Regional Development Australia Orana director of regional development Megan Dixon says COVID-19, the JobSeeker subsidy and a lack of migration have all contributed to the staff recruitment struggles.

"A significant factor impacting our region is that the demand of the workforce has definitely outstretched our labour supply," Mrs Dixon said.

"The labour supply is impacted by a couple of things. One of them being people choosing to stay on the JobSeeker subsidy rather than choosing to work.

"We also just don't have enough people out here to fill those positions.

"One of the things that have been interesting for us with COVID-19 is that we already knew we had labour issues, but we had been focussed on skilled labour, so qualified tradesmen, people with experience, there's been a shortage in health care for quite some while, which is one of our growing sectors as well.

"But, what has come out due to COVID is that there is a demand for unskilled workers as well."

Mrs Dixon said the hospitality industry, which had already been struggling pre-COVID, in particular, is feeling the full fleet of the lack of labour.

"The hospitality industry was already struggling pre-COVID. One of the most common applications we deal with across the region is for cooks and chefs," Mrs Dixon said.

"What we're seeing now is there's still a shortage of cooks and chefs, but the hospitality industry is also experiencing difficulty in casual labour forces. Baristas, bar staff, wait staff and cleaners in particular.

"These positions aren't generally permanent or part-time hours, they're often casual hours, which is no commitment on either side, so it becomes quite competitive in terms of attracting staff."

Mrs Dixon said they have made submissions to governments around the issues, particularly within the hospitality industry.

"We've requested a couple of things but haven't been successful as yet, but we will keep trying," she said.

Mrs Dixon says the issue is 'complexed', but RDA Orana has directed its focus on a couple of things in a bid to try and remedy the issue.

"There's a couple of things we could change, a lack of migration being one of them," she said.

"Migration is really important to this region. So we've been working on policies to appeal to city-siders.

"Some of the things we are pushing for are stronger incentives for people choosing to move into regional areas that have job growth.

"These incentives aren't only about helping people to do the move, but we need ongoing incentives around taxation and the cost of living.

"We also want to change the policies to make moving inland appeal more to those living in the city that are unemployed or finding the squeeze of the city unattainable.

"Another factor in enticing people to move from the city to rural areas is making sure there's adequate housing supply."