Two Wichita restaurant chains will hold hiring event as diners return
Two Wichita chain restaurants are looking to jointly hire more than 40 workers, as diners return to eating out and business owners across the region report trouble filling positions.
Texas Roadhouse and Bubba’s 33 in Wichita will host a joint hiring event June 7 with in-person interviews. The restaurants are hiring for servers, cooks and other back-of-the-house jobs.
Interested applicants can schedule interviews online at texasroadhouse.jobdetails.io/hiringday. A spokesperson did not directly answer questions about starting wages, but said pay varies based on experience and position.
The interviews will take place at the Texas Roadhouse at 2526 N. Greenwich and the Bubba’s 33 at 412 S. Towne East Mall Drive in Wichita. Other locations in the city will not participate.
It will be the first-ever hiring day of its kind for the restaurants, and most locations across the country will hold identical events on June 7.
Last year, Texas Roadhouse said it spent more than $20 million in COVID-19 relief dollars and bonuses on its employees, according to a news release.
Fast food and chain restaurant owners in Wichita and across the country have reported difficulty filling open positions in the last month, as people return to eating in restaurants and COVID-19 vaccinations rise. While hiring troubles have led to concerns about a shortage of labor, experts have said chain restaurants are adding more jobs than before the pandemic.
Other hospitality business owners have complained that federal unemployment benefits, which add an extra $300 per week and extend payments to many potential workers, have kept people from returning to the workforce. Republican leaders in Kansas and nationally have called for an early end to such unemployment programs.
“Like other restaurants and even across other industries, hiring has been a challenge lately,” a spokesperson said in an email. “But we are seeing more and more folks who are looking for work.”
Dine-in and to-go business has increased across the country and also in Wichita.
“People are wanting to get out to enjoy a great meal and experience,” the spokesperson said. “We offer competitive pay, great benefits, flexible work schedules, and a fun place to work.”
Texas Roadhouse is based in Louisville, Kentucky and has more than 611 locations in 49 states and 10 countries. Bubba’s 33, a newer concept, opened its first store in 2013 in North Carolina.
