Dirty Dishes
Posted on 04-Mar-10 by The Timekeeper
The Chicagoland Restaurant Industry Coalition, a group of academics, workers rights advocates, unions, and restaurant owners and employees brought together by the Restaurant Opportunities Center of Chicago, has released a report entitled Behind the Kitchen Door: The Hidden Costs of Taking the Low Road in Chicagoland’s Thriving Restaurant Industry.
According to their report, a living wage (pay that would allow a worker to support him/herself and a family without government assistance) is about $16.48 an hour. Unfortunately, more than 80% of restaurant workers in the Chicago metropolitan area reportedly make less than $10 an hour, with workers at fast food joints — the lowest-paying among all the different restaurant types — averaging only about $9 a hour.
The report also noted a majority of workers reported minimum wage and overtime violations, health and safety issues and other serious legal violations at the restuarants where they work, while more than a quarter reported working “off the clock” without pay.
While a majority of restaurateurs interviewed for the report say they want to offer better pay and benefits to their employees, for whatever reason they don’t actually do it. Ironically, they also cite “high turnover” as one of the major problems plaguing their industry. One wonders if it’s ever occurred to any of them that if they put their money where their mouths are on this issue, they might be able to reduce their turnover rate… which would, in turn, reduce their costs and allow them to make more profit?
For instance, Mike Romano, restaurant and beverage director of the East Bank Club — where employees get health insurance, paid sick days, no-interest loans to help with family emergencies and a living wage — has noted their turnover rate is only about 13%. This is spectacular in an industry where some businesses experience as high as 100% turnover every few months. Not only do they have an amazing turnover rate, but they’re also making a profit, even though they offer all those benefits to their employees.
What should probably be pretty disturbing for restaurant customers, though, is the news that cooks, servers and busboys consistently come to work sick, because fewer than 10% of them have paid sick days or employer-provided health insurance. Ewwww. Just ewwww. If basic fairness isn’t enough to convince people to start putting pressure on restaurant owners to treat their employees fairly, the issue of customer health should be.
It’s not just Chicago, of course. The U.S. DOL and many state employment commissions and labor departments have identified restaurants — among other historically low-paying industries — as targets for increased scrutiny going forward. So if you have a restaurant, even if it’s not in Chicago, might be a good idea to make sure you’re doing right by your people.
So what do you think? As a restaurant owner, can you offer at least some of these benefits and pay good wages and still make a profit? As a restaurant customer, how do you feel about the way restaurant workers are treated? Are you concerned about getting ill from workers coming in when they’re sick because they can’t afford to stay away from work?
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