Hiring staff a challenge for some Sudbury restaurants

Some Sudbury restaurants have had to cut their hours to adapt to a labour shortage that has affected the industry across Canada.

Peggy Sgouros, the owner of Gloria's Restaurant in Sudbury, said she had to stop serving dinner because she did not have enough staff to cover more than one shift. And hiring new people to fill those shifts has been a challenge.

"And we have like two out of 10 people showing up to the (job) interviews," she said. "Most of the time, they don't show up for their first day of work."

A report from the Centre for Policy Alternatives found that Canada's restaurant industry employed 180,000 fewer people in September 2021, when compared to February 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdowns put in place to prevent the virus from spreading, meant a lot of restaurants had to close their doors or adapt to a takeout and delivery model.

But the report found that even as restrictions have lifted, and capacity limits at restaurants have increased, many people who worked in restaurants have moved on to other industries.

Scott Florence, the executive director of the Sudbury Workers Education and Advocacy Centre, an organization that advocates for workers rights, said he was not surprised to hear thousands of workers have left the restaurant sector.

"The truth of the matter is that server work is low paying, precarious work," he said. 

"You know, the minimum wage for liquor servers is even lower than the general minimum wage, because the understanding is that the customer is actually going to make up that difference rather than the owner paying a proper minimum wage."

In Ontario, the minimum wage for liquor servers is $12.55 per hour, while the general minimum wage is $14.35 per hour.

Beyond compensation, Florence said the pandemic also created a more challenging and stressful work environment for restaurant workers.

"You're putting your health and safety at risk, which doesn't feel like a great thing to do for minimum wage," he said. 

He added the polarization around mask mandates and vaccination passports have meant some workers have faced verbal, or even physical abuse from customers who are angry about new rules.

Veronica Desjardins, the general manager of the Laughing Buddha and Townehouse Tavern restaurants in Sudbury, said she has faced challenges hiring new staff.

"We often put out an ad and don't get any applicants," she said. "It's starting to change. I definitely have noticed a few more people applying to jobs, but for the entire summer it was absolutely impossible."

To attract more job applicants, Desjardins said she has increased the pay in some roles.

She said restaurants will also need to adjust their expectations, and be more open to hiring people who are new to the industry.

"Hopefully more people will be entering the industry from scratch," Desjardins said. "And I think that's the approach we took. Normally we would hire people with experience, and this year we kind of had to train from the ground up."

It's got to be a safe space and it's got to be an inclusive space.- Mark Browning, owner, Tucos Tacos Lounge

But not all restaurants have had the same difficulties retaining and attracting workers.

Mark Browning owns Tucos Taco Lounge in Sudbury, along with Beard's Coffee Bar and Bakery and Flurple's, a small vegan ice cream shop.

He said he has been able to retain most of his staff throughout the pandemic, due to how he operates his restaurants. 

"It's got to be a safe space and it's got to be an inclusive space," Browning said. "Our kitchen gets a bigger share of the tips at Tacos than most places. So, basically the whole house splits the tips."

Browning said he also pays his servers more than the minimum wage for liquor servers.

"I'd rather have good people that stay at Tacos for a long time, because the longer they work there, the better they are," he said. "So I'm happy to pay people a bit more. But I mean, you know, there's a limit."

Because of the thin margins in the restaurant industry, Browning said he cannot pay his workers $25 per hour, for instance. 

"You can only raise your prices so much," Browning said. "Your customers are not going to pay $25 for a burrito, right?"