Mark Cuban has said how companies treat workers during a pandemic could define their brand ‘for decades’, and it seems that Joe Farruggio, the owner of Il Canale is already making a difference with his restaurant.
( WASHINGTON, DC) — Many companies are laying off employees during the coronavirus pandemic. Joe Farruggio closed down Il Canale but is keeping his staff on the payroll in an effort to support service industry workers who are otherwise out of work and without income.
Mark Cuban has said how companies treat workers during a pandemic could define their brand ‘for decades’, and it seems that Joe Farruggio, the owner of Il Canale is already making a difference with his restaurant.
While the federal government is offering many loans to small businesses for them to keep employees on payroll, Joe Farruggio made a bold decision to keep them and pay them before Il Canale applied for the loan from the stimulus packages. This decision comes at a time when most, if not all restaurants have shut down and ceased all business operations or only offer some take-out and delivery options.
As a result, many workers in the food and services industry – often of the working class who rely on their work for their income – have been placed in a precarious position at a time when they are most vulnerable.
“The coronavirus outbreak has triggered unprecedented mass layoffs. Our operations have been paused but I wanted to do something different at Il Canale and help my staff navigate through this unprecedented time. Il Canale’s employees will continue to receive pay throughout the COVID-19 crisis. I am keeping all my employees even though we had to close down the restaurant out of the safety concerns and we did not get the loan yet” Farruggio stated.
He added: “If small businesses can do it, big companies can do it too. Humanity at the time of coronavirus, matters.”