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The article explains why the labor pool is shallow and highlights approaches to recruiting and retaining employees, from treating walk-in applicants as regular customers to cross-training, defining roles beyond basic tasks, and using pre-shift “family meal” conversations. It also examines how mobile scheduling and job-posting apps can help align workers’ flexible availability with staffing needs while lowering labor-cost pressure.",{"@graph":63,"@context":118},[64,80,101],{"@type":65,"itemListElement":66},"BreadcrumbList",[67,71,74,77],{"item":68,"name":69,"@type":70,"position":9},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",{"item":72,"name":10,"@type":70,"position":73},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/",2,{"item":75,"name":11,"@type":70,"position":76},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/presentations/",3,{"item":78,"name":59,"@type":70,"position":79},"https://docshare.wps.com/template/cracking-the-labor-code-industry-staffing-strategies/262297/",4,{"url":78,"name":59,"@type":81,"image":82,"author":87,"headline":59,"publisher":90,"fileFormat":93,"inLanguage":57,"description":61,"dateModified":94,"datePublished":95,"encodingFormat":93,"isAccessibleForFree":96,"interactionStatistic":97},"DigitalDocument",{"url":83,"@type":84,"width":85,"height":86},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/cracking-the-labor-code-industry-staffing-strategies/262297.png","ImageObject",442,249,{"name":88,"@type":89},"Ophelia","Person",{"url":68,"name":91,"@type":92},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-31","2026-09-14",true,{"@type":98,"interactionType":99,"userInteractionCount":25},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":100},"ViewAction",{"@type":102,"mainEntity":103},"FAQPage",[104,110,114],{"name":105,"@type":106,"acceptedAnswer":107},"Why are restaurants struggling to find qualified applicants?","Question",{"text":108,"@type":109},"The labor pool has dried up as unemployment stays low and fewer people return to the workforce, making staffing increasingly difficult.","Answer",{"name":111,"@type":106,"acceptedAnswer":112},"What practical steps are recommended to attract and retain employees?",{"text":113,"@type":109},"Recommendations include treating walk-in applicants like regular customers, teaching workers they have a role beyond food, cross-training to improve satisfaction, and holding a pre-shift “family meal” to set expectations and listen to concerns.",{"name":115,"@type":106,"acceptedAnswer":116},"How can mobile technology help with restaurant staffing?",{"text":117,"@type":109},"Scheduling apps and smartphone job notices can help managers communicate with employees and freelancers, aligning short shifts and flexible availability with staffing needs.","https://schema.org",{"og:url":78,"og:type":120,"og:title":59,"og:site_name":91,"og:description":61},"article",{"robots":122,"canonical":78},"index,follow",{"doc_id":124,"site_id":56},262297,1791744866,{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":127},{"doc_id":124,"user_id":128,"nickname":88,"user_avatar":129,"doc_module":9,"category_id":8,"category_name":11,"doc_title":59,"doc_description":61,"doc_content":130,"file_id":131,"file_url":132,"file_type":133,"file_size":134,"view_count":25,"is_deleted":4,"is_public":9,"is_downloadable":9,"audit_status":9,"page_count":135,"language":136,"language_code":57,"site_id":56,"html_lang":57,"table_of_contents":137,"faqs":138,"seo_title":139,"seo_description":61,"update_tm":140,"read_time":76,"preview_page_count":4},7971461741311,"https://ap-avatar.wpscdn.com/avatar/74000253aff267980c6?x-image-process=image/resize,m_fixed,w_180,h_180&k=1779345379180704826","9/12/2018 Cracking the labor code  \nOPERATIONS > STAFFING  \nCracking the labor code  \nWith a shrinking pool of applicants, restaurants are scrambling to ¹nd and keep quali¹ed help. What's the solution?  \nBecki.Young | Mar 07, 2016  \nRestaurants live and die on the details, and arguably the most important detail is staffing. That detail appears to be increasingly challenging as the labor market tightens in a slowly improving economy while fewer people apply for industry jobs.  \n[https://www.restaurant-hospitality.com/print/13472](https://www.restaurant-hospitality.com/print/13472) 1/8  \n9/12/2018 Cracking the labor code  \nThe national unemployment number stands at 5 percent, the lowest level since April 2008. In fact, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, more than half of the country’s 387 metropolitan areas boast rates below 5 percent.  \nPaul Paz, a Portland, [OR-based waiter and founder of WaitersWorld.com](OR-based waiter and founder of WaitersWorld.com), a website for servers, says that during the Great Recession plenty of people wanted restaurant jobs.“It was reflective of the fact we’d become the industry of last resort rather than of first choice,” he says.“Now that economy has improved and the labor pool has dried up, how do we make the industry attractive?”  \nIn Lincoln, NB, Jay Jarvis tries by making it “cool” to work at his three Lazlo’s Brewery & Grill locations.  \nIt’s been tough, though. The unemployment rate in the so-called “steak capital of the world” was running just 2.1 percent at the end of last year. The Cornhusker State itself was tied with South Dakota for having the second-lowest jobless rate (2.9 percent) in the country.  \n“It’s always been difficult to find people,” laments Jarvis, who is also the secretarytreasurer for the state’s restaurant association.“We’re a government and a university city. So it’s a stable economy and a desirable place to live. The number of available workers is low.”  \n[https://www.restaurant-hospitality.com/print/13472](https://www.restaurant-hospitality.com/print/13472) 2/8  \n9/12/2018 Cracking the labor code  \nThe NRA continues to warn its members of a shallow labor pool. Photo: Life-size Images/Digital  \nVision/Thinkstock  \nIt wouldn’t surprise the National Restaurant Association’s Hudson Riehle, senior v.p., research and knowledge.“The national workforce participation rate fell to a 38 percent low last year, as many people who lost jobs during the Great Recession aren’t returning to the workforce,” he says, adding the number of working teens and Baby Boomers is also in decline.  \nThe dwindling numbers likely figure in the drop in 2016 industry employment growth—to 3.0 percent from 3.6 percent last year—the trade group recently projected. Which explains why NRA continues to warn its members of a shallow labor pool.  \nOn the bright side (if you can call it that), the percentage of 20-to 24-years-olds looking for full-time employment is greater than any other age group. Many are already in the industry, Riehle confirms, citing a 3 percent increase (from 21 percent to 24 percent) since 2007. Still, according to the BLS, 9.4 percent of 20-to 24-yearolds were unemployed as of December 2015.  \n[https://www.restaurant-hospitality.com/print/13472](https://www.restaurant-hospitality.com/print/13472) 3/8  \n9/12/2018 Cracking the labor code  \nApply within  \nHow employees view the workplace starts with the job application, says former restaurant operator Len Ghilani, now a Minneapolis-based consultant with Results Thru Strategy. Ghilani shares tips for attracting and retaining employees:  \n• Treat walk-in applicants like regular customers, making sure a manager talks to them even if you’re not hiring. Script: “Thanks for stopping in. Let me get a manager for you.”  \n• Teach workers they have a role beyond food.“They aren’t merely making a sandwich or simply satisfying a customer’s need for nourishment,” Ghilani advises.“Instead, they’re helping them escape work or the hustle-bu","cbCaijktiXqAPC5A","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaijktiXqAPC5A","pdf",383671,8,"English","# Cracking the Labor Code\n## Staffing challenges in a tightening labor market\n## Recruiting and retaining employees\n## Mobile technology and job-app solutions","[{\"question\":\"Why are restaurants struggling to find qualified applicants?\",\"answer\":\"The labor pool has dried up as unemployment stays low and fewer people return to the workforce, making staffing increasingly difficult.\"},{\"question\":\"What practical steps are recommended to attract and retain employees?\",\"answer\":\"Recommendations include treating walk-in applicants like regular customers, teaching workers they have a role beyond food, cross-training to improve satisfaction, and holding a pre-shift “family meal” to set expectations and listen to concerns.\"},{\"question\":\"How can mobile technology help with restaurant staffing?\",\"answer\":\"Scheduling apps and smartphone job notices can help managers communicate with employees and freelancers, aligning short shifts and flexible availability with staffing needs.\"}]","Cracking the Labor Code - Industry Staffing Strategies | PDF",1789361063]