Some local restaurants hiring for summer

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Ohio’s restaurants are expected to add 19,700 summer jobs this year, up 5.2 percent from the state’s total restaurant jobs in March, according to the National Restaurant Association.

The projected increase in restaurant employment exceeds the national projected increase of 4.6 percent, which is the strongest estimate of seasonal job creation since 2007 and a strong indicator that the restaurant industry is heading into better economic times, association officials said.

That positive hiring trend is being felt in some — though not all — Dayton-area restaurants, according to local restaurant owners and Miami Valley Restaurant Association (MVRA) officials.

“We had 12 employees at the beginning of the year, we have 15 now, and we’ll be at 16 by July,” said Jeff Van Horne, owner of the Wine Loft at The Greene in Beavercreek. “Our business is up over 20 percent from last year, and that’s certainly a positive trend.”

Shanon Morgan, president of the MVRA, said restaurants with patios — which includes the Wine Loft — are hiring a few new employees. “People here do love their patios,” Morgan said. But she sounded a cautionary note: “The restaurant owners I’ve talked to are not hiring this summer as much as they are restoring hours for their servers who had their hours cut.”

The large sign in front of Carmel’s Restaurant on Shroyer Road in Dayton near the Oakwood border — which has a large patio — was announcing Tuesday that they’re hiring because the patio is open. “We’re going to hire about eight people,” owner Bob Byers said, noting that his weekday business is picking up.

“The restaurant industry has outperformed the overall economy when it comes to job creation for the past year, proving its role as a key driver to economic recovery and growth in America,” Hudson Riehle, senior vice president of the research and knowledge group for the association, said in a release. “Seasonal employment is an important indicator of industry performance, as well as a stimulus for local economies across the nation.”

America’s restaurants are the nation’s second-largest private-sector employer with nearly 13 million employees, or almost 10 percent of the U.S. workforce, according to the restaurant association.

Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2258 or mfisher@DaytonDailyNews.com.