Food & beverage labor shortage

After Spring Festival, Beijing's food & beverage industry is experiencing a serious labor shortage, the Beijing Youth Daily reported.

In order to entice applicants, some restaurants are offering overseas travel as a bonus. A woman surnamed Zhang who is responsible for recruiting restaurant workers said the salary for kitchen assistants has increased to 4,000 yuan ($657.45) while the salary for waiters and waitresses has gone up to 2,800 yuan - around 200 yuan more pre-Spring Festival rates. Despite the incentives, applicants are few.

Another restaurant manager surnamed Han said that due to the labor shortage, more women in their thirties and forties - who had previously only assisted in the kitchen - are serving as waitresses.