Posted on 03/31/2022 10:20:44 AM PDT by nickcarraway
To Applebee's franchise executive Wayne Pankratz, surging gas prices are an opportunity for his business, rather than a downside. That's because, as he told managers at franchise owner Apple Central in an emailed memo, the pool of people who work at Applebee's live "paycheck to paycheck" and will be forced "back into the work force" to earn more.
Pankratz also saw another silver lining: High gas prices will increase costs for competitors, who won't be able to increase wages to the extent they had been. "We all competed to hire out of the limited applicant pool and there was a wage war," he wrote in the March 9 memo. "They will no longer be able to afford to do this."
The result, Pankratz predicted, is "hiring employees in at a lower wage to decrease our labor [costs]."
The memo, which was shared on social media, is sparking a backlash against Applebee's, with some consumers vowing never again to dine at the chain. And at one Applebee's location in Lawrence, Kansas, three of its six managers reportedly quit over the memo, according to the Lawrence World-Journal.
"I was just stunned and disgusted," Jake Holcomb, one of the Lawrence managers who quit over the memo, told the publication.
Pankratz: "Terminated by the franchisee"
Pankratz is no longer employed by Applebee's franchise owner Apple Central, according to a statement from Applebee's.
"The individual has been terminated by the franchisee who owns and operates the restaurants in this market," said Kevin Carroll, chief operations officer at Applebee's, in an emailed statement.
Attempts to reach Pankratz on Friday morning were unsuccessful, and Scott Fischer, director of communications for Apple Central, referred questions about the memo and Pankratz's employment status to Applebee's corporate office.
The company distanced itself from the memo. "This is the opinion of an individual, not Applebee's," Carroll said. Its employees "are the lifeblood of our restaurants, and our franchisees are always looking to reward and incentivize team members, new and current, to remain within the Applebee's family."
Applebee's corporate owner is Dine Brands Global of Glendale, California, perhaps best known as the founder of the IHOP pancake restaurant chain. Its more than 1,700 Applebee's franchises in the U.S. generated about $3 billion in total sales in 2020, according to the latest estimates from Restaurant Business magazine.
Most of those restaurants are owned by franchisees, with Applebee's owning and operating just 69 of its restaurants.
"Get a second job"
The Pankratz memo also aimed to provide some advice for managers to "make sure you have a pulse on the morale of your employees" and suggested that many workers "will need to work more hours or get a second job."
Pankratz's advice to managers: "Be conscious of that" and provide schedules early so the workers can arrange their second jobs around their Applebee's work.
Applebee's workers earn an average hourly wage of $11.76 an hour, according to Payscale. That's far below the average hourly pay of $17.22 an hour earned by people working in the leisure and hospitality sector in February, according to the most recent government data. Wages in the sector have jumped by 14% from a year earlier.
Not surprisingly, the tone of the memo drew criticism, with some customers vowing they'd stop eating at Applebee's.
"So, they acknowledge that they are not paying their employees a livable wage and their solution is … get schedules done earlier so their employees can plan their second job around them? What a joke," one Twitter user wrote.
Another chimed in, "I think @Applebees doesn't need my money anymore. Employees aren't pawns that you can use to get cheap labor during hard times. I'll spend my money elsewhere."
Funny how ANY POSSIBLE tips from customers are magically left out of all the calculations.
I’m not a thread policeman, but I di read this on FR 2-3 weeks ago?
Yep.
In whose world are restaurants having an easy time recruiting workers? This exec is living in a dream world as much as our “public servants” in Washington, DC who think the public is supposed to serve them.
Applebee’s falls into the category of most chain restaurants..
Mediocre Food for way too high of a price.
a boycott will result in employee layoffs
the people they are trying to support
Good reminder of why I refuse to eat at any chain. Only give my hard earned money to people who invest in the local community. Better food, better service, better pay.
There are a couple of chain places I buy from sometimes.
Prefer local mom and pop places.
Certain neighborhoods do not tip as well as other neighborhoods.
Gloating about workers economic problems and how to take advantage of them isn’t exactly an award winning business strategy.
But don’t worry, as inflation destroys the family budget I don’t think that going to Applebee’s is going to be a high priority for most families.
I wonder if these “irate customers” are also irate at what the current Administration is doing to the economy and prices.
Certainly poor optics, but this is how capitalism works. Maybe it benefits, maybe it doesn’t, but the operator has the freedom to do business as it wishes.
what is galling lately is having fast food places thrusting a tip form in your face....
I went there once. They forgot to cook my order and then gave me the “it’s going to be ready in a minute” shtick. I used to work in a similar type restaurant as a cook, and I know what was really going on.
After people who’d come in after us got their food I told the manager “We’re out of here. I want you to comp me the beer I drank while waiting”. He said no. That was it.
The only other time I even thought of going there was some time later, on a super hot day, only because they had AC. The line was too long, so I said “forget it”.
Now we make a game of making the sign of the cross every time we see one.
I thought bills always had a place you could put your tip?
Very true, especially in a blue county or state.
My eldest manages FF in a blue county, Red state, worked 92 hrs Christmas week, no 1 wanted masks or jabs or crime. Most couldn’t pass a drug screen either. District wanted him to do the nasal test. He was 50, said I’m not medically trained, these are 17 yr olds, and you can go ahead and fire me, I’m not Masking or taking the Jabs. He worked up to District level and knew the do’s and don’ts. Better jobs just aren’t there for him anymore. He demands people work, show up on time, no illegal drugs.
His age, not skills are against him, and being a Type 2 Diabetic doesn’t help.
Service varies at any chain, because they are mostly franchisees.. I’ve had great and less than great service from applebees.. but generally its okay/good.
The universal thing with chains is simply food quality, it’s MEH food at best and its overpriced for being MEH.
Believe me I have no problem paying a pretty penny for a nice dinner if that is what I choose to do... But if I can go to a restaurant with much higher food quality and options with my family for $90-$100, please tell me why I should go to your place who is going to offer me merely sandwhiches, burgers and some meh entrees, and pay you $70-$80 (with Tip) for it?
Applebees, and most of these chains, are little more than the corner bar in terms of food quality at 30-40% higher price.
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