A survey by the Brazilian Association of Bars and Restaurants (Abrasel) found that between December and January, 76% of establishments in the sector had to dismiss employees due to Covid-19. On average, 24% of the employees of these stores were away during the period.
The survey consulted 1,300 establishments between the 15th and 27th of January this year, and the information refers to mid-December to mid-January.
Abrasel’s president, Paulo Solmucci, explains that, despite not harming the operation, the contamination by the disease directly affects expenses, since the entrepreneur hires temporary employees to replace the casualties.
“With the advancement of Ômicron, we had to resort to extras, and we even managed to replace employees, but this increased the costs of operations. This is because the effective employee cannot be removed by the INSS, for the time of Covid-19, and the entrepreneur bears this too. Another point that made it difficult to return was access to tests to detect the disease, which are scarce. As we still had the influenza outbreak in December, the test was essential to know what it was about.”, he explains.
Despite the new peak caused by the disease, the movement in bars and restaurants offset the increase in costs. According to the survey, 34% of companies registered a profit in the month of January, compared to 31% that claimed to have had a loss in the same month.
It is the first time since the beginning of the pandemic that the number of companies with a profit in the month is greater than those that had a loss. Another 34% had their accounts in balance.
In addition, the president noted a higher-than-expected movement in the sector. There was concern that the advancement of cases due to the new variant and the cancellation of New Year’s Eve would cause an increase in consumer fear.
“Rio de Janeiro was the best state during the month of January, it was excellent. Compared to the same month in 2020, when there was no pandemic, the sector’s revenue was 20% higher. In the Northeast, the states that showed a drop in Ceará, and Bahia, were largely due to the rains as well.
According to the president of the association, superficial consultations with establishments already show that the removal by Covid-19 has shown a drop in the last week, in the states of Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, which were the most affected by Ômicron.
For Solmucci, this reduction is “exciting” and should continue during the month of February.
“We do not believe that we will arrive at Carnival with a peak. We had five weeks in a row increasing the number of contaminations, but in addition to the drop in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo, in the other states these departures are not growing anymore. So, we believe that at Carnival we will be without serious restrictions.”, she says.
Source: CNN Brasil
