A new tightrope for HR leaders: Integrate robots workers without alienating human employees
A labor shortage triggered by the pandemic has the service industry accelerating its automation initiatives, which could be a harbinger of what's to come in other industries.
Like it or not, robots are coming for the restaurant world—and once programmed, they’re going to show up each day to watch as you drop mayo on your pants and inefficiently shove jalapeño poppers through your filthy flesh tubes. It’s a shame you aren’t also programmed to be perfect.
Thanks to advancements in technology and a tight labor market, management is gearing up for a fleet of their dream robotic workers. Flesh-and-bone service workers, meanwhile, are anxious, and as automation increases, HR is stuck in the middle trying to onboard the bots without sending their remaining humans running straight out the door.
Taco Borga, owner of La Duni in Dallas, Texas, is one restaurant owner who was “suffering” to meet customer demand as the labor shortage left him scrambling to fill shifts.
“During the pandemic, everyone found a new way to make money,” he told HR Brew. “And, more importantly, they discovered this thing called Saturday nights. And Sundays off. Now, hospitality is at the bottom of the totem pole for where to work. So I have all these people who want to come out to eat, but where do you get the cooks? The bartenders? The well is dry. We had to be creative.”
La Duni’s dilemma was far from unique: According to Bureau of Labor Statistics data reported by Restaurant Dive, the 6.8% quit rate for hospitality workers was double the nationwide average in August.
Regardless of why they left the industry—whether it be for “Saturday nights” or the possibilities of better wages and health insurance—hospitality workers are proving hard to get back. Borga’s creative solution was an investment in three robots: a busboy, hostess, and food runner from American Robotech. Borga described the investment as the best money he ever spent. He told HR Brew that the restaurant is twice as efficient, and everyone is happier—humans included.
“Our [food expeditor], who previously had to carry a 20-pound tray 60 to 80 times a shift was released from that function,” Borga explained. “Now she’s twice or three times as fast, goes home without shoulder or arm pain, and our servers are more efficient.”
After a year of uncertainty and trying (and failing) to woo employees back to the restaurant world, Borga has welcomed the dependability of having a robot on payroll.
“People call to ask, ‘Are the robots working?’” Borga told HR Brew, “And I tell them, ‘You don’t understand. The whole premise of robots is they don’t get sick, they don’t take days off.’ You plug them in, and they do the job happily every day.”
Buying into bots
As of now, the DOL doesn’t release a monthly job report for robots, but the numbers we do have tell a compelling story.
Per the “Global State of the Hospitality Industry” report from restaurant software company Lightspeed, 87% of industry operators, owners or managers believe technology adoption was critical to restaurants surviving the pandemic. According to the same report, the trend isn’t going anywhere. 50% of restaurants plan to use automation to fill labor gaps within the next two to three years, and a Square/Wakefield Research survey found that 91% have already invested or plan to invest in automated kitchen tech.
Big names including White Castle, Sweetgreen, McDonald’s, Arby’s, Sonic, and Checkers have all begun to pilot automated labor innovations.
The problem? Although Borga said his human employees are happy with their newfound efficiency, economists note that increases in productivity could, over time, automate workers out of a job. Today, humans who view machines as a long-term threat to job security may proactively look elsewhere, making this labor-shortage solution itself a potential source of turnover.
