New York City Restaurants See Drop in Employment Rates After Unemployment Benefits Increase

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When US President Joe Biden signed the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act in March, it offered a $1,400 stimulus check to Americans who earn less than $75,000 a year. The package also granted an extra $300 in weekly unemployment benefits through September 6.

New York City restaurants have recently been experiencing a devastating shortage of employees, as many find the relief efforts of unemployment checks more favorable than their usual low-waged wait staff positions offer.

Biden responded to the backlash on Friday, and explained that it would take time before the economy reaped the benefits of his policies. However, he also predicted that job gains would accelerate in the coming months.

Shedding light on the development, Philippe Massoud, CEO of Ilili, a Lebanese restaurant on 5th Avenue, told the New York Post that he won’t be able to open his restaurant to the 75% indoor capacity set by Governor Andrew Cuomo last week due to the staff shortage.

Restaurants and economists have reported that wait staff who earn lower wages can make more money if they stayed home and simply collected unemployment checks.

Jourbina admitted that half or fewer of her employees came back to work after the COVID-19 shutdown hit New York, which appears to be the issue for many small business owners. Some employers have mentioned that even hiring agencies are having a hard time filling the employee pool.

Citing the latest jobs report, the US Chamber of Commerce tweeted on Friday that the added unemployment benefits granted by Biden are the root cause in the “dampening” job market.

Reports in April showed that the increase in unemployment insurance rates backfired as it subsequently imposed financial burdens on already-struggling restaurants. The New York State Restaurant Association wrote a letter on April 19 to Cuomo and others asking officials to rectify the issue of workers not returning. 

Sourse: sputniknews.com

New York City Restaurants See Drop in Employment Rates After Unemployment Benefits Increase

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