Sujet 1: Houston Restaurants Turn To Immigrants Amidst Worker Shortage (version pdf)
Chef Hugo Ortega’s American Dream
“I think food brings people together in many ways and also it’s where you share the table with other people and you learn about other cultures and people around the world,” said Ortega. Ortega’s touted restaurants, which include Hugo’s, Caracol and Xochi serve up authentic regional Mexican cuisine.
Ortega learned to cook with his grandmother in the Mexican state of Oaxaca. He crossed the U.S.-Mexico border with the help of smugglers in the 1980s.
His American Dream began with him earning $3.75 an hour as a restaurant janitor, he said. Now, Ortega is a James Beard award-winner and one of Houston’s most celebrated chefs. He said he owes a lot to his wife, restaurateur Tracy Vaught, and President Ronald Reagan, whose amnesty program gave him a path to citizenship.
Executive director of the Greater Houston Restaurant Association Melissa Stewart said Chef Ortega is one of many local chefs who bring flavors from their home country to Houston.
“We have fantastic West African restaurants, Filipino restaurants, Indian, Pakistani, Vietnamese, Korean,” Stewart said.
“Within a one-mile radius I can explore the world,” she said. But even with the multi-layer contributions of immigrants, she said restaurants still face hiring challenges.
The growing labor gap
The restaurant business has been expanding for decades, and continues to grow in step with demand. The National Restaurant Association reported that the restaurant business will add 1.6 million jobs to the labor market by 2030, including more than 204,000 in Texas.
“It’s becoming increasingly difficult to find qualified labor and that’s mostly due to the amount of competition and just the volume of restaurants that have opened in the past decade,” said Houston restaurateur Jonathan Horowitz, who runs the Legacy Restaurant Group.
In 2018, the local restaurant industry generated more than 18 billion dollars in sales, according to the local think-tank Greater Houston Partnership. They also anticipate adding 5,200 new restaurant jobs in 2020. Filling those jobs could be tricky — and maintaining that labor force could be even harder.
“The turnover can be costly and put a strain on labor costs,” said Horowitz.
As demand for workers grows, restaurants will have fewer young workers to hire from, according to National Restaurant Association projections. They estimate that in the next eight years, the national workforce will lose more than a million workers under age 25. That age group represents 40% of the restaurant industry’s current workforce. That’s why many industry leaders are advocating for immigration reform.
A call for reform
“Restaurateurs for years have been talking to elected officials at a national, state and local level about the importance of the immigrant and foreign-born worker to our industry,” Stewart said.
Industry leaders at a local and national level are pushing for a more permanent immigration status for Dreamers and those with Temporary Protected Status. They also would like a temporary worker visa program for the service sector, said Stewart.
Elizabeth Trovall, Immigration Reporter.
TRAVAIL À FAIRE PAR LE CANDIDAT
I – COMPRÉHENSION ÉCRITE (10 points)
Rédiger en français le compte rendu d’environ 200 mots (+/-10 %) de ce document en faisant ressortir les idées essentielles de façon organisée.
Vous indiquerez le nombre de mots utilisés.
II – EXPRESSION ÉCRITE (10 points)
Rédigez un courriel en anglais selon les consignes suivantes.
Vous êtes Chef Hugo Ortega (h.ortega@gmail.com) manager au Mexican Palace Restaurant Hotel, un hotel restaurant gastronomique situé au 121 S 4th St, Houston, KS 66502-9100 et vous écrivez au sénateur de Manhattan, M. Daryl et sa femme domiciliés au 50 W 5th St, Manhattan, KS 444888 pour les inviter à votre établissement.
-Vous leur expliquez les atouts de votre hotel-restaurant en ce qui concerne son implantation, sa proximité des attractions locales, les équipements modernes proposés avec vos 30 chambres perfectionnés et vos trois restaurants de style différents.
-Vous parlerez également de la qualité de votre personnel au niveau de l’accueil et des services en général sans oublier de mentionner que votre succès provient de la renommée de votre cuisine exotique et mexicaine.
Vous terminez votre lettre en remerciant M.Daryl et sa femme d’avoir choisi votre établissement.
-Vous restez à leur disposition pour tout renseignement complémentaire.
Formules de politesse et présentation d’usage.
