Rhiannon Druce, the general manager of Junee Licorice and Chocolate Factory, said that in previous years she would get 600 to 700 resumes when they posted a job ad.

"Now we're lucky if we get 10, and only one might show up for the interview," she said.

"We're noticing with COVID, people are tired, people are drained by lockdown ... some people post-JobKeeper chose not to come back to work," she said.

"The government is putting a lot of money and effort into people doing their own start-ups which is really beneficial for the economy, but it's meaning that there's only so many people in a regional population [to work]."

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The lack of students in the area also affected her workforce, as has the lack of backpackers coming through for their regional work.

The co-owner of Meccanico and Pastorale Richard Moffat has also struggled for staff over the last 18 months, a problem he said he didn't encounter pre-pandemic. He currently employs 45 people across two businesses, but he estimates that he actually needs closer to 60.

"Forward bookings are looking really good for March, we're starting to see more functions starting to come back ... there's just more things coming back," he said.

"Which means more bums on seats, but when we've got bums on seats we need people to service them and to cook for them. We really need more staff in our venues."

The Licorice and Chocolate Factory is currently running with just under 40 staff at present, down from pre-pandemic levels of 60 staff, and Ms Druce worries that her current roster is stretched to the limit.

"The longevity of the situation right now is not sustainable ... if we run through Easter like this and even trickle into June/July school holidays, then I think it would end up having an effect on our staff currently here," she said. "They might say 'I can get a desk job somewhere that's not as draining on me'."

Katie Pastro, from Yarran Wines in Griffith, said that while COVID has exposed staffing issues for many businesses, these problems have always existed in regional areas. And this can make growing a small business incredibly difficult.

"We have an even bigger struggle out here in Griffith because we aren't near a uni, so our pool is even smaller," she said.

"There is that thing with building something and trying to build something when you don't have enough staff power to execute it."

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