ORLANDO, Fla. — Despite business owners saying they’re struggling to hire new employees, many job seekers say their search for work is anything but easy.

Nancy Phillips said she has filled out more than 100 job applications since October with no luck.

Phillips built a near 30-year career as a bartender, juggling multiple jobs until the COVID-19 pandemic hit in March 2020.

“Those two jobs just hit the skids with the pandemic,” Phillips said.  “Everything shut down.”

“I have heard virtually nothing,” Phillips said.

Like many job seekers, Phillips said potential employers were silent, leaving her to wonder why she spent months applying to jobs without getting anywhere. Was she overqualified? Not young enough?

Phillips, like many job seekers, have illustrated a long and exhausting road to finding new employment.

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Finding few leaders, Phillips started taking courses as she considered leaving the hospitality industry and making a move into residential property management.

“It felt stable,” Phillips said.

A few weeks ago, Phillips managed to land a job bartending at the re-branded Anthony’s Pizza in Orlando’s College Park.

“I got lucky, they took a chance bringing somebody overqualified,” Phillips said.

Aurela Broqi, manager at Anthony’s Pizza in College Park, said since opening the family restaurant in October, it’s been difficult keeping employees on staff.

“We would train them for a few weeks, then for some reason they would not feel like the job is for them so they’d end up leaving,” Broqi said.

The restaurant is still trying to fill several roles, including cashier, server and delivery driver positions.

Pay ranges from $5.50 per hour plus tips for servers to $11 an hour for the cashier.

While the changing job market is putting pressure on employers to pay more and offer additional incentives and benefits, some companies say they simply can’t afford to pay more.

The changing dynamics — with both employers and employees finding their own challenges in the new market — is what led Phillips to the restaurant in the first place.

“I think everybody is feeling it on all sides, and they’re taking a chance here,” Phillips said. “Everyone out there has to start thinking from ground zero,” Phillips said. “Don’t think about how it used to be. Think about this moment forward. Don’t worry about training someone new. There are a lot of people out there with the drive.”

Phillips was hired at Anthony’s Pizza despite being up front about her experience and her desire to potentially move if a higher-paying or more stable job comes along.

“We call pretty much everybody,” Broqi said. “Whatever the experience is, we’re willing to work with you.”

A UCF student herself, Broqi juggles classes, another part-time job related to her field of study and helping to manage the family’s restaurant. Looking beyond the resume and long-term commitment has proven to be a win-win for her and employees, she said.

Broqi is hopeful Phillips will stick around.

Phillips’ situation is not unique, either.

In an economy anchored by tourism, where many people have years of experience in hospitality, many are finding new jobs easier said than done.

“Anthony’s Pizza was the first place to call me after about 150 applications, and I got hired on the spot,” Antoinette Richardson said.

Richardson’s family moved to Orlando from New Orleans just before the pandemic. Her husband accepted a chef’s job at one of the area theme parks, and while his income was not impacted during the pandemic, Richardson said she found little work.

“I wasn’t getting any callbacks, it was depressing,” Richardson said.

Eager to get back to work, Richardson said she hopes more employers will give even the most seasoned job seekers simply the chance to prove themselves.

“It’s very frustrating because there are so many jobs out there and people applying. No one wants to stay on unemployment,” Richardson said. “Hiring managers will find overqualified people you finally give a chance to are going to work harder than any other person.”