MRG Employee Fund
Donation protected
Dear Friends & Neighbors,
There has never been a more critical time to care for others in our community. With so many different needs and various ways to help, there is no one right answer.
As a small business owner who has always invested in my community, I feel an obligation to the over 200 employees on my payroll and the hundreds of lives who rely on them at home. Do we stay open to save their livelihoods, or do we shutter everything so all stay safely at home?
I need to strike the right balance between keeping my teams and customers healthy, while also using my businesses as a way to help those who have real, everyday, basic needs. If I close my doors I shut off the power to help. Currently, we have managed to keep Wilde and Lady Gregory’s open, we hope to reopen Octavio this week and we are working on a plan to try and get LG’s Bar reopened as soon as we can.
My managers and I chose to try and stay operating to make our restaurants a place for good, as long as we can do so safely and in a way that is sustainable. There isn’t enough business to keep all 200 people employed. So, the management team and I, with the help of a small team of employees, are working to generate income and buy necessities for the whole team.
What we are doing to help:
· My managers have taken a reduced salary to keep more people employed
· We are maintaining our employee’s health benefits
· We are pooling all tips and service charges to ensure everyone makes a minimum of $16 per hour
· We are using any excess pooled tips to buy basic necessities for any employee in need of help – diapers, milk, formula, bread, gas cards, and other basics. They can come and take what they need, no questions asked
· Every employee can come into a restaurant for a free meal, everyday
How you can help when you order from us:
· Tip a little extra, if you can afford it, to help all of our employees, not just the ones who serve you
· We will be starting our own home delivery service in the coming days and charging a delivery fee to increase the fund for our employees
· Take advantage of our “No Contact” Take Out or Curbside Pick Up, rather than using GrubHub and UberEats, so we can keep all restaurant proceeds to help our employees
· CONTRIBUTE TO OUR GOFUNDME PAGE TO HELP OUR EMPLOYEE FUND GO FURTHER
The health and safety of our customers and team members are at the center in everything we do. You can learn more about our enhanced health measures.
Thank you for your continued support, and more importantly, thank you for helping make our restaurants a conduit of good in the community.
Sincerely,
Martin Cournane
Owner
There has never been a more critical time to care for others in our community. With so many different needs and various ways to help, there is no one right answer.
As a small business owner who has always invested in my community, I feel an obligation to the over 200 employees on my payroll and the hundreds of lives who rely on them at home. Do we stay open to save their livelihoods, or do we shutter everything so all stay safely at home?
I need to strike the right balance between keeping my teams and customers healthy, while also using my businesses as a way to help those who have real, everyday, basic needs. If I close my doors I shut off the power to help. Currently, we have managed to keep Wilde and Lady Gregory’s open, we hope to reopen Octavio this week and we are working on a plan to try and get LG’s Bar reopened as soon as we can.
My managers and I chose to try and stay operating to make our restaurants a place for good, as long as we can do so safely and in a way that is sustainable. There isn’t enough business to keep all 200 people employed. So, the management team and I, with the help of a small team of employees, are working to generate income and buy necessities for the whole team.
What we are doing to help:
· My managers have taken a reduced salary to keep more people employed
· We are maintaining our employee’s health benefits
· We are pooling all tips and service charges to ensure everyone makes a minimum of $16 per hour
· We are using any excess pooled tips to buy basic necessities for any employee in need of help – diapers, milk, formula, bread, gas cards, and other basics. They can come and take what they need, no questions asked
· Every employee can come into a restaurant for a free meal, everyday
How you can help when you order from us:
· Tip a little extra, if you can afford it, to help all of our employees, not just the ones who serve you
· We will be starting our own home delivery service in the coming days and charging a delivery fee to increase the fund for our employees
· Take advantage of our “No Contact” Take Out or Curbside Pick Up, rather than using GrubHub and UberEats, so we can keep all restaurant proceeds to help our employees
· CONTRIBUTE TO OUR GOFUNDME PAGE TO HELP OUR EMPLOYEE FUND GO FURTHER
The health and safety of our customers and team members are at the center in everything we do. You can learn more about our enhanced health measures.
Thank you for your continued support, and more importantly, thank you for helping make our restaurants a conduit of good in the community.
Sincerely,
Martin Cournane
Owner
Organizer
Munster Restaurant Group
Organizer
Chicago, IL