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00:00Curious if anecdotally some of the members of your association had been giving you glimpses that this was happening. Have they been slowly starting to rehire . Well Taylor thanks for having me join you today. Look the news that just came out about jobs and certainly in our sector is encouraging. And yes the you know with the reopening that's happening out there not nearly at the rate that we need today we are seeing some restaurant employees coming back to work. I think the challenge for us though is that that's the height of this pandemic. We had about 8 million restaurant employees that have been laid off or furloughed. So we're certainly on the road to slow recovery but there's still a lot of uncertainty out there. And are you surprised by some of the nimbleness of restaurants to quickly shift to doing takeout and delivery as many restaurants were closed for indoor dining. What are some restaurants shall we knew about how nimble they been in transitioning throughout this pandemic . Well it's one of the great things about this industry. It doesn't surprise me at all because one of the things that has made this industry great is the creativity and the entrepreneurial spirit that has always existed always existed . You think about these folks. They are always looking at ways to solve problems for their guests and create new experiences for them. So I'm not surprised at all that they have been able to shift quickly in some cases things like delivery and takeout . But there are other things like alcohol to go with are great examples of where industry's nimble and flexible and trying to do things to get themselves back on track. Although we'll be we have a long way still to go. And some of that long ways to go . And you've highlighted this 8 million jobs lost of course a while. You get a little boost from today's jobs report nowhere near back to the levels that we previously had. As you look at those numbers how long do you think it will take to recover the full 8 million jobs that you've lost. What are some of the the barriers that you're noticing . Well there are a couple of things and when we think about not just the 8 million jobs but we anticipate that about 240 billion dollars in losses will be had by this industry by the end of 2020. And so the recovery period is going to be important and it's going to take some time here with the uncertainty that's still out there. I think the biggest thing is the amount of openings that are allowed. So as we know there are many communities are at 25 percent today some moving to 50 percent . So it's hard for this industry to survive those type of levels . So we need creativity between local and state governments working with the restaurants and trying to create the environment. We get more people back into these restaurants albeit we need to do it safely. That's very important. And we obviously are partnering with those local and state governments to do that. But it's going to take the industry getting back to more capacity. And at the current levels it's just going to be difficult for the industry to sustain this. And there's been a lot of concern too that people don't want to go out to restaurants until there is a vaccine. What early data have you gleaned from demand with some of those same local governments that have started to open up. How quickly are consumers returning . I think you hit the nail on the head. There are a couple of things that have to be true. One the consumer of the guest needs to feel safe. And I think the headline here is that food safety and safe food handling has always been a hallmark of this industry. If you think about all the training and certification programs that are in place today and have been for decades in partnership with the CDC and FDA and USDA those type of things are going to help us because we're really used to doing these type of things. Yes there are some new planning procedures that are out there and protocols again in partnership with those same organizations. So I think it's giving consumers competence so they can come back in and enjoy a meal and also do it in a very safe environment. So I think the good news is we've got a huge head start here. We just got to continue to reinforce that and remind consumers and give them that comfort and confidence because we know they all want to be back out there. Is your industry pushing for more stimulus money . Absolutely. If you think about the PDP program in the most recent Flexibility Act that came through this week. Look that was a great step towards a more complete relief package. But this is really for our industry just a bridge. You think about this industry we've asked for a little more focused efforts and certainly believe that the next recovery bill needs to have targeted relief for restaurants. We've asked for 240 billion dollars to support this industry. And I think it's important for everyone to recognize and realize that this is not about creating an environment where operators are profiting. This is simply about looking to create an environment where they can survive. The restaurants are such an important part of all of these communities that we all work and live in. And it's really important that we get this this part of the industry back on its feet. You know quickly here. There's been a lot of rust on terrorists who come out and say frankly there's nothing appealing about serving you food in a mask and gloves. It really takes away from the experience. Is that true . Well I think again back to what's important is we need the guests to feel very comfortable and we need the employees of the restaurants to feel comfortable and safe. And so I think it's more about creating the environment where everyone has that comfort and having a mask on. Having that waiter or server have a mask on helps that guests feel more comfortable and feel like there's additional things in place. We're OK with that. I think it's really about creating an environment where everyone can feel safe and comfortable .

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National Restaurant Assn. CEO Says Industry Is on Road to a Slow Recovery

National Restaurant Association Chief Executive Officer Tom Bene sees restaurant employees starting to come back to work and says the industry is on the road to a slow recovery. He speaks with Bloomberg's Taylor Riggs on "Bloomberg Markets." (Source: Bloomberg)

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