How to Eat Safely and Stay Socially Distant
At Restaurants. States including Michigan, Hawaii, Alaska, Texas and Georgia have begun to reopen. On Monday, Georgia allowed restaurants to reopen with a 39-point guide intended to keep staff and diners coronavirus-free that includes measures like mandatory masks for employees, dining capacity limits and illness screening for employees. Experts advise that staying safe and socially distant at restaurants involves habit changes for both diners and staff; here’s what that looks like.
New Jersey Governor to Reopen State Parks, Golf Courses
After criticism. Governor Phil Murphy said he will reopen state and county parks and golf courses, effective May 2, to bring New Jersey’s recreational policies in line with neighboring states. The governor said he made the decision based on “data, science, fact,” and not because of protests from some residents and opposition from some lawmakers. New Jersey has seen consistent reductions in some key data, including hospitalizations, Murphy said. While infections and deaths from the new coronavirus continue to increase, they do so at a slower pace than a few weeks ago.
More Businesses Sue Insurers in Pennsylvania
Over covid-19 denials. Businesses claiming that they lost income amid COVID-19 closures hit Hartford Underwriters, Liberty Mutual and Cincinnati Insurance with lawsuits demanding coverage in Pennsylvania federal court Monday. Two restaurants and a music venue filed proposed class actions against Hartford Underwriters Insurance Co. and The Cincinnati Insurance Co. respectively, while a Philadelphia periodontics practice filed an individual suit against Liberty Mutual Insurance Group. All argued to the U.S. District Court in Philadelphia on Monday that they had been wrongly denied claims for lost business because of statewide orders closing nonessential businesses to slow the spread of the coronavirus. They said the state- and city-mandated closures were “civil authorities” covered by their policies and not directly related to any contamination by the virus.
Paycheck Guarantee Program
Problems with the small business loan program show the need. Congress has provided trillions in funding to address this crisis, and this week we are set to vote again to provide an infusion of cash to fund the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). While PPP includes good ideas to keep small businesses afloat, it has become clear over the past several weeks that the program is structurally incapable of efficiently and quickly delivering the scale of relief we need or stopping mass unemployment. The vast majority of unbanked small businesses as well as minority-owned businesses have been disproportionately excluded. Even businesses that have been approved for loans are reportedly not accepting them because they have no assurance those loans will be forgiven. That’s why I have proposed that Congress immediately implement a federal paycheck guarantee for businesses of all sizes, nonprofits, and state and local governments.
Did You Know?
Restaurants Rise – a digital community initiative to reconnect, reimagine and reset. Powered by Nation’s Restaurant News and Restaurant Hospitality, the new “Restaurants Rise” digital platform will provide foodservice leaders with the information, inspiration and solutions to help drive business – now more than ever. We are with you! Our new Resource & Education Center will feature webinars, whitepapers, insights, data, case studies, video interviews, and much more. Join the June 2-5 for Restaurants Rise LIVE! a virtual event that offers four days of twenty webinars and keynotes from industry leaders.
Join the fight – Independent Restaurant Coalition (IRC). The Independent Restaurant Coalition (IRC) was formed to save the local restaurants affected by COVID-19. IRC is founded on the simple belief that there is power to affect legislative change if we unite our voice. Independent restaurants directly employ 11 million workers and indirectly employ tens of millions more up and down the food and hospitality supply chain. We are small businesses, but have a big impact on the economy with $1 trillion contributed to the economy each year and 4% of GDP. Congress needs to take urgent new actions to ensure that restaurants and workers are able to reopen our doors, reunite our communities, and reignite our economy once we come out of this crisis. The Independent Restaurant Coalition proposes changes to the CARES Act.
Employee Tip
Worker benefits, protections and the coronavirus (COVID-19): What NJ workers should know. New Jersey has among the most comprehensive Earned Sick Leave, Temporary Disability and Family Leave Insurance laws in the country, which cover all employees – full-time, part-time, temporary and seasonal. Now a new federal law passed in response to the coronavirus emergency requires private employers with fewer than 500 employees and most public employers to provide emergency paid sick leave and emergency childcare FMLA leave. In addition, the federal CARES Act expands Unemployment Insurance benefits and covers many coronavirus-related scenarios and those traditionally left out – self-employed, independent contractor, freelance, and “gig” workers.
Restaurant Industry Daily Alerts
A voice for our industry. If you are finding these daily bulletins informative and beneficial during this pandemic, we kindly ask that you write a brief Google review providing a vote of your appreciation. Simply Google “Bielat Santore & Company” and when the company name appears click the button on the right to write your review or; if you don’t use Gmail, go to Google Maps, type “Bielat Santore & Company” – Allenhurst, NJ into Google Maps; scroll down and you will see an option to leave a review.
Thank you and remember all of the “Restaurant Industry Alerts” and “Thursday Restaurant Rap” interviews can be found at www.123bsc.com/news/. We intend to continue to keep you informed as we all look for an end to this crisis.
