As the United States economy recovered from COVID-19 and the lockdown-induced recession, employers have been plagued by a severe labor shortage.
Under President Biden’s $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, the federal government extended funding for $300-per-week enhanced unemployment payments. Even as American businesses sought to hire workers once lockdowns ended, as many as 1.8 million chose to stay home and keep receiving handouts. Some even filed suit against their governors, who opted out of the federal program in the interest of boosting small business activity.
(…)
Due to the labor shortage, many restaurants are likewise seeking technological solutions:
At restaurant and entertainment chain Dave & Buster’s Entertainment Inc., customers now use digital tablets to order food and drink, allowing managers to schedule fewer servers, the company’s chief operating officer, Margo Manning, said on a call with investors in June. Applebee’s is now using tablets to allow customers to pay at their tables without summoning a waiter. The hand-held screens provide a hedge against labor inflation, according to John Peyton, CEO of Applebee’s parent Dine Brands Global Inc.
As The Daily Wire previously reported, Amazon recently opened a store featuring “cashierless checkout technology” in Washington state. As customers who visit the Amazon Fresh store “Just Walk Out” with their items, the building’s technology tracks the products and automatically charges the user’s Amazon account. Likewise, McDonald’s began piloting voice-automated drive-thrus — a technology that executives believe will spread throughout franchises in the United States within the next five years.- READ MORE
Listen to the insightful Thomas Paine Podcast Below --