Texas Restaurant Workers Hoping To Be Next In Line For Vaccines With Mandates Lifted
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - It's St. Patty's Day weekend and the crowds are out.
"Even though there wasn't any planned event, everyone is still excited!" Whitehall Exchange employee Taylor Witt said. " Everyone feels a lot more comfortable. A lot of people have been getting their immunizations done so they're starting to get back out in the world."
For the first weekend in months, Texas restaurants can lift mask requirements and operate at 100% capacity, if they choose.
"Even though all restaurants are allowed to open at 100%, you know they really need to make a decision for themselves if that's right for their business," Texas Restaurant Association's Anna Tuzin said.
The Texas Restaurant Association says some restaurants aren't making any changes to their current rules and restrictions because their employees haven't been vaccinated.
"It's concerning for a lot of people... absolutely," Tuzin said.
"My employees, we're all wearing our masks," Daiquiri Depot owner Steven Brown. "Customers are still following CDC advice and wearing their masks."
There was hope restaurant workers would be included in the Phase 1C of the state's vaccination plan, which starts this week, but that's not the case. The Texas Restaurant Association has started a new initiative to get restaurant workers volunteer slots at vaccine hubs.
"Anyone that tells us that there is a volunteer opportunity we're going put it up on our website," Tuzin said. "Even though there's not a guarantee that they will get the vaccine if they end up at one of these volunteer sites - there's a chance right and to us a chance is better than zero."
"Anybody that's in hospitality, restaurants, bars, hotels, music venues, hair, nails, we should all be considered for vaccinations," Witt said.