20 jobs going and can't get people to fill them.
"I spoke to Clayton Barrett at The Imperial about it and he's in the same boat. Anecdotally we're hearing the same thing from other places. There are jobs out there if people want them."
Mr Quinn was worried that by coming forward, he may open himself up to criticism from people who are serious about looking for work.
"I don't want to upset anybody who's doing it tough - I can only speak about my industry," he said. "But across our hotels we're looking for chefs, bar attendants, cleaners, restaurant staff and managers.
"And for people who are serious, I'm letting them know we're hiring.
"The other day we had four applicants for a chef's job and not one of them turned up for their interview.
"They're not all skilled jobs either, so they're out there if people want to work."
Mr Quinn suspects in some cases the applications are coming from people who are only applying to satisfy authorities that they're actively looking for work to ensure ongoing JobSeeker payments.
In other instances, he feels people are not prepared to try something new.
"I was speaking to a flight attendant who said she just couldn't find work," he said. "When I told her about our available jobs she said 'no, I'm a flight attendant'.
"I can't imaging there's much work for flight attendants right now. People have to accept reality ... these are really strange times and you might have to try something new."
The vacant positions doesn't end around Maitland either.
Out in Wine Country there have been reports of wineries struggling to fill cellar door staff vacancies.
A quick scan of the Seek website found a number of wineries had positions available at the cellar door or in sales. These included Krinklewood, Pokolbin Estate, Petersons, Scarborough, Pepper Tree and Adina.
There were also bar staff, chef and casual cleaning positions available.
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