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N THE RISE AS RESTAURANTEURS BECOME DESPERATE FOR STAFF THE BATTLE IS ON FOR WORKERS BY: JOHN MATARESE

Restaurants are boosting pay to try and attract new employees: “It’s actually hard to find people” Some companies have blamed unem- ployment benefits and stimulus payments for their hiring struggles, saying some people make more staying home. As the economy rebounds, restaurants and other businesses are finding it’s hard to hire people to work right now. It’s ‘help wanted’ everywhere! “There’s tons of opportunities there, and you don’t know what might happen!” Megan Jones tells us she was stunned by how many open positions she found job hunting this spring. There are so many open- ings, companies are now boosting pay.

THE HARDEST HIT: THE RESTAURANT BUSINESS. “Everyone in our industry is hiring right now. It’s actually hard to find people to work,” restaurant owner Jose Salazar said. At the moment, he is struggling to find chefs and servers for three of his restaurants. Randy Reichelderfer is facing the same fight. “It’s frustrating,” Reichelderfer said. “You can’t get people to show up. You can’t get. You can’t hire people.” To find and keep good employees, restau- rants have to offer more and more perks these days. Chipotle said it has one of the best retention rates in the business be- cause of its college tuition reimbursement program for many of its workers.

The National Restaurant Association blames three things. First, people still afraid to work in a close restaurant environment. Sec- ond, workers switching from cooking and serving to driving for Door Dash and Uber Eats. And lastly, unemployment benefits that often exceed pay for some jobs. “In our opinion, it takes away the urgency of coming out and seeking viable employment,” John Barker said. The restaurant group hopes the worker pool expands this fall as benefits finally run out. n