Thousands of New Orleans business owners are struggling to find housing for workers.
Almost two months after Hurricane Katrina, many companies remain shuttered for the sole reason that their employees have nowhere to live, the New Orleans Times-Picayune reported.
Others are running at a fraction of their usual staff while they wait for Federal Emergency Management Agency's temporary housing program to assign them trailers. Still others have tried to make it on their own, signing master leases on apartments or setting up small trailer cities on company property.
Companies that have tried to attract new workers say it's virtually impossible, even with signing bonuses, benefits and hourly wages that have increased, in some cases, by double-digit percentages.
FEMA's trailer program applies only to workers who have lost use of their homes. New workers from undamaged areas don't qualify. The region's remaining rentals also are either booked up or out of reach for new laborers, the newspaper said.
© Copyright 2005 by United Press International
