OLYMPIA Wash. Industry advocates in Washington state are trying to use the economic downturn to their advantage.
Citing recent industry job losses and mounting business hardships, the Washington Restaurant Association is urging state lawmakers to table legislation the WRA contends could be costly to operators, such as proposed changes to the state’s workers’ compensation insurance program.
The Washington Employment Security Department reported that the state’s foodservices and drinking places employed 194,600 people in January, down 1.27 percent from January 2008. That reduction of 2,500 jobs marked the first time in seven years that the year-over-year foodservice employment number for January decreased, and only the second such decline in 19 years, ESD data indicate. The other January workforce reduction came in 2002 on the heels of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and resulting economic turmoil.
Olympia-based WRA said in a statement that its January monthly industry tracking survey of 5,000 members underscored “that business operators in this sector are encountering some significant economic challenges.” Association sources wrote, “Year-over-year comparisons [for January] show sharp declines for the month in restaurant business activity: sales, customer traffic, employee hours and staffing levels.
“Unfortunately, the only metric that increased was food costs,” the WRA representatives added.
Association leaders said bills being considered by the Legislature “would mandate detrimental and expensive changes to the Retrospective Rating Program [for workers' compensation insurance], unemployment insurance programs and a number of business tax laws.”
The “grim statistics” turned up by the WRA and Employment Security Department “reinforce the necessity for state lawmakers to enhance Washington’s business climate,” those leaders said. “Now would be a particularly disadvantageous time for increased taxes and costly regulations for businesses.”
Contact Alan J. Liddle at [email protected].