Restaurants need to be saved urgently' says RASA with level 4 set to expire
The Restaurant Association of South Africa (RASA) says restaurants in South Africa have been hit hard during the two-week adjusted level 4 lockdown, putting 70% of employees on unpaid layoffs.
The National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC) will meet on Sunday to discuss the regulations as level 4 expires on July 12.
RASA CEO, Wendy Alberts says restaurants need to be saved urgently.
"Iconic businesses to the South African landscape have come in the last 24 hours that indicate the number of closures due to the inability for us to trade our businesses to some degree of performance. We have called an urgent meeting with Premiers to please engage with the President to save the industry," she says.
"Every hour that we are losing another business falls prey to fatality and we simply cannot trade to the next weeks without being opened and without alcohol being served on our tables," says Alberts.
Alberts says they want proof from the NCCC that restaurants are a high risk for the transmission of Covid-19.
"We don't believe that with the ventilation that we have, as well as open doors, windows, and outdoor spaces that we are not in a position to safely trade people,” Albers explains.
“We have had no reports of transmissions in our restaurants. We are hoping the President will announce the lifting of the curfew and timeframe, and restaurants will be allowed to trade as per our business model.”
“No other industries have had to remodel their business and we simply won't tolerate the continuation of the closure of our business," she added.
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