Not really. You'd have to add some very contrived constraints, like: 1) There's no one currently employed elsewhere that can make widgets who you could poach f

Not really. You'd have to add some very contrived constraints, like: 1) There's no one currently employed elsewhere that can make widgets who you could poach for enough money. 2) Widget making is so specialized and / or time is so short that you can't train up another worker to fill the role. If #1 and #2 aren't possible because your margin can't cover it, then you have a failed business, not a labour shortage. So basically "labour shortage" in a market economy is a myth, usually circulated to suppress wages. Anyone who says "labour shortage" really means "not enough cheap labour".