ABSTRACT
As at mid-2020, nearly ten million restaurant workers in the USA had lost or were at risk of losing their jobs owing to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, yet the majority were ineligible for unemployment insurance. This is because a large percentage were being denied benefits on the basis that their wages prior to the pandemic were too low to qualify for minimum state income thresholds; this is the result of an unemployment system that fails to recognize the inherent issues with the subminimum wage for tipped workers, where employer wage theft and the misreporting of tips are rampant. The unprecedented pandemic has revealed both the unsustainability of the service sector’s abysmally low poverty wages and the “essential” nature of these workers. For the first time, we are witnessing a surge in consumer consciousness as people realize that restaurant meal prices do not reflect the true cost of food service labor, perpetuating an untenable and harmful labor model. The pandemic and the national uprisings for racial equity have created an enormous opportunity for workers, employers, and consumers to work together to change the industry’s labor model and reimagine a restaurant industry that is sustainable for all.
