It's a little bit of this, and it's a little bit of that!
You can bet that many people that are still drawing Unemployment benefits, are not going back to work until the unemployment benefits stop! But, this is not just the case for Restaurant workers. As I personally know some people in various well-paying professional career jobs that do this. AND I WILL ADD, IT REALLY IS NOT DUE TO THE COVID LAY-OFFS EITHER- AS I HAVE KNOWN MANY PEOPLE TO DO THIS, REPUBLICANS AND DEMOCRATS! This has been going on for as long as Unemployment benefits even existed. I think it is just human nature to milk the UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFIT TO THE VERY END!
But, many restaurant workers that got laid-off during the Covid Crisis, went right back to work as delivery drivers for Uber and Grubhub. They like the money they are making, and do not intend to go back into the restaurants to work for minimum wage ever again. And the program has been such a success for restaurants , the food delivery companies, and the drivers, this service will now be adapted as STANDARD FARE in the restaurant business. And of course, many restaurants hired their own delivery drivers who mainly work for tips plus a minimum wage.
Another problem for workers in every career, are the DAY CARE CENTER problem. Many closed down, never to re-open again. People with children have nowhere to drop their children off so that they can work. And because babies and children are major carriers of Covid, and day care centers are basically virus incubators, and most day-care workers only make minimum wage, many people are not returning to this career either. AND THIS IS BASICALLY THE NUMBER ONE REASON WHY MOST WOMEN ARE NOT GOING BACK TO WORK! THEY REALLY HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO STAY AT HOME AND WATCH THEIR YOUNGER CHILDREN!
The average fast-food restaurant worker only works less than a year in that career anyway, before seeking better paying jobs elsewhere. The restaurant industry has one of the largest employee turnover rates of any industry in business today. Perhaps not at the management level, but at the grunt entry level for sure. So many restaurant workers used this time off to find better jobs and have already moved on. AND GOOD FOR THEM.
SO, yes, there are several dynamics in play that are causing the restaurant, service level, and retail industries to get back to normal again!