DENVER — While patrons are returning to Colorado restaurants after the rollback of mask mandates and capacity restrictions, restaurateurs are having trouble finding workers, according to a survey from the Colorado Restaurant Association.

The survey, which polled 195 operators in late April and early May, found that 90% of restaurants are struggling with staffing.

According to the association, “65% of operators believe the primary hiring obstacle is workers preferring to remain on unemployment benefits.”

Back-of-house positions are the hardest to fill, restaurateurs said.

Existing workers are proving difficult to retain, in part because they are being asked to increase their workloads to make up for the overall workforce shortage. The association reported that 41% of restaurateurs are struggling with retention.

To combat this staffing issue, 95% of employers reported increasing wages, and 21% began offering benefits packages.

Of the remaining restaurant workers, 51% reported that more than half of their staffs are fully vaccinated.

According to the association, Colorado restaurants collectively lost more than $3 billion in 2020. But revenues are slowly bouncing back.

Average revenue is up 3% compared to this time last year, according to the survey.