Let's talk about the restaurant "employee shortage" shall we?

To start, there is no restaurant employee shortage. Employees would actually love to come back to work, but here's the thing...

It's a no brainer that people now have more money on unemployment than they do going to their restaurant job everyday. (me included) That's a problem IN ITSELF but I'll get to that later.

Restaurant employees aren't going back to work because they now (some for the 1st time in a long time) have a CONSISTENT FLOW OF INCOME that they can RELY on. Read that 2x.

They can pay their bills, catch up on bills, feed their kids, catch their breathe on having to work 2 restaurant jobs a day(my old life) Their shifts are not being cut; dinner service isn't slow; they don't have to hear.."hey I didn't put you on the schedule this week"

They don't have to "pick up as many brunch shifts as I can cus rent is due next week" This is the reality of restaurant employees (again, myself included)
Restaurant money is never consistent, no matter what you do. Hence the living wage convo.

Safety is another major issue for restaurant employees. How is my restaurant job keeping me, an employee safe from Covid? Bleach ain't it. If customers aren't getting vaccinated, a restaurant employee has to double worry.

And while getting vaxxed is a personal choice, the restaurant employee has to make a choice too. Now as a restaurant employee, I'm giving up money to go back to work at the SAME PAY RATE b4 Covid, I have a high chance of getting covid...

we are short staffed so I'm doing the work of 2 people & customers are dining out more so we are getting busy. And I can't ask for a raise right now b/c we JUST opened back up after being closed for 6+ months.

Yea, unemployment is actually amazing.