Aargau catering industry shortly before reopening: “If you make the wrong choice now, you can go bankrupt” – Canton (Aargau) – Aargau

Restaurants, bars and pubs can open on Mondays, but are they? “Most will open,” says Bruno Lustenberger, president of the Gastro Aargau industry association. One is “a little euphoric,” he says, that one can start again now. But the crisis has undoubtedly left its mark. Lustenberger assumes that five to ten percent of companies will no longer work. They are economic victims of the corona virus.

By the end of the year, there should be much more to come. Lustenberger says: “The deciding factor will be how well the business runs from May to October.” And of course it will be very important that you get the right time for the reopening. Anyone who opens now should be aware that this involves high costs. For security measures such as partitions, floor marks, disinfectants, masks, etc. “If you make the wrong decision now, it can be ruined,” says Lustenberger.

Around 1,000 hospitality establishments applied for short-term jobs

Key questions: Do you have clients again? Or are all my regular guests still working in the home office? And of course it depends on the size. The distance rules reduce the number of guests who have space in a restaurant in half, much more. If too few people fit in one place, it will be difficult to be profitable. Lustenberger assumes that about 20 percent will have to wait because opening them just isn’t worth it.

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The Secretary of State for Economic Affairs (Seco) does not want to ruin any business, which is why catering companies can still claim short-term workers compensation after May 11, if the opening is limited due to economic reasons. Stephan Nauer, a short-term expert in the canton of Aargau, says: “A small restaurant with four employees can only use four instead of eight tables for service. With these four tables, it is impossible to cover the costs.

Around 1,000 restaurants worked for a short time

The forced opening by the catering association and politicians helps save money. Also because the number of companies that work in the short term can be drastically reduced. So far, the Office of Economic Affairs and Labor has issued around 1,000 permits for short-term job applications from the catering sector. Around 11,000 employees are affected. And that with a total of 10,500 approved applications and 166,000 people working in the short term (about 42 percent of the workforce in Aargau).

Nauer and his colleagues at the AWA have the tip of the corona wave behind them. They received up to 900 requests per day in April. Now there are between 50 and 70 applications. The pressure is now on the unemployment funds, which are overwhelmed with the short-term jobs of thousands of companies. The improvement is also evident here. Nauer: «Starting in mid-May, an automated tool will be implemented in the public unemployment fund. Entrepreneurs can then complete the invoice online. The payment process is simplified and is faster ». All those hosts for whom a reopening still doesn’t make sense will also be delighted with this.