28 FEATURE
The dining-in dilemma Indoor dining has resumed since late July which meant that retailers around the country were also free to open indoor seating areas for the first time in 18 months. However, many retailers have decided not to open these areas because of the minefield of issues that comes with it. Fionnuala Carolan looks at why indoor dining is still such a bone of contention for retailers
Vincent Jennings, chief executive of the CSNA, says there has been “zero accommodation or willingness to accommodate any distinctions whatsoever” for indoor dining within the convenience sector
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eing permitted to do something and being able to do it are two completely different things. Retailers around the country have been dealing with the issue of whether to open their indoor dining facilities over the past few weeks and many it seems decided it just wasn’t worth it. From too much legislation and not enough staff to enforce it, some retailers have decided that the government’s public health regulations need to be adapted in order for them to take the leap of welcoming their customers back indoors. Since 26 July, indoor hospitality has been allowed to re-open with a list of government regulations and protocols in relation to evidence of customers’ Covid-19 vaccination. According to the regulations: “Business owners and management who are operating indoor hospitality should adhere to their sector-specific guidelines in addition to implementing the guidance for indoor hospitality.” This is all well and good but unfortunately for the retail sector the guidelines did not seem to be very “sector-specific”. The initial guidelines made no clear differentiation between casual indoor dining in a shop/coffee shop/takeaway and the entirely different beast
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of indoor dining in a restaurant or bar that serves alcohol. Dwell times are different and the risks associated with alcohol do not come into play in a retail environment but those putting together the guidelines completely failed to acknowledge this. The guidelines also state that all businesses need to ensure processes are in place and staff are trained so that the business is operating within the approved legislation. Hiring staff has reached crisis levels in the retail sector at present so there is little chance of a business finding extra staff members to police the new protocol or indeed finding the time to train staff on what is needed when the guidelines were published so close to the reopening date.
Zero accommodation Before the guidelines were released, the CSNA had discussions with Minister Damien English about how retail outlets should be treated differently to businesses selling alcohol. However, it seemed to fall on deaf ears as when the guidelines came out all food businesses were treated as equal. Vincent Jennings, chief executive of the CSNA says there has been “zero accommodation or willingness to accommodate any distinctions whatsoever between the various styles of outlet that provide hospitality from the government guidelines”. He believes that the regulations were designed by people who have never run a business. “While the regulations might work in a slow moving fine dining restaurant with a small number of covers, in our operations where we have hundreds of people coming through and only a small percentile wishing to use that facility, you certainly can’t ask every customer coming in for their cert as it’s not relevant and when they make their purchase, you don’t know whether they are sitting down or walking out the door. “There was no thought whatsoever and no consideration. I know that all of the main
players including the McDonalds plus the likes of Costa Coffee are all affected by this and if people can browse inside, why can’t they stay for 20 minutes to consume something?” he questions. He says that the real problems arise when you throw alcohol into the mix and it seems like the restrictions were devised for pubs and restaurants to prevent people becoming too free and easy and dropping their guard. “The vast majority of our retailers have said ‘no, we’re not going there’,” he says. “They can’t afford to have a separate staff member dealing with this. And coupled with the fact that we’ve had 18 months of being targeted by a small but incredibly vociferous group of people, this would be just something to further intimidate us with.”
Discrimination A notice in the window of Maxol Service Station in Sandyford, Co Dublin is a case
The above sign in Maxol Service Station in Sandyford, Co Dublin was posted on Twitter by a customer and has received a lot of support from the public, as well as some opposition
