When a fried chicken chain opened its first location in Atlantic Canada, it was so popular it had to cut back hours.

The Popeyes Louisiana Kitchen that opened a few weeks ago in a Halifax suburb has reduced its schedule because of high demand that left staff scrambling as customers queued up for hours.

B次元官网网址淒ue to industry-wide staffing challenges, the store is open for one less hour than before,B次元官网网址� Popeyes spokeswoman Emily Ciantra said in an email.

B次元官网网址淭he restaurant aims to be back to its regular hours by early June.B次元官网网址�

The bizarre case of a restaurant so popular it needs to close early underscores a pervasive issue facing restaurants in Canada: A labour crunch.

B次元官网网址淭he new Popeyes that opened actually had to B次元官网网址� cut back hours just to give their people a rest,B次元官网网址� said Gordon Stewart, executive director at the Restaurant Association of Nova Scotia.

Restaurants across the country are reducing hours and condensing menus as persistent staff shortages and spiking costs threaten to derail the industryB次元官网网址檚 comeback from crushing pandemic restrictions.

The decision by many restaurants to scale back operations comes despite an upswing in business as diners return to restaurants in full force.

B次元官网网址淐ustomers are back. But when you donB次元官网网址檛 have staff to work all the shifts, you start cutting back hours,B次元官网网址� said Stewart.

B次元官网网址淭here are very few restaurants now that are running seven days a week and full hours.B次元官网网址�

CanadaB次元官网网址檚 restaurant industry was slammed by two years of shutdowns, repeated layoffs and strict capacity limits. About 13,000 eateries across the country closed permanently.

The situation prompted an exodus of workers from the sector as people sought more steady incomes, switched fields or went back to school. Canada also welcomed fewer immigrants during the pandemic, newcomers that sometimes find work in the restaurant industry.

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Compounding the issue now is CanadaB次元官网网址檚 rock-bottom unemployment rate, which Statistics Canada said hit 5.2 per cent in April.

As the lucrative patio season ramps up, the restaurant industry expects staff vacancies will rise to 210,000 across the country by this summer, said Olivier Bourbeau, vice-president of federal affairs with Restaurants Canada.

B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 extremely difficult for restaurants to find staff,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淲e just donB次元官网网址檛 have enough workers.B次元官网网址�

Job openings abound across the industry in both fast food and full-service restaurants.

But the problem is most acute in kitchens.

B次元官网网址淩ed seal chefs, sous-chefs, line cooks B次元官网网址� thatB次元官网网址檚 where the shortage is really hurting restaurants,B次元官网网址� Stewart said.

During the pandemic some restaurant operators blamed government subsidies for the lack of staff, but the ongoing shortage suggests a more protracted and complex issue. Some workers in the industry have said the long hours, unstable schedules, low wages and gruelling conditions B次元官网网址� especially in a hot, busy kitchen B次元官网网址� are to blame.

Meanwhile, restaurants are also facing spiralling costs.

Statistics Canada reported the annual inflation rate hit 6.7 per cent in March, while food costs B次元官网网址� a key input for restaurants B次元官网网址� increased even more, with prices for dairy, pasta, meat and cooking oil all soaring.

B次元官网网址淔rom gasoline to a steak, itB次元官网网址檚 all gone crazy,B次元官网网址� Stewart said. B次元官网网址淐osts are up right across the board.B次元官网网址�

Some eateries are eliminating less profitable meals like breakfast or lunch, offering fewer menu items overall and closing during the slowest days of the week to cut down on waste. Others are offering smaller portion sizes, rethinking the so-called B次元官网网址渃entre of plate,B次元官网网址� typically beef, chicken or fish, or even just ordering less food at one time.

B次元官网网址淚f you donB次元官网网址檛 sell something by its (expiry date) itB次元官网网址檚 gone, you have to throw it out,B次元官网网址� Stewart said.

B次元官网网址淪o theyB次元官网网址檙e ordering less. TheyB次元官网网址檙e watching the inventory, controlling it, watching the plate size and designing smaller tighter menus.B次元官网网址�

Brett Bundale, The Canadian Press

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