Labor
The Paycheck Protection Program Remains a Restaurant Lifeline
FSR Magazine 3/30
This past week, the Senate passed a bill to extend the Paycheck Protection Program’s deadline from March 31 to May 31. Doing so will offer much-needed relief to operators and other small businesses across the country hustling to get applications in.
Olive Garden Parent is Giving Employees a Pay Raise
FSR Magazine 3/29
Darden CEO Gene Lee firmly believes his employees are the heart and soul of the brand. That’s why the company is investing roughly $17 million to give one-time bonuses that will impact nearly 90,000 hourly workers at company-run restaurants. And starting Monday, tipped and non-tipped employees will earn at least $10 per hour, including tipped income. The wage will rise to $11 per hour in January 2022 and $12 per hour in January 2023.
Food Industry Policy
Seeing red? Businesses hope Fresno County COVID-19 restrictions will loosen up on Tuesday
Your Central Valley 3/29
On Tuesday, the state will update its Blueprint for Reopening and some business owners hope Fresno County will now be in the less restrictive Red Tier. The move would allow businesses such as restaurants, movie theaters, gyms, and places of worship to open at a limited capacity indoors.
Is Enough Help on the Way for Restaurants?
QSR Magazine 3/29
The Restaurant Revitalization Fund was a great start, but it’s not the end of the story.
On the Side
Can’t drive to San Francisco? The city’s restaurants are coming to you
San Francisco Chronicle 3/29
A tent on the side of a highway. A dark parking lot in an empty downtown. Inside a high-end liquor store. Outside a synagogue. These are among the sometimes nondescript locations where some of San Francisco’s most enticing restaurants are serving customers who no longer frequent the city.
Spring Break Brings Large Crowds To LA Beaches, Businesses
CBS Los Angeles 3/28
As more and more people get vaccinated and the weather warms up, large crowds are flocking to LA beaches during spring break.
