InTouch | October 2021

INtouch

PO Box 7577, Columbia, SC 29202

october 2021

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OPS EMPOWERING WINNING HABITS Learn how SCRLA members can get six months of ServSafe Ops for FREE! Please join us virtually on Tuesday, October 26 at 3:00 pm for a webinar with special guest, Jena Henderson of WorkMerk.

Introducing the new SCRLA mobile app!

All of your membership needs at the touch of your fingertips.

Search SCRLA to download in both the Apple App Store and the Google Play Store for free.

Learn how ServSafe Ops app can empower your staff to succeed. Developed specifically for the restaurant industry, ServSafe Ops is a powerful tool that helps ensure operational efficiency, winning habits for your staff— and success for your business.

One easy-to-use app empowers your restaurant staff to succeed.

Technology features and benefits include:

SCRLA Partner Spotlight SCRLA and Highland Brewing Company partnering for second year of Give back with gaelic campaign Highland Brewing Company launched its second year of “Give Back with Gaelic,” a charitable giving campaign to support the hospitality industry workers across the brewery’s entire Southeast distribution footprint. The campaign, launched in September, will run through the end of the year.

According to recent data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, leisure and hospitality unemployment rates still exceed the national unemployment rate by 3.6%. In response to the ongoing need, the brewery is stepping up for a second year to give a portion of the proceeds from sales of Gaelic Ale, the brewery’s flagship amber ale, to six locally significant non-profits aimed to support the hospitality community.

Highland’s Family Owner and President, Leah Ashburn, said, “We have first-hand experience navigating pandemic-related hospitality challenges in both of our taprooms. However, with customers purchases from across our footprint and the support from our wholesale partners, we have the ability to repeat this giving program. Highland will continue to do whatever we can to help pay it forward to so many of our own who still need support during this long road to recovery.”

With additional matching contributions from the brewery’s distribution partners, the program is expected to raise more than last year’s $25,000 for the SCRLA and six other organizations in the Southeast.

Customers looking to support the campaign can look for the updated Gaelic Ale packaging featuring a red “Give Back with Gaelic” banner (pictured above). It is available at retailers across the Southeast. Learn more at highlandbrewing.com/giveback.

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Nudges/Messages Task Consolidation Issues Training WORKtext Information Consolidation

Visit SCRLA.org/events to sign up for our October 26 webinar today!

SBA ups the limit on COVID-19 EIDL loans Restaurants can now apply for up to $2 million to help with pandemic recovery.

Restaurants and other small businesses now have access to more lowinterest federal loan funds to help with pandemic recovery, thanks to a revamped Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) program.

The U.S. Small Business Administration retooled the EIDL program this month, quadrupling the cap on individual loans from $500,000 to $2 million and offering more flexibility in the way businesses can use the funds. A National Restaurant Association webinar, available to watch on demand, details the changes and provides step-by-step instructions on how to apply.

EIDL is “an important tool in the recovery toolbox for this industry,” notes the Association’s Executive Vice President of Public Affairs Sean Kennedy in the webinar’s opening remarks. That tool just became more powerful.

Businesses that received a previous EIDL loan can request additional funds.

The 3.75% business loans are payable over 30 years. “This is very cheap debt that’s stretched over a long time,” says webinar speaker Patrick Kelley, associate administrator of the SBA’s Office of Capital Access.

SBA is authorized to make COVID-19 EIDL loans through Dec. 31, 2021, or when funds are exhausted, whichever occurs first. Restaurateurs are encouraged to apply as soon as possible. Until Oct. 8, the program is limiting loan approvals to $500,000. If you’re requesting that amount or less, apply quicky to take advantage of this exclusivity period. Loans above $500,000 will not be approved before Oct. 8, but you can still apply today.

One tip for those who haven’t received an EIDL loan already: Apply now for up to $500,000, Kelley recommends. As soon as that’s approved—within about three weeks—you can log into the SBA portal and submit a loan modification requesting additional funds.

The revamped EIDL program offers several upgrades including: increased loan amounts; expanded use of funds; deferment of payback; broadened eligibility rules for affiliated businesses; and restrictions on receiving EIDL funds.

How to Apply: •

First time applicants may complete an online COVID-19 EIDL application at SBA.gov/funding-programs/loans/covid-19-relief-options

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Businesses applying for an increase may complete a request in your COVID-19 EIDL portal

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We tee’d off for scholarships in September for hospitality education!

The SCRLA hosted its annual Hospitality Leaders Golf Tournament on Monday, September 20 at the Cliffs at Keowee Vineyards.

Presented by the US. Foods, this friendly competition provides a great opportunity to have some fun on the greens, network, and raise money for students seeking careers in the hospitality industry. All proceeds from the golf tournament benefit the South Carolina Restaurant and Lodging Education Foundation, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization for the sole purpose of advancing hospitality education.

More than 100 golfers and sponsors braved the rain to spend a day on the links. Mama Penn’s from Anderson took home first place, while Table 301 and US. Foods Team 4 took home second and third place. Congratulations to our winning teams!

Part-Time & FullTime Hospitality Personnel

Get health insurance for you and your family.

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OSHA says new foodservice safety measures are coming The rules will seek to protect back-of-house workers when temperatures soar to extreme heights.

The Occupational Health & Safety Administration (OSHA) will begin drafting additional safety standards for foodservice kitchens in October as part of a new Biden Administration initiative to protect workers from dangerous heat, the White House announced recently.

In the meantime, OSHA intends to make inspections of potentially high-temperature job sites a higher priority when heat indices climb past 80 degrees. Kitchens are mentioned as one of those workplaces, and the agency is also focusing on delivery drivers.

The announcement raises the likelihood of more near-term kitchen inspections whenever outdoor temperature readings should soar. But OSHA indicated that it will work with employers to protect workers more effectively from heatstroke or other heat-related ailments, rather than seeking sanctions or penalties.

The agency said it will consult with the employers to encourage such best practices as having cold water readily available, providing ample breaks so workers can cool off in the shade, and helping new hires gradually build up a tolerance to heat.

At least some of the recommendations could morph into requirements in the rulemaking process OSHA said it will com-

mence in October by soliciting input from the public on what to set as regulations. The final rules may not be presented to employers for months.

WE’VE GOT YOUR BACK. AND FRONT OF HOUSE.

The efforts to bolster workers’ protections against dangerously high temperatures are part of what President Biden termed “an all-government effort” to deal with extreme weather conditions, such as the heat waves that raged this summer in much of the country.

“As with other weather events, extreme heat is gaining in frequency and ferocity due to climate change, threatening communities across the country,” the president said in announcing the initiative. “In fact, the National Weather Service has confirmed that extreme heat is now the leading weather-related killer in America.”

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He said that millions of American workers are at risk when temperatures climb high, and cited such additional vulnerabilities as the lack of air conditioning in schools and some retirement homes.

Several states, including California, Washington and Minnesota, adopted new rules this summer in attempts to better safeguard workers from the extreme heat that afflicted those areas.

Oregon is in the process of drafting standards.

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October 2021 • SCRLA.org

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