LEADERSHIP REPORTS
Message from Carol Dover I’m so excited to share our fall issue of Florida Restaurant and Lodging, which is full of updates on the state of our industry, employment and labor issues that we face, and the best practices for success. We recently had some amazing inperson events, including the Marketing and Operations Summit at the beautiful Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood. The world’s first guitarshaped hotel was the perfect place for us to gather after several months of modified or partially virtual events. It was wonderful to see everyone, learn from amazing keynote speakers and breakout sessions, and hear from our great Gov. Ron DeSantis. We also just hosted the 20th annual Bob Leonard Golf Classic in Orlando. This great event paired our industry partners with VIP golfers for a day of unparalleled relationshipbuilding opportunities and great competitive fun with 240 golfers. How wonderful it has been to be back safely in person — something our industry thrives on. While we were thrilled to welcome record visitors to Florida this summer, the season brought renewed challenges to Florida’s hospitality industry as business travel and events, which had started to return, paused again due to the rise in COVID’s Delta variant. While leisure travel remained strong in most areas of the state, many still faced labor shortages that significantly impacted business operating hours, capacity availability and revenue.
Now that the Delta variant surge is on the decline, we are hopeful that we can take a collective sigh of relief and move forward with our recovery efforts. We continue to encourage vaccinations across the industry as it is our best opportunity to slow the uncontrolled spread of the virus and its mutating variants. I know you all are listening intently to both your team members and your guests and are implementing sanitation procedures that are best for your operations, and I commend you for your dedication and commitment to safety and excellence in service. If you have not already taken advantage our wonderful employment resource, GreatFloridaJob.com, I encourage you to visit the website and post your job vacancies. It is a one-stop shop for employers and job-seekers to both post and find hospitality jobs in the Sunshine State. Applications are increasing, and many employers are finding quality employees, so make sure you participate and find your newest team members today. Make sure you also check out FRLA’s minimum wage web page for the latest on the newly increased minimum wage for Florida. As of Sept. 30, the minimum hourly wage is $10 an hour. Florida employers are permitted to take a tip credit of up to $3.02 per hour for tipped employees, so the minimum hourly cash wage rate for eligible tipped employees is $6.98. For additional details, visit FRLA.org/minimum-wage and make sure
to check out our webinars and podcasts that also address minimum wage increases and best practices in response. We will continue to keep you updated on federal matters regarding proposed minimum wage increases and how our industry can respond. Florida’s legislative session begins on Jan. 11, 2022, and we will keep you apprised of all the updates for our industry. We are excited to again welcome you to Florida’s Capitol for Tourism Day on Jan. 19, 2022. We look forward to sharing more details about this event with you in the weeks to come, but we hope many of you will be able to make the trip here to Tallahassee to tell your stories and share your experiences with Florida’s policymakers.
Carol B. Dover Carol B. Dover FRLA President & CEO
Message from the Chairman We are looking forward to some cooler days in the Panhandle, and with fall in the air comes an exciting event that I hope you all will consider participating in: the second annual Virtual Salute to Wounded Warriors on Veteran’s Day, Nov. 11, 2021. The Blue Angels Foundation supports our nation’s heroes and their families by assisting wounded veterans with the challenges the face after their service. This will be a celebration for them. To find out more about it and the Foundation, visit the Blue Angels Foundation. While it has been a difficult few months due to the rekindling of the Delta variant of COVID-19 and ongoing labor and supply chain issues, the industry is making a comeback. It was awesome to see so many industry members and suppliers at the Marketing + Operations Summit; all in 6 FALL
2021
attendance were happy to be there and you could feel the return of the industry. It was truly an exciting event to be a part of. While workforce is such a major issue for us, there are companies and organizations out there offering much needed help. Be sure to look into some of the suppliers that FRLA is working with in this area, you may find an approach that may help you. In addition, GreatFloridaJob.com is clocking along, and we are hoping that some advertising for the website will assist in driving job seekers to the industry.
Jim Shirley
Jim Shirley 2021 Chairman of the Board FLORIDA RESTAUR ANT & LOD GING A S SO CIATION
