Outback Steakhouse and minimum wage - a rant...

[Coexist]

first I will qualify this by stating openly that I am a vegetarian, and even though the rest of my family eats meat, we don't go there to eat, but...

They began in Florida - their headquarters are here in Tampa. They contributed over $600,000 (between their corporate PAC, it's funding of the Florida Restaurant Association, and the personal contributions of top executives according to the St. Pete Times article today) to block the referendum for a $1.00 per hour increase in the minimum wage. It passed OVERWHELMINGLY across the state.

This same article states that "Outback disclosed the annual cost of the higher wage, $22-million, as well as a plan to pay for it: higher menu prices. In Florida, customers will pay 1.5 to 2 percent more."

Now, this adolescent statement of 'na-na, you didn't side with me, now I will make you feel bad, I am telling you that I will raise the price of your steak because you voted against my wishes' pisses me off. Do they honestly expect us to believe that no salaried employees there have had a raise since 1997 -the last time there was a hike in the minimum wage. Are the Jackaroo Chops costing us more because of the $2 million dollar signing bonus it gave Bill Allen (along with the $450,000 annual salary and $1 million dollar a year bonus)
http://www.sptimes.com/2005/03/12/Business/Outback_s_new_leader_.shtml

Why aren't they disclosing publicly what the higher shipping rates are for their food service items that they are paying due to the astronomical fuel prices?! Has that affected the price of a Bloomin' Onion? Why haven't they released that information to us? Are they absorbing that cost of that so their Republican friends don't look bad? Would it not look good for us average Americans to be paying more for, oh say, bread or a t-shirt because of high crude oil prices from OUR PRESIDENT'S hand-holding buddies over there in SAUDI ARABIA who KNOCKED DOWN SOME BUILDINGS up in New York City?? Don't we pretty much OWN an oil-producing nation?

But, heaven forbid (yes, I am agnostic, too) they take it on the chin to PAY AMERICANS an extra dollar an hour. Oh no, we must bitch loudly about that! Get it in the paper. You asked for it, well, we're gonna give it to ya. They really piss me off.

[wakeme2008]

1. I have stopped going to any Outback

restaurant. There are too many other restaurants that are more blue than them.

Burp... 20Oz T-Bone at Sam Sizzlers... $13.95... :)

[Sandpiper]

2. What makes it especially disingenuous

Is that wait staff is paid BELOW minimum wage and derives the majority of their income from TIPS that customers pay IN ADDITION to the cost of the meal.

:grr:

[jmowreader]

8. That's only for tipped employees

Back-of-house people like cooks and dishwashers are paid at least minimum wage.

Also, according to federal law, if your restaurant has cheap customers you are required to pay the tipped employee enough to bring the employee to minimum wage.

Worse: tip pooling is authorized. You can require all your tipped employees to turn their tips in, then divide them equally among all the tipped employees. This can be used to keep you from having to pay extra to some employees.

There are days when I'd just love to own a restaurant. But then I remember that you have to be willing to make people work one of the hardest jobs in the world for close to minimum wage, remember that I'm a liberal, and forget about owning a restaurant. I couldn't do that to people, and you have to if you want to survive.

[Retired AF Dem]

3. You ever been in one of thier kitchens?

Trust me I have and I would never eat in one.

[wishlist]

4. Fine with me if they raise their already exorbitant prices

I won't be going there. It is outrageous that any restaurant that charges customers as much as they do would spend over half a million dollars to try to prevent a very reasonable long overdue wage increase for their lowest paid employees. Those high paid executives can't stand the thought of their company profits being shared with the lower employees instead of going for executive bonuses and benefit packages. I also would not be surprised if they try to reduce their restaurant staff making fewer people do more work in order to make up the difference.

[supernova]

7. What bothers me about Outback

is the exhorbatant steakhouse prices conjoined with a fast food storefront. While the food is OK, Outbacks don't look that much better than a McDs. And they are too LOUD. I mostly can't talk to my dining partner.

I always tip well when I go out because I know servers don't make much money and most hump their asses off every day to please their customers.

If I want to go out for a steak, I'd rather go out to a high-end chop house where I can order a nice bottle of wine, enjoy my stead, AND hear myself think.

[donco6]

15. Yes

A high end place isn't even that much more expensive - if at all! And the steak is better, you're not contributing to some multinational conglomerate, and you can enjoy yourself.

[sendero]

5. Any business would do the same thing..

... that is, try to pass on any increases in costs to consumers. What do you think they should do?

As for Outback, no thanks. Mediocre steaks at premium prices served with a side of Aussie bullshit. I haven't eaten there in years.

[jody]

6. I'm not sure what point you are making. The restaurant businesses

are among the most competitive.

If a restaurant can raise prices whether to pay for a minimum wage increase or some other reason is subject to demand forces. If people are really concerned about Outback's prices, then they'll go to another restaurant. On the other hand, if the cost of restaurant labor is roughly at parity in an area, then the only product differential is quality of food and service. I doubt if any particular restaurant has much of a price differential over time.

Business leaders oppose taxes and minimum wages saying that they will pass them on to customers. MY stock reply is OK, if that's so, why do you oppose a cost increase that you claim you will pass on to your customers?
:shrug:

[Coexist]

9. My point is

that they made a point of putting out a press release about the price increase being due to the increase in the minimum wage that they had fought.

To my knowledge there have been no press releases about price increases due to other causes.

[wishlist]

10. Seems like all restaurants will have to absorb the increase too

I don't understand either why Outback raised a stink about it if they are going to raise prices and absorb the extra cost anyway and all the other restaurants will have to make adjustments to maintain the same profits too. Unless they are afraid customers will balk since their prices are already too high. But the initial poster makes a good point that even without a wage increase the higher energy prices are causing tremendous pressure on all food related businesses to go up on prices, yet they aren't complaining about the high oil prices and lobbying the Bushies to do something about that.

[murray hill farm]

11. I stopped going there years ago....after...

i was traveling from Florida to Tenn..along I75 and stopped at an exit and an Outback for dinner. The problem..they were busy..had a line of people waiting..told me the wait would be 45 mins..so..i waited...after an hour of waiting and people who had come in after me going in and eating, i inquired...oh...so politely, the said...u are a "single"...so you must wait until after the parties of two or four all all served...i left..and have never gone to one since..this min wage stuff just confirms to me what i already knew about the type of folks who run Outbacks.

[rzemanfl]

12. I was outraged by Outback a long time ago. Read the article

you mention this morning. Just got back from a great seafood dinner at a local non-chain restaurant. No reason to go to some Repuke campaign contributor's chain restaurant. Listened to an older guy at the next table explaining to the three women he was with how *'s SS plan screws the poor and favors the rich.

I think Outback is probably paying a dollar an hour more to more Mexicans than Americans, but your points are otherwise on the mark.

[donco6]

13. Outback = McSteak

Any way you slice it.

[supernova]

14. Exactly, see my post, above - eom

[Fescue4u]

16. Well its proably true

Simple math says that if you increase the cost of production (i.e dinners), that in order to keep profits the same you either need raise prices or lower the quality of your product.

I've no reason to believe that 2% price increase is wrong, in fact it sounds correct.

But so what? that means that a $100 meal at outback now costs $102.

Big deal.

[warrens]

17. Don't forget they flew Katherine Harris to the Kentucky Derby on their jet

And put her up in their luxury suite and paid for her hotel and all kindsa good stuff. And their food sucks. And so do they.

[sandnsea]

18. Oregon wait staff $7.00 + tips

Aargh, I hate minimum wage threads.

The federal minimum wage for tipped restaurant workers is just $2.13, with the new Florida law it will be $3.13.

Oregon law, minimum wage plus tips. Our min wage is over $7.00 an hour now. My kids just went to Outback a few weeks ago, $20 dinners.

Oh, and we also require our fuel to be pumped, by a real live gas station attendant. And stunningly, our gas is the same price as it is in Cali, usually lower actually, which is where we get our gas from.

Now how can that be? Significantly higher wages, but not significantly higher prices. Could it be wages don't have anything to do with costs anymore, but shoveling money to stockholders does?