Restaurants Worry About Their Future in Coming Months
2021-12-23
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1Restaurant owners in the United States and Britain are worried about the future of their industry.
2Their reasons for concern include a labor shortage, high food costs and the Omicron version of the new coronavirus.
3In November, the U.S. Census Bureau said that sales at restaurants and drinking places, or bars, in the United States reached an estimated $73.7 billion.
4That is an increase of 37 percent over the same month last year.
5But, the increase was partly the result of higher prices as restaurants try to deal with the cost of inflation.
6Many restaurant owners are concerned about the future of the industry in the coming months.
7Caroline Glover is the owner of the restaurant Annette near Denver, Colorado.
8Glover described her feelings as "extremely worried."
9She added, "I've never felt like we were out of the woods."
10Out of the woods is an expression that means out of danger.
11Glover worries about renewed restrictions if coronavirus infections increase.
12For other businesses, the main concern is finding enough workers.
13In a recent study of 3,000 U.S. restaurant operators, 77 percent said they did not have enough workers.
14That information comes from the National Restaurant Association, an industry trade group.
15Many restaurant workers have started new careers or have gone back to school.
16Jada Sartor of Grand Rapids, Michigan, said her pay increased from $10 an hour to $16 an hour this year as restaurants tried to employ more workers.
17But she recently quit her serving job because she could not find child care that she was able to pay for.
18"The cost of living is just so high you can't afford to really live," she said.
19Kristin Jonna is the owner of the restaurant Vinology in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
20She said she raised pay nearly 40 percent to get and keep her 35 workers.
21It was a change that needed to happen in the service industry, she said.
22But Jonna cannot increase restaurant prices enough to make up for the pay increase.
23Food costs in the U.S. have increased, Jonna said, and skilled workers have become costly too.
24"Everyone knows that beef is more expensive, but high-end, highly skilled labor is expensive, too," she said.
25"That is the very tricky part of our business right now."
26Sara Lund is the owner of Bodega and The Rest, a bar and restaurant in Salt Lake City, Utah.
27She said the cost of materials to make food rose between 15 and 40 percent this year.
28In Britain, the fast spread of the Omicron version of the new coronavirus is also hurting the food industry.
29Restaurants, hotels, and other eating places report decreases in business at an important time of the year.
30Scotland and Wales have promised millions of dollars in aid for their businesses.
31That has placed pressure on the government of Prime Minister Boris Johnson to do the same in England.
32Patrick Dardis heads a chain of about 220 bars, or pubs, called Young's.
33Dardis said he hoped officials would come up with a financial aid plan soon.
34About 30 percent of the chain's planned events were canceled last week.
35"There are thousands of businesses - not just pubs - that could collapse in January if the current situation isn't partnered with proper financial support," he said.
36UKHospitality is an industry trade group in Britain.
37It urged reduced taxes, saying concerns about Omicron have led to the loss of $2.6 billion in sales this month.
38I'm John Russell.
1Restaurant owners in the United States and Britain are worried about the future of their industry. Their reasons for concern include a labor shortage, high food costs and the Omicron version of the new coronavirus. 2United States sales, costs rise 3In November, the U.S. Census Bureau said that sales at restaurants and drinking places, or bars, in the United States reached an estimated $73.7 billion. That is an increase of 37 percent over the same month last year. But, the increase was partly the result of higher prices as restaurants try to deal with the cost of inflation. 4Many restaurant owners are concerned about the future of the industry in the coming months. Caroline Glover is the owner of the restaurant Annette near Denver, Colorado. 5Glover described her feelings as "extremely worried." She added, "I've never felt like we were out of the woods." 6Out of the woods is an expression that means out of danger. 7Glover worries about renewed restrictions if coronavirus infections increase. 8For other businesses, the main concern is finding enough workers. In a recent study of 3,000 U.S. restaurant operators, 77 percent said they did not have enough workers. That information comes from the National Restaurant Association, an industry trade group. 9Many restaurant workers have started new careers or have gone back to school. Jada Sartor of Grand Rapids, Michigan, said her pay increased from $10 an hour to $16 an hour this year as restaurants tried to employ more workers. But she recently quit her serving job because she could not find child care that she was able to pay for. 10"The cost of living is just so high you can't afford to really live," she said. 11Kristin Jonna is the owner of the restaurant Vinology in Ann Arbor, Michigan. She said she raised pay nearly 40 percent to get and keep her 35 workers. It was a change that needed to happen in the service industry, she said. But Jonna cannot increase restaurant prices enough to make up for the pay increase. 12Food costs in the U.S. have increased, Jonna said, and skilled workers have become costly too. 13"Everyone knows that beef is more expensive, but high-end, highly skilled labor is expensive, too," she said. "That is the very tricky part of our business right now." 14Sara Lund is the owner of Bodega and The Rest, a bar and restaurant in Salt Lake City, Utah. She said the cost of materials to make food rose between 15 and 40 percent this year. 15United Kingdom 16In Britain, the fast spread of the Omicron version of the new coronavirus is also hurting the food industry. Restaurants, hotels, and other eating places report decreases in business at an important time of the year. 17Scotland and Wales have promised millions of dollars in aid for their businesses. That has placed pressure on the government of Prime Minister Boris Johnson to do the same in England. 18Patrick Dardis heads a chain of about 220 bars, or pubs, called Young's. Dardis said he hoped officials would come up with a financial aid plan soon. About 30 percent of the chain's planned events were canceled last week. 19"There are thousands of businesses - not just pubs - that could collapse in January if the current situation isn't partnered with proper financial support," he said. 20UKHospitality is an industry trade group in Britain. It urged reduced taxes, saying concerns about Omicron have led to the loss of $2.6 billion in sales this month. 21I'm John Russell. 22Dee-Ann Durbin, Mae Anderson and Sylvia Hui reported on this story for the Associated Press. John Russell adapted it for Learning English. Mario Ritter, Jr. was the editor. 23_____________________________________________________________ 24Words in This Story 25afford - v. to be able to pay for (something) 26tricky - adj. difficult to do or deal with 27chain - n. a group of businesses (such as stores, restaurants, or hotels) that have the same name and basic appearance and sell the same products or services 28proper -adj. right or correct for some purposes or situations