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Can I Help You From Way Over Here?
Victor J. Blue/The New York Times
A remote cashier in the Philippines assists a customer at a restaurant in New York City.
Some restaurants in New York City are doing away with in-person hosts, opting to have virtual staff in the Philippines interact with customers via Zoom instead. The workers—projected onto flat-screen monitors—explain the menu, take orders, and answer phone calls. The service, offered by a company called Happy Cashier, can be a lifeline for small businesses grappling with inflation and rising rents, supporters say. But critics worry about how it’ll affect the restaurant industry. Virtual cashiers earn roughly $3 an hour, significantly less than New York City’s $16 minimum wage. “The fact that they have found a way to outsource work to another country is extremely troubling,” says Teófilo Reyes of the Restaurant Opportunities Centers United, a nonprofit labor group. “It’s going to dramatically put downward pressure on wages in the industry.”