B.C.’s restaurant industry is hanging on by a thread, as lockdowns due to the COVID-19 pandemic appear set to persist until at least the summer.
Industry organization Restaurants Canada says a new survey of businesses found 10 per cent of the country’s restaurants have already closed for good, with another 18 per cent at risk of going under by the end of April.
Restaurants Canada western Canada vice-president Mark von Schellwitz said more than 800,000 Canadian restaurant workers are currently off the job. “In British Columbia that equates to about 121,500 jobs alone that might not be able to return if current conditions continue this way,” said “We’ve got many, many restaurateurs that are struggling to pay their rent and other bills in