Linchi Kwok, Ph.D.

Everything is getting pricier. Everyone, from consumers to business owners, feels the pain.   How bad is it?     For eight consecutive months, consumer prices   spiked by 5% or more . The   consumer price index rose 7%   in December from a year ago. The last time inflation reached 7.1% was in June 1982. Here is a breakdown (as compared to last December unless specified otherwise):     Food: +6.3%   Gasoline: +49.6%   Energy: +29.3% or -1.1% from November Used car and truck: +37.3% Shelter cost: 4.1% or 0.4% from November   Wage is rising too   The inflation, plus labor shortage and the “Great Resignation,” have also pushed higher wages. Goldman Sacks CEO David Michael Solomon suggested in an interview that   wage inflation   is happening “in every area of the economy.” In December, the average hourly wages showed a 4.7% year-to-year increase, as some financial service firms reported a 14% or even 34% increase in compe...

In October, U.S. employers posted 11 million job openings . Job openings have exceeded 10 million for five consecutive months already. Meanwhile, there were only 7.4 million unemployed Americans in October, equivalent to 1.5 available jobs for every unemployed person.     The leisure and hospitality sector alone added additional 251,000 openings. Vacant positions in leisure and hospitality have reached 1.8 million. Then, what can hospitality businesses do to deal with the labor shortage issue?       Companies found solutions through automatic services   Hotels, restaurants, and foodservice businesses are redesigning jobs with more automatic service components. Hotels want customers to skip the Front Desk. Guests can use mobile apps to do almost everything for a hotel stay, from making/updating a reservation, checking in, opening the guestroom, making service requests, to checking out.     Restaurants and foodservice businesses went steps furt...

Federal’s extended unemployment benefits and stimulus checks helped people survive the pandemic. When the extra aid came to an end, along with the high inflation, hunger was on the rise again. Rising food and transportation costs have substantially affected people’s lives and non-profit organizations like food banks that help feed families in need.   Concerns about rising food and transportation costs   The grocery prices went up 6.4% in November from a year ago. People are also paying 50% more in gas prices in December. On December 14, the national average retail gas price reached $3.32 per gallon.     Rising food and transportation costs mean more hardship, especially for the poorest fifth of households, who need to spend 27% of their income on food (vs. 7% among the highest earners). Consequently, some families turn to cheaper, less-nutritious foods as a temporary solution, but the unhealthy alternatives usually create lasting negative impacts on people’s health....

  “Dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement.” --- James Truslow Adams   Do you believe in the American dream? Do you think people in the States can still climb up the ladder for a better life regardless of their social class or background?     If you are hardworking, the hospitality industry might be the right place to start your American dream. Hospitality jobs are not easy, but rewards will come to those who work hard. Most of all, the hospitality industry is big enough and offers ample opportunities for people with diverse backgrounds and talents.     Entry-level Jobs    The hospitality industry is a vast business sector that presents various career options, from helpers in the kitchen, servers, food stand workers, office clerks to any positions in-between. Most entry-level jobs do not even require formal education or previous work experience...

Tattoos are a form of expression that convey the individuality of their owners. They can represent a multitude of things, like a tie to a family member, a favorite quote with a special meaning, or even a favorite cartoon character. Tattoos also can carry great cultural and/or religious significance. Every tattoo is unique and says something about the individual person who wears it. The problem that many companies face is when a tattoo is considered appropriate and when it should be covered.  Employees are after all the faces of a company, so the tattoos on their bodies are connected to and represent that company as well. Some workplaces have instituted rules and regulations when it comes to their employees’ tattoos, but there can be negative consequences when a company goes too far in telling their employees what they can and cannot do with their own bodies. The Disney Company has recently changed its policy on tattoos. Disney’s goal is to create a magical, fantasy experience for t...

Currently, we are in the midst of a global pandemic that has caused extraordinary damage across the entire world. With the development of the COVID-19 vaccine, the demand for workers to be vaccinated has steadily increased as time passed.  Shortly after one of United Airlines’ pilots had passed away due to COVID-19, the decision to enforce a vaccine mandate was made. Currently, United is one of the first companies in the US that has successfully vaccinated nearly all of its staff (Chokshi & Scheiber, 2021) The debate between vaccine mandates and non-vaccine mandates has become an increasingly controversial topic, especially in the workforce. Hundreds of employees have already lost their job from their refusal to comply with the vaccine mandate (Chokshi & Scheiber, 2021) The glaring question is if this mandate is fair for everyone involved. For employers, it makes sense from a business perspective that they want their employees vaccinated. However, employees who choose to no...

The COVID-19 pandemic started in early 2020, and it has caused massive changes within a short period of time. One of the most rememberable effects of the COVID-19 pandemic was that businesses had to come to a complete halt, forcing them to lay off employees. California's unemployment rates went up.  Now that the stay-at-home orders have lifted, people start to come out. Businesses are now reopening, looking to rehire their laid-off employees. Before the pandemic, employers had the option of recalling only a certain number of laid-off employees they would want to rehire based on employees' job performance. That option had been changed after Governor Gavin Newsome signed into law - Senate Bill 93, which went into effect on April 16th, 2021. The California Senate Bill No. 93 (SB 93) According to SB 93, companies in specific industries, mainly the hospitality industry, have the obligation to provide job opportunities in written form to qualified employees being laid off due to COVI...