REALITY CHECK
RESTAURANTS ARE BEING BURIED UNDER NEW PAPERWORK REQUIREMENTS REALITY CHECK: NEW EMPLOYER RULES PHOTO: SHUTTERSTOCK
INVARIABLY BRING AN AVALANCHE OF RECORD-KEEPING OBLIGATIONS TO A FIELD THAT'S NO STRANGER TO LAYING A PAPER TRAIL.
BY PETER ROMEO
A mateurs who love to cook wistfully eye the restaurant business as the untaken career path that might have provided a more satisfying indulgence of their passions. If only they knew. Today’s restaurateur has to be a jack of all trades and a master of each: teacher, tech savant, trend watcher, chief customer officer, ops expert, financial wizard, even magician upon occasion.
Mastery in the kitchen is a relatively minor part of the needed skill set, if it’s required at all. In truth, the job is usually more of a business position than an art- ist-in-residence appointment. That’s never been more of an ac- curate assessment than it is today, with brilliance at the six-burner far less critical than adeptness at fill- ing out forms and keeping precise personnel records. The paperwork required of an operator-slash-em- ployer has increased exponential- ly, with new obligations constantly heightening the stack.
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RESTAURANT BUSINESS OCTOBER 2024
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