A sign taped to the drive-through menu kiosk at the Cape Girardeau Zaxby's restaurant is a visible indication of an industry-wide problem -- there are plenty of jobs but not enough workers.

The sign states the restaurant, which closed last week, will not reopen until new employees are hired and trained.

"They (the restaurant's employees) would not follow procedures," Chris Manwell, CEO of the Manwell Food Group of Valdosta, Georgia, told the Southeast Missourian on Thursday.

Manwell's company operates Zaxby's restaurants in Cape Girardeau and Sikeston, Missouri, as well as in Martin and Union City, Tennessee, and Paducah, Kentucky. According to Manwell, most of the restaurant's employees lacked the work ethic and service skills required in the food and beverage industry. Some, he said, quit on their own after receiving COVID-19 stimulus payments.

"Last Friday, we decided to just shut it down and start fresh," Manwell said as he staffed a table Thursday afternoon at a Cape Girardeau job fair. He said he hopes to hire new management and staff as quickly as possible and reopen the restaurant within two to four weeks.

That won't be easy, he admitted, because there appears to be an overall decline in the number of potential employees willing to work in the fast-food industry.

"That's terrible," said Missouri Restaurant Association CEO Bob Bonney when he learned Zaxby's had closed because of the lack of staffing. "This is the first time I've heard of that a restaurant had to close because of that."

The problem, he said, is not limited to the Cape Girardeau Zaxby's. Statewide, there are more job openings in the food and beverage industry than there are applicants for those positions.

Signs posted this week at Zaxby's, 407 Cape West Crossings, let drive-through customers know the restaurant is closed and where employment applications may be submitted. Restaurants throughout the state and region report a decline in job applications.Jay Wolz

"This (employee hiring and retention) has always been the No. 1 problem in our industry going back several years," Bonney said. "It was the biggest problem restaurants ever faced, even before we heard of social distancing and COVID-19."

The situation has been compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic during which thousands of restaurant workers were laid off or voluntarily quit working to stay home, often to care for children when schools and child care centers closed.

Now, as the state's economy recovers, many fast-food operations are preparing to reopen indoor dining areas and restaurants will soon expand their seating capacities, which will increase the demand for additional employees.

With all restaurant workers in Missouri becoming eligible for COVID-19 vaccinations next week and with shot availability for all Missourians by mid-April, health officials think the region could have herd immunity by July. That could mean any pandemic-related restrictions on restaurants and fast-food franchises could be lifted in the next two or three months.

But there's a possibility, Bonney said, many food and beverage workers won't reenter the workforce right away and will choose, instead, to rely on state and federal unemployment benefits and stimulus payments.

"It would be naive to think that doesn't play a role," he said.

Under the federal government's American Rescue Plan, workers who lost their jobs because of the pandemic can qualify for $300 in weekly unemployment payments.

"But those are not going to last forever," Bonney said. The payments will end in early September.

Between now and then, he said, a food and beverage worker would be better off gaining experience often leading to managerial roles.

"In our industry, there's real opportunity," he said.

"With initiative, aptitude to work and a cheery disposition, restaurant workers can quickly be on their way to management positions," he said. "It's been proven over and over again that for the past five or six years restaurants have created middle class jobs at a rate four times greater than the overall economy and we employ more women and minorities in management positions than any other industry in the nation."

In the St. Louis metropolitan area, Bonney estimates there are as many as 75,000 openings at fast-food franchises, restaurants, bars, and other food and beverage venues, and although he said he doesn't have statistics about job openings in Southeast Missouri, he said the number "is in the thousands."

Local insights

Representatives of several other fast-food franchises in the Cape Girardeau area agreed there is an ongoing challenge to hire and retain staff.

A banner in front of Panda Express, 130 Siemers Drive in Cape Girardeau, and similar signs and banners throughout the region promote job openings at area restaurants.Jay Wolz

"There have been ups and downs over the years, but this is different," said Shannon Davis, owner/operator of nearly 20 McDonald's locations throughout Southeast Missouri employing between 1,200 and 1,300 workers, many of them teenagers in their first jobs.

As of now, Davis said most of his restaurants are adequately staffed.

"But we're tight in some places, and with a new restaurant coming, we're going to need about 100 more employees," he said.

The new restaurant, under construction at the intersection of North Kingshighway and North Mount Auburn Road, is scheduled to open in early July.

Davis agreed with Bonney's assessment government stimulus checks and the extension of unemployment benefits are contributing factors to the challenging hiring environment.

"There are a lot of COVID checks being sent around to people discouraging them from wanting to work," he said.

Despite the pandemic, Davis said business at his restaurants has been brisk.

"Flexibility is the key," he said. "We've done a tremendous amount of delivery this year and by converting service to drive-through, we've been able to maintain business levels."

He said it is uncertain when his restaurants will resume indoor dining, but when they do, he will need additional employees to staff the seating areas.

Lack of applications

Cape Girardeau based Drury Restaurants operates 36 Burger King restaurants and three Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen locations in Southeast Missouri, Southern Illinois, Western Kentucky and Northeast Arkansas.

"Definitely there's been a major upswing in the lack of job applications," said John Echimovich, the company's vice president of operations. "We're challenged, there's no question about it."

While it's possible to keep a restaurant open with less than full staffing, Echimovich said it's difficult to do so while maintaining excellent customer service.

"At all of our locations, it's a challenge to maintain staffing and keep moving forward," he said. "We have a very high expectation of service levels. When you're short staffed, maintaining guest expectations and high levels of service is a challenge."

As a result, Echimovich said, "We're certainly in a hiring phase."

Reopening in-house dining areas will require as much as 20% more staffing, he said, which will only compound the challenge.

As for when that will happen, Echimovich said it's uncertain. "We don't have a definite timeline for reopening (dining areas)."

Even after Drury resumes indoor seating at its fast-food operations, Echimovich said he believes many customers will continue using drive-through windows and curbside pickup.

"There will be plenty of individuals who will stay with the drive-through," he said. "People are definitely becoming more comfortable with them."

At Chick-fil-A on Gordonville Road in Cape Girardeau, owner/operator Brian House said the pandemic has posed challenges requiring scheduling and job flexibility on the part of his employees. He said he is aware of hiring difficulties some restaurants are facing, but he said his business has been unaffected for the most part.

"I've had a lot of my team members for a long time," he said, "We've been very blessed as a family business."

Like most other fast-food locations, Chick-fil-A is only offering drive-through and delivery service during the pandemic, but House said there could be a need for additional employees once the restaurant resumes indoor dining. It is uncertain, though, when that will be.

"I won't be the first (to resume indoor dining) and I won't be the last; we'll be somewhere in the middle," he said. "First and foremost for me is our team and our customers. I want to know they're safe."

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