We Don't Talk About This Enough: Child Care Needs for Restaurant Workers
The restaurant industry is one of the largest and fastest growing industries in the United States. With hefty profit margins exceeding those of major retail chains such as Walmart and Target, the restaurant industry is expected to create up to a million more jobs by 2020 . Many restaurants tout job creation yet pay some of the lowest wages to their employees. These low wages hinder people's ability to afford child care.
“Millions of mothers work in the restaurant industry, one of the nation’s largest and fastest growing sectors, earning poverty wages despite working full time,” said Saru Jayaraman, co-director of the Restaurant Opportunities Center (ROC) United. Restaurant servers suffer three times the poverty rate of those who work for minimum wage in other industries. These low wages disproportionately affect women, who make up 70% of restaurant workers.
The National Restaurant Association, one of the most powerful lobby groups in the country, works to keep the federal tipped minimum wage at $2.13 per hour and to prevent increases in the tipped and full minimum wages across the country. It’s also opposed to earned paid sick leave .
A quarter of women who work in the restaurant industry are mothers, and one-tenth of those mothers are single. Child care for millions of these workers in this industry is unaffordable because many are making the minimum tipped wage and depend on tips, which are not guaranteed income.
Many of these working mothers are also not informed about child care subsidies. Less than 15% of working moms are aware these subsidies are available through their states, and of that group, only half use them.
ROC United, MomsRising.org, National Organization for Women (NOW) and Family Values @ Work just released a study, The Third Shift: Child Care Needs and Access in the Restaurant Industry , examining the accessibility and affordability of child care for mothers in the restaurant industry.
ROC United provides seven recommendations for public policy and employer/employee practices to improve workers’ economic security in the Third Shift Study:
- Raise minimum wage, for tipped and non-tipped workers, so mothers can better afford quality child care.
- Expand access to child care subsidies to ensure mothers have greater access to professional child care.
- Fund child care provided during nontraditional hours and close to home, including certification and subsidies for relatives providing in-home care.
- Establish a minimum standard for earned sick days.
- Enact legislation that would allow workers greater control over their schedules.
- Publicly support collective organizing among restaurant workers.
- Incentivize High Road employer practices, including predictable schedules, greater employee schedule control, child care subsidies and paid sick days.
The bottom line is policymakers and the public should hold restaurant owners accountable for employee work conditions and treatment. We should also applaud the restaurant owners who are taking the high road by giving their employees a say in scheduling, providing paid sick days and a quality work-life balance.
Want to eat at restaurants that treat their staff with respect? Check out the 2013 ROC National Diners’ Guide .
