Play Job Crunch! The game that explains Utah’s labor shortage.

In order to make a complicated issue a little easier to understand - and even a little fun - The Tribune created a game.

(Photos by Salt Lake Tribune journalists. Illustration by Chris Samuels | The Salt Lake Tribune) A collection of help wanted and now hiring signs across Salt Lake County.

By Luke Peterson

| Dec. 19, 2021, 3:07 p.m.

This story is part of The Salt Lake Tribune’s ongoing commitment to identify solutions to Utah’s biggest challenges through the work of the Innovation Lab.

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Earlier this week I wrote about Utah’s labor shortage and the question of who is to blame - Utah’s government or businesses?

I did my best to make a complex topic both easy to understand and engaging. But with some things a written story can only do so much. That’s why I created a game.

In the game you play the owner of the (fictional) Bocephus’ Burgers chain of Utah-based fast food restaurants. You have to make choices as you try to navigate the problems associated with running a business at the front-line of the labor shortage. There are many ways for the game to end badly, but I’ll let you figure that out on your own.