Cash or Credits? Walmart, McDonald’s Explore New Kind of Employee Compensation

New employee compensation initiatives at employers like McDonald’s and Walmart aim to make on-the-job experience count toward college credits.

Survey: Retail Employees Are Happy with Jobs

Who knew? Retail employees actually are happy with their jobs, according to recent a survey by an employee benefits company.

Uber, Lyft, Take Minimum Wage Debate to Next Level in Massachusetts

Agreement by Uber and Lyft in Massachusetts to pay a minimum wage of $32.50 an hour plus some benefits to drivers takes the whole minimum wage debate to a new level and raises questions about what it will mean to other sectors.

The Plight of the Hourly Employee: Low Morale, Long Hours and AI Fears

A new study shows that hourly employees are demanding more recognition from their employers along with increasingly flexible schedules.

Survey Shows Retail Workers Prefer Practical Tools over AI

Today’s retail workers are most eager to be equipped with tools that help them tackle inefficient tasks, particularly when interacting with customers.

The Age of Discontent: Gen Z is Frustrated At Work

Gen Z workers reported being less engaged with their jobs than all workers (81% versus 88%) and continue to drive the “quiet quitting” trend according to new research.

Can Fine Dining Survive Without Weekends? Canlis Will Find Out

The restaurant is an outlier in another way: no tipping. Instead, staff are paid what Canlis said is a high hourly wage. The change in schedules will not affect salaries.

Walmart Attempting to Foster Compassion Among Managers

Can compassion be taught? That’s the question Walmart hopes to answer with a recent initiative for its store managers.

The 4-Day Workweek Has Reached F&B

Could a shorter, 4-day work week be the answer to employee happiness and increased productivity? The debate continues among experts.

The Fiercest Battle in Retail: Foot Traffic, Trips, and Loyalty

EV charging stations outside, stores within stores inside, sprawling beauty sections, niche products, reimagined loyalty programs – the battle for foot traffic is cutthroat as the economy roars to life.

Chick-fil-A is the Fast-Food Customer Service King

Employees at Chick-fil-A’s 3,000-plus locations “are trained to genuinely care about the customer’s experience,” said Courtney Haywood, a brand manager and the CEO of Courtney Haywood Agency Partners.

FI Spotlight: Navigating the Employer-Employee Relationship

Significant rises in both union election petitions and widespread strikes underscore a stark disconnect between employers and employees.

Ag Disputes Rage Involving ESG Complaints, EU Protests

State agriculture officials are warning U.S. banks their emphasis on policies to reduce climate change threatens the U.S. food supply.

Frontline Workers Survey: No End in Sight for ‘Great Resignation’

The Great Resignation may have slowed, but frontline workers still are expressing high levels of dissatisfaction with their jobs, a survey released Wednesday by Beekeeper indicated. The 2024 Global Frontline Workforce Survey, which queried some …

Column: How to Retain Restaurant Workers in 2024

Scrolling through Indeed.com is an eye-opening experience. Every employer is trying to find workers because employees have a ton of options in 2023. I’ve worked with franchises for nearly 30 years, and labor has always …

CEOs’ Secrets to Success in the New Year

“Remember that running a food and beverage business can sometimes be akin to ‘buying yourself a job;’ it may not always guarantee immediate or substantial returns on investment.”

Analysis: Automation Could Cure Labor Shortages in Manufacturing

Automation offers companies the opportunity to attract talent with the right skills and assign those skills to the most appropriate areas of the business.

Rash of Restaurant Bankruptcies Festers

Fast-food businesses that focus on creating a positive workplace culture, improving the overall employee experience, and nurturing strong employer-employee relationships are better positioned to attract and retain top talent.

Survey: Restaurants Face Labor Challenges Amid an Uncertain Economy

According to a new survey, many restaurant operators view changing macroeconomic conditions, labor challenges, and evolving guest demands among their top current pain points. Earlier this year, Toast polled 847 restaurant decision-makers for its annual …

3 Key Themes for Foodservice from DMA Live in Texas

Labor challenges, diverging dining hours, and burgeoning menus were among the foodservice themes explored at DMA’s event in Texas.

California Wage Law: The Dominos Are Poised to Fall

QSR jobs will be in high demand once the law passes as workers try to reduce their dining expenses in lieu of high food costs and an inflationary environment. More importantly, however, California just bolstered the prospects of hundreds of thousands of current and (more importantly) future fast-food workers.

Will the Government’s New Farm Relief Bill Function?

In the past, the sheer bureaucracy of requesting emergency relief has led to several administrative changes, causing delays, confusion, and more than a little fiscal frustration for those providing many of the common produce staples in grocery and retail.

COLUMN: Throwing a Lifeline to Leaders in a Volatile Market

Business owners must keep their fingers on the pulse to forecast whether the cash in the business is sufficient to maintain operations and overcome the volatile market conditions.

Analysis: What’s Behind Mass Layoffs in Warehouse, Tech Sectors

As the U.S. Federal Reserve attempts to slow the economy in the battle against inflation, major e-commerce, tech companies and other businesses have announced tens of thousands of layoffs. Is the wave of job cuts …

Unions: Could ‘Sectoral Bargaining’ Transform Labor Landscape?

The explosive growth of ride-hailing services disrupted the age-old taxi industry. Now, the drivers at Uber, Lyft and similar companies could disrupt another age-old concept: collective bargaining. Low-wage workers, including those working for fast-food chains …

Game On: Restaurants Use Gaming Tech to Boost Efficiency

Restaurants are a tricky business and the competition is fierce. That’s one reason why it’s imperative to set yourself apart and find ways to attract and retain high-quality employees. In that spirit, Perfect Company recently …

3 Keys to Understanding Gen Z Employees

The generation gap is back. Gen Zers say they’re misunderstood by their elders – including those people who a couple of generations back said they’d never trust anyone over 30. How did we get here? …

3 Keys for Employee Retention in 2023

The past few years have presented numerous challenges to business owners, including an ongoing labor shortage. The hospitality industry certainly isn’t immune to the struggles of employee retention. “For a long time, the hospitality industry …

Upping the Ante: Walmart Joins List of Retailers Increasing Pay

Now that Walmart has joined Target and Costco by raising their minimum pay to about double the federal rate of $7.25 an hour, fast-food outlets may have to consider boosting their minimum to $20 to …

Trials Show Workers Love Condensed Workweeks

Restaurant owners are following the corporate world’s lead in having employees test the four-day workweek – but a south Florida Chick-fil-A owner has gone further by having employees in his fast-food establishment work 13 to …

Schnucks’ ‘Flexforce’ Answers Gen Z’s Calls for Flexibility

Schnucks is giving workers the flexibility to choose shifts at a time and store location that works for them with the expansion of its “Flexforce” employment option.

2023 Labor Outlook: Layoffs, Automation on Horizon

Inflation threw a wrench into pandemic recovery, and with interest rates rising and the threat of a recession looming, the 2023 labor market could look very different than it does today. Major tech companies have …

Companies Rethinking Warehouse Experience Amid Labor Shortage

Oversized windows, offering ideal natural light. … Fitness centers. … Outdoor work areas. Don’t look now, but many of the newest factories in America feature items that sound like descriptions on Zillow.com. To retain employees, …

Robots Can Benefit Grocers If They Can Master the Process

Retailers including Walmart and Kroger have embraced in-store robots to help keep stores clean on a consistent schedule, and the automated tools offer benefits for any retailer to enhance its operations.

Experts Predict ‘Striketober’ to Remember

Slightly more than a month before the mid-term elections, thousands of U.S. workers are threatening to turn October into “Striketober,” with restaurant workers at the forefront of the bid to increase wages and improve working …

Predictive-Maintenance Tech Aiding Manufacturers’ Efficiency

Predictive-maintenance technology – smart software that listens to machines to predict equipment failures before they happen – could prove to be a valuable service, especially as manufacturers grapple with supply chain disruptions and labor shortages. …