Weekend turmoil in Manitoba restaurants amid pandemic rules, staff shortages, association says

Restaurants in Manitoba had one of their busiest weekends in more than a year as many struggled to keep up amid staff shortages and public health restrictions brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.

"Lots of turmoil inside of restaurants and a lot of pivoting to try to change the way operators do their job," said Shaun Jeffrey, executive director of the Manitoba Restaurant & Foodservices Association.

On Friday, new public health rules came into effect requiring anyone dining in a restaurant to show proof that they are fully vaccinated. That change came shortly after the start of Le Burger Week, one of the busiest times of the year for many restaurants.

"It's definitely creating a little bit of headache and some chaos out there," said Jeffrey.

Although he hasn't heard of any specific problems from people not following the new public health orders, Jeffrey says screening customers has increased the amount of work needed simply to get people seated. 

"There's just no restaurant out there that wants to have restrictions. This is just, you know, unfortunately something that we're having to do," he said, adding that restaurant owners prefer the current rules compared to another shut down.

Complicating matters further is the fact that many restaurants are operating at half of their usual staffing levels, which Jeffrey blames on federal programs like the Canada Recovery Benefit, brought in to help workers laid off during the pandemic.

"Most industries are open, and there's still federal programs in place to pay people to stay home, and that just needs to stop because our industry … we need our staff back," Jeffrey said.

Reasons for reluctance

Kevin Rebeck, president of the Manitoba Federation of Labour, said there are a number of reasons why restaurant employees might be reluctant to return.

"I think a big part of not finding workers willing to do that work is reflective of the low pay, the lack of benefits, the health and safety risks and the unpredictability of that being stable, reliable work," he said.

Service industries like restaurants and retail stores have been forced to close multiple times during the pandemic. 

"Workers who've had to adapt, who have found other opportunities, are wondering if that's an area they want to come back to work in," Rebeck said.

The province's minimum wage — set to rise five cents to $11.95 an hour in October — doesn't pay enough for a full-time worker to live on, he said.

"There needs to be a regular calculation of what's needed to not have people who work full-time live in poverty, and our minimum wage needs to take significant steps to close that gap," he said.

Jeffrey said it's a misconception that restaurant workers are underpaid, arguing that the pay is better compared to other service sectors like retail, with opportunities to progress into management positions that pay higher wages.

The Manitoba Restaurant and Foodservices Association plans to launch a marketing campaign next week aimed at attracting workers to come back to the industry.

"We need to show Manitobans what working in the restaurant industry looks like here in Manitoba, and I think that once we do that, we're really going to see a good uptick in people trying to get back into the hospitality industry," he said.