Raising Cane’s sending corporate staff to work in restaurants amid labor shortage

Raising Cane’s Chicken Fingers is sending hundreds of corporate staff members to work in the company’s fast food restaurants as the U.S. sees a shortage of employees working hourly jobs. 

About half of Raising Cane’s corporate employees starting this week will help with recruiting at various chain restaurants as well as work as fry cooks and cashiers, Bloomberg reported.

The company, which has over 500 locations across the country, is working to hire 10,000 restaurant workers in the upcoming 50 days, according to Bloomberg.

The company told Business Insider that 200 people from its Dallas office and 250 people from its “field team,” which includes marketing and training employees, were starting gigs at various branches. Senior vice presidents were included among the employees sent to restaurants, Raising Cane’s told Business Insider.

“It’s no secret that today’s hiring market is a challenge, and ahead of our massive growth next year, having the support we need is critical,” co-CEO AJ Kumaran said in a statement, according to Business Insider. “We are all in this together.”

The news from the fast food company comes as the U.S. continues to battle a labor shortage amid the pandemic.

Data released by the Labor Department Thursday showed that new applications for jobless benefits rose for the third straight week after federal pandemic unemployment aid expired earlier this month.