We talked about labor costs early last year and gave you a brief overview as to what labor cost is. Labor cost can dramatically affect your bottom line, so we are back to offer more helpful strategies to help you stay on track in 2023. If you do not already have procedures in place to track your labor cost, there is no better time to start than right now. Labor cost can be difficult to track since they are not always consistent, but if you fail to put a system in place, you could be eating into your profits before you realize what is happening.
Always Recheck your Schedule
Although having your employees on a regular rotation might seem easier for you and your staff, it is not always beneficial. Due to certain times of the year being busier than others or special events bringing in higher volumes of customers on certain days, it doesn’t make sense to have the same number of employees working at all times. By evaluating your restaurant’s slower hours in the day and making sure you aren’t over scheduling employees, you will already begin to save! Don’t forget to check the weather forecast as well. If there is rain, snow, or really cold temperatures, you might have a slower day therefore not needing as many people working! There are many factors that play a role in deciding if you need all hands on deck or just a few employees. Taking a look at your schedule at the beginning of each week to get a gauge on the amount of staff you need working will help you immensely in the long run.
Automate your scheduling process
Remember when scheduling employees was a hassle that took hours upon hours? Those days are behind us and you can now easily schedule your employees as well as get detailed insight into labor cost when your software is integrated with your POS system. We just touched on the importance of checking the forecast each week and some scheduling software has that information readily available to help you schedule accordingly. Scheduling software also allows you the advantage of seeing what employees are clocking in early or clocking out late. While it might just seem like a minute or two here and there, over time this can add up causing you significant loss in profits. The benefits to automating your scheduling process will not only save you money, which is reason enough in itself, but will also help you operate much more efficiently.
So don’t waste another minute. Take some time to decide how your restaurant is going to track labor cost and begin implementing right away. You can also calculate your turnover rate and see if that is eating into your profits. If so, we have a blog for you to check out with tips for retaining employees. Inflation is on the rise, so cutting costs where you can and not overspending on unnecessary expenses will help your restaurant succeed.
