A competitive, post-hurricane labor market has sent wages skyrocketing in the fast-food industry and prompted some of the New Orleans region's biggest chains to offer workers thousands of dollars in signing bonuses, perks typically linked with higher-paying white-collar jobs.
Popeyes Chicken & Biscuits has increased hourly pay for cashiers and cooks from just over the federal minimum wage of $5.15 to more than $8, a jump of more than 50 percent.
Burger King recruiters have been visiting federal disaster recovery centers and newly reopened high schools offering a $6,000 bonus, paid in monthly installments, to anyone promising to work full-time at a metropolitan New Orleans restaurant for at least a year. New part-time workers are being offered $3,000 bonuses.
Strategic Restaurant, which had a pre-storm work force of about 2,700 in the metro area, has lost about 1,271 front-line workers and 65 managers from the local market, Helton said. Before the storm, a fast-food restaurant employee could expect to earn just over the federal minimum wage of $5.15 as a part-time worker. Retention and referral bonuses for bringing in new workers can raise the worker's yearly income above $20,000.
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