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Restaurants Say They Are Having Trouble Finding Enough Staff for This Summer

Anne's Kitchen outdoor dining area
Jo Ingles
/
Statehouse News Bureau
Anne's Kitchen in Powell is one restaurant that is accommodating the COVID-19 pandemic by creating an outdoor dining area. But according to the Ohio Restaurant Association, many restaurants and bars are finding it difficult to hire staff to keep up with the expected increase in customers this summer.

Ohio’s restaurant and bar owners are saying they expect business to pick up this summer. But they are worried about having enough employees to handle the business. 

Ohio Restaurant Association President John Barker says restaurant and bar owners are telling him they’re having a hard time trying to hire enough staff to deal with the expected return of customers this summer. 

“We cannot talk to an operator who says they are not having trouble hiring people right now," he said.

Barker says, in many cases, low pay is not the issue. He says lots of bar and restaurant employees are paid far more than minimum wage. And he says many business owners simply cannot afford to pay employees more without raising menu prices to offset the costs, thereby making their businesses uncompetitive and unsustainable. 
Copyright 2021 The Statehouse News Bureau. To see more, visit The Statehouse News Bureau.

Jo Ingles
Jo Ingles is a professional journalist who covers politics and Ohio government for the Ohio Public Radio and Television for the Ohio Public Radio and Television Statehouse News Bureau. She reports on issues of importance to Ohioans including education, legislation, politics, and life and death issues such as capital punishment.