Study Describes Restaurant Industry's "Race to the Bottom"

The Chicagoland Restaurant Industry Coalition, a group of academics, workers rights advocates, unions and restaurant owners and employees brought together by the Restaurant Opportunities Center of Chicago, has released a report entitled "Behind the Kitchen Door: The Hidden Costs of Taking the Low Road in Chicagoland's Thriving Restaurant Industry". According to the report, a living wage (pay that would allow a worker to support him/herself and a family without government assistance) is about $16.48 an hour. Unfortunately, more than 80% of restaurant workers in the Chicago metropolitan area reportedly make less than $10 an hour, with worker as fast food restaurants averaging only about $9 an hour. The report also notes that a majority of workers reported minimum wage and overtime violations, health and safety issues and other serious legal violations at the restaurants where they work, while more than a quarter reported working "off the clock" without pay. In this news article about the study, one author describes the restaurant industry's "race to the bottom" with regard to treatment of their employees. A copy of the study, as well as similar data for other metropolitan areas, can be found here.