Labor Still An Issue For Restaurants

Nation's Restaurant News annual Operation Survey found that operators are worried about finding and keeping employees

SPONSOREDUpdated 10:10AM • 03/31/16

The restaurant industry is experiencing unprecedented growth, but it still faces a number of challenges, one of which being high labor costs. Nation’s Restaurant News annual Operation Survey found that labor-related issues will be among the biggest challenges facing operators in 2016.

The brand surveyed nearly 300 participants and approximately half of them said the top challenge they face is hiring and keeping quality employees. Twenty-seven percent said a minimum wage increase will be a road block and 10 percent said healthcare costs would be an issue.

“It’s the workforce perfect storm,” Joni Thomas Doolin, founder and CEO of restaurant analytics firm TDn2K, told Nation's Restaurant News. “It’s a very challenging environment.”

These issues come at a time when brands are facing pushback from the National Labor Relations Board regarding whether some companies are joint employers and government rules about minimum wage.

While the restaurant industry added 40,000 jobs in February, many operators are still worried about finding people they can hire. A report from TDn2K found that 74 percent of operators are either “very concerned” or “extremely” concerned about recruitment.

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