Originally Posted by
YVR Cockroach
It's not just fast food but sitdown dining of any calibre.
Definitely not been my experience here over the last few months. We've actually had several very nice experiences. We moved into our current home right as COVID begun, so it took us two years to discover a few nice restaurants in our area, but they've all been good experiences in 2022. But the restaurant industry is strong and generally pays pretty well in the Chicago area. I suspect there are still staffing issues at lower-paying jobs, just based on the lines I see at the grocery stores due to only one cashier working. On a side note, I've also read a couple of articles claiming that restaurants in Chicago are having problems attracting customers as they did pre-COVID. I assume that puts some pressure on restaurant management as well, in terms of how to staff.
Originally Posted by
YVR Cockroach
I read somewhere earlier this year that restaurant owners have to keep their poor performing staff otherwise they might as well just close up as there won't be anyone else to work. Pre-COVID, people who could "swing a hammer kind of straight" were being hired. Now they just have to be able to swing if not just hold a hammer.
This makes a lot of sense. So many experienced workers left and are likely being replaced with true entry-level employees -- in some ways it's the nature of the business, a lot of restaurant jobs are staffed by high school and college students. But to your point, it may not be the cream of the crop any more. I know that around us, many parents made their teens quit their jobs for fear of COVID. The talent pool probably isn't full.