‘It’s been a struggle.’ To fight burnout, Charlotte restaurant group to close for a day

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A Charlotte restaurant group that kept operating through the coronavirus pandemic is closing for a day to give its employees a day off to help ease worker burnout.

All Mac’s Speed Shop locations and SouthBound will be closed Monday, Aug. 9.

“People are just tired, they’re burned out, they just don’t show up, they’ll work lunch and leave and not come back,” Mac’s President Shang Skipper told the Observer Tuesday. “So it’s been a struggle.”

The time off, however, is not paid, co-owner David Jewell told the Observer.

The company has nearly 700 employees, about 250 more than before the pandemic, Skipper said.

But even that’s not enough to keep up with customer demand. At one location, one worker has been putting in up to 35 hours of overtime a week.

“The only way to stop the burnout is to close the restaurant and let everybody have a day off,” Skipper said.

Customers eat at the bar at Mac’s Speed Shop on South Boulevard on March 15. Mac’s Hospitality Group has seen a 520% increase in takeout and delivery during the coronavirus pandemic.

Employees ‘above and beyond’

Mac’s Hospitality saw a 520% increase in take-out and delivery sales since the pandemic started in March last year, the Observer previously reported.

The popular Charlotte restaurant group known for barbecue, beers and bikers also amped up its social media strategy and community support.

How a popular Charlotte barbecue restaurant found ways to thrive despite COVID

Skipper credits employees for going “above and beyond” to help the company grow despite the pandemic and said one way to say thanks is give them “a much-needed break.”

A companywide day off is just another way Mac’s is trying to take care of its workers, Skipper said, like sending trucks to each store to give employees free ice cream and offering referral and hiring bonuses.

All eight Mac’s Speed Shop locations (original South Boulevard location in Charlotte shown) and Southbound restaurant and music venue will be closed Aug. 9.

All about Mac’s

Mac’s Hospitality has eight Mac’s Speed Shop barbecue locations in the Carolinas, plus its SouthBound restaurant on South Boulevard.

The first Mac’s Speed Shop opened in 2005 on South Boulevard. Other restaurants are in Steele Creek, Cornelius, Matthews, Wilmington, Fayetteville, Greensboro and Greenville, S.C.

Mac’s Hospitality also operates three other businesses in Charlotte, the speakeasy BackStage Lounge attached to SouthBound, an outdoor music venue called The Music Yard and the self-pour taproom The Studio.