Louisiana Restaurant Association President Stan Harris who also serves on the National Restaurant Association board, says eateries continue to struggle with the COVID pandemic and they desperately need Congress to replenish the Restaurant Revitalization Fund.
“They came up with 28-billion last time, we needed another 42-billion to fill every request that was unfunded and we are going to continue that push,” said Harris.
The National Restaurant Association says 10-thousand Louisiana restaurant jobs were saved with the first round of the RRF grants and Harris says the highly contagious Omicron variant is forcing many establishments to reduce hours, seating capacity, and menu offerings.
“It’s a set of challenges, so we ask folks to please be patient, please be kind, we are doing the best we can right now,” said Harris.
Harris says staffing shortages also continue to plague the industry.
“When you look at the fact that Amazon hires 1.5 million people just for their last mile warehouse delivery that makes a real challenge for out industry that’s competing for the same worker,” said Harris.
According to a Restaurant Association Survey 98-percent of eateries that did not receive an RRF grant but applied, say future funding would enable them to retain and rehire employees.
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