By Francis Meuse
The nationwide pandemic forced
the permanent closure of more than 100,000 restaurants, while hundreds of
thousands of others are in serious financial troubles.
This has led to millions of
workers to lose their jobs and others asked to work in unsafe conditions.
The restaurant industry has
predicted a 225 billion dollar loss, according to the National Restaurant
Association. These numbers have affected a wide range of workers, from students
trying to make part time money, to full time workers relying on a steady
paycheck to support themselves and families.
Lou Giovanetti, owner of Charcoal
Guido’s in Waltham, Massachusetts, said his Italian restaurant was hit hard.
“There’s a thin line of margin in
the restaurant business,” said Giovanetti.
He decided to close dine-in
eating at Charcoal Guido’s due to the state lockdown. “Our staff went from 27
workers to only four workers,” said Giovanetti.
The restaurant plans to use the
“hibernation” phase during the incoming winter months.
The hibernation plan is a strategic way to
keep restaurants operating, while keeping them from losing money. “This
includes high margin foods, take out only, and limited menu sizes,” said
Giovanetti.
“We never know what’s going
to happen next, since the governor could decide to go back into lockdown at any
time,” said Giovanetti. Those in the restaurant industry have tried to do many
things to make up for the loss of revenue during the lockdown.
One idea includes outdoor
dining for restaurants, which Charcoal Guido’s decided against, even though
other restaurants on Moody Street created outdoor dining areas for those who
choose to go out.
“An outdoor dining area can
cost restaurants more than $20,000 to run,” said Giovanetti. Tables, chairs,
umbrellas, gas tanks, and heating tanks are all factors that need to be paid
for when creating outdoor dining.
“Poor weather can cause the
whole outdoor dining operation to get ruined for a night, or even longer
depending on the weather,” said Giovanetti. Many owners ask if outdoor dining
is worth their businesses time.
Governor Baker announced new
executive orders on reopening due to the rising Covid-19 cases in Massachusetts
on the morning of October 29th. “There are many more important decisions us
restaurant owners will be forced to make over the next few months,” said
Giovanetti.
Although many dine-in
restaurants are struggling to re-open, the fast food and primary take out spots
have rebounded at a much quicker pace.
The convenience of picking up
quick food, without having to come in contact with other individuals, has been
viewed as a factor for this.
Kevin McAvoy, part time
worker at BnF Pizza, saw his hours increase. “Take out restaurants make it easy
for people to get food without having to worry about cooking or coming in
contact with the virus,” said McAvoy.
“We didn’t have to worry about
laying off workers, instead hours were cut for a period of time,” said McAvoy.
Unlike many major restaurants in Waltham and around Massachusetts, sub shops
and fast food places have been able to see the growth of their companies over
the past few months.
According to The Wall Street journal,
fast food restaurants and pizza shops have seen sales grow between 10% and 20%
during the Pandemic. The advantage of having mobile apps, drive-thru services,
and quick store pickups has helped the industry surge over recent months.
David Ellison, a sixteen year
old high school student, said the Coronavirus Pandemic has impacted him along
with other members of his family. As a bus boy at Tuscan kitchen, Ellison has
relied on a part time paycheck over the last year and a half.
“Ever since I got the job at Tuscan
kitchen, I have been able to pay for things on my own without the help of my
parents,” said Ellison. A three month government lockdown, left workers from
waiters and waitresses, to host and bus boys their jobless.
“Over 20 workers, including my
mother, were told we would not be working for a while,” Ellison said.
This caused uncertainty in
Ellison’s household. “Our family struggled for a bit considering the
circumstances, but my parents were able to bounce back after a while,” Ellison
said.
Although his mother received
unemployment benefits, Ellison did not. “My age and the amount of time I was
able to work, made it difficult for me to collect any sort of unemployment
payment,” Ellison said.
“The virus has caused this
problem for millions of people around the world, but I hope a possible second
lockdown doesn’t cost my job again,” said Ellison.
Ellison and other restaurants
workers rely on tips and other payments week to week. “Another lockdown would
be hard for my family to deal with,” said Ellison.
His mother, Collette Ellison,
worked as a waitress at the Tuscan Kitchen for the last 13 years.
“As waitresses, we rely on building
relationships with our customers,” she said. Although, the pandemic has forced
her and other workers to be more cautious and more distant from those in the
restaurant.
“restrictions on the number of
customers allowed in my work has created less opportunity and chances to work,”
she said.
Due to the pandemic, the
restaurant industry has been required to make changes over the past six months
and faced new rules by the government to reopen.
These
restrictions included a limit on the number of people allowed in one area at a
time, including a six person per table limit, disposables menus, and the number
of workers allowed inside.