Turning Restaurant Staffing Challenges Into Opportunities

As Americans reach for a potential post-pandemic world, the restaurant industry continues to reel from two years of economic, staffing and supply chain chaos. Of these, one of the biggest challenges facing independent, franchised and fast-casual restaurants is staffing. 

According to the 2022 State of the Restaurant Industry report from the National Restaurant Association, more than half of restaurant operators believe it will be a year or more before business conditions return to normal, with one of the dominant factors being labor costs. A recent article in The New York Times cited a 5.7-percent increase in average US hourly wages in 2021, specifically noting a rapid rise in wages for leisure and hospitality workers. Increased labor costs, in combination with other economic factors, are adding tremendous pressure to an industry whose recovery remains both tenuous and emergent. 

Communicate BetterFacing multiple headwinds, restaurant owners and management must employ the most…