Should Your Bar or Restaurant Be Open on Labor Day?

Nationally observed on the first Monday in September, Labor Day celebrates the contributions and achievements of the American worker.

In the United States, union leader Peter J. McGuire generally receives credit for suggesting the idea of a day honoring American workers in 1881. The next year, 10,000 workers held a parade in New York City to unofficially recognize the day. But it wasn’t until 1894 that President Grover Cleveland made Labor Day an official federal holiday.

Culturally, Labor Day signifies the end of summer, giving Americans a final three-day weekend to enjoy the season.

For most, the holiday means a day off, but for restaurants, bars, and breweries this occasion could be a great day to stay open, generating some additional sales and traffic.

Alternatively, it could be a good day to give your staff off.

Ultimately, the decision is up to you, so let’s look at the pros of each.

Labor Day is one of eleven federal holidays recognized by the United States Government and one of the most common paid holidays, according to research from the Society of Human Resources Management.

Although technically no current labor law actually requires companies to give their employees off on Labor Day, many employees choose to in order to improve the mood of their team.

According to a past study from Bloomberg BNA, 97% of employers let at least a chunk, if not all, of their employees have off on Labor Day (with the caveat that 41% of those businesses do still retain some staff to work).

In the hospitality industry, work weeks can oftentimes stretch to more than forty hours, so giving your team a day of rest to spend with their families will most likely be greatly appreciated.

In that same vein, as a restaurant or brewery you need to consider overtime requirements. Sometimes staying open on a holiday costs more than the average weekday.

Technically, the government considers federal holidays like any other regular business day; it does not immediately qualify an employee for overtime. However, both federal and state laws do require that most employers (although not all) pay overtime to employees whose hours qualify.

Why is that important here? Well, for many businesses hourly employees may decide to take time off during holiday hours. For those of your staff left over, it may be required for them to work longer than normal hours.

With that in mind, you need to check your local state laws to figure out when overtime hours kick in. For example, in California and a few other states, if an employee works over eight hours on a given day, you as a business owner are required to pay them “time-and-a-half” for every hour worked over that threshold.

Additionally, it is pretty common for business owners to offer “double-time” to employees working holidays as an incentive to keep your team fully staffed. Again, federal law offers no requirements for “double-time” pay, but state laws do.

Look at your sales numbers from previous Labor Days: Did you see a bump in traffic? Did you have a better-than-average number of sales?

If so, it might be worth keeping your doors open. If not, consider boosting your team spirit by giving your crew a day off.

This one is pretty simple: Staying open on Labor Day allows you to take advantage of a top-selling beer weekend.

According to data from the National Beer Wholesalers Association (NBWA), on summer holiday weekends such as July Fourth and Labor day beer deliveries to retailers are 50% above the annualized weekly average.

In total, beer sales from May through August represent 40% of total annual beer sales, according to the NBWA.

And for Labor Day specifically, Nielsen reported that, in the week leading up to the fall holiday, spirit sales rose 33.4% and wine sales rose 17.9% in 2022 (compared to the year before).

Labor Day is one of the last major weekends to capitalize on during the busiest selling season of the year.

For many consumers, this three-day weekend is like the last hurrah. According to travel data company Arrivalist, 42.9 million Americans traveled over Labor Day weekend in 2021.

Staying open on this federal holiday could be a huge opportunity to cash in on a potential influx of customers and tourists.

Ultimately, as a business owner, you need to weigh the pros of both and decide which is best for your business. But if you decide to stay open on Labor Day, keep reading below for a few great ideas on how to maximize your profit and customer satisfaction.

Many restaurants use Labor Day as an opportunity to offer specials or discounts to encourage customers to show up on this busy weekend. If you decide to open on Labor Day, here are a few promotion ideas that will best serve you and your customers.

Meal Deals

If you decide to stay open on Labor Day, consider offering a special “meal deal” to entice people to visit. This could mean a buy-one-get-one offer or even a three-course meal for a certain price.

For a bar or brewery, you could promote $1 off American craft beer pints or even offer buy one, get one half off to encourage drinking in groups.

Anytime you can make your customers feel like they’re getting a deal, they’re more likely to spend the money they save on something extra. For example, dessert or even a round for the bar.

Introduce a New Beer, Drink, or Dish

A new menu is an amazing promotional opportunity for your restaurant, bar, or brewery.

Not only is it a chance to showcase the talents of your staff, it’s also an opportunity to keep regular customers engaged and attract new ones.

Consider a tease on your social channels letting your followers know that a new item is on the way with an attractive image, description, and release date.

Free Dessert With Purchase

Nothing reels in customers quite like the F word. A day off is always a chance for folks to celebrate. Offering a free dessert could be just the incentive people need to sit down at your restaurant or bar.

Just remember: Giving away a sweet treat, like cake or pie, needs to make sense for your bottom line. You’ll probably want to make sure your guests spend a certain amount before that free dessert promotion kicks in.

A good way to determine at what price to give away something for free would be to find your average check sweet spot and set that spend as the promotional trigger. That way you know this goal is attainable and profitable.

Happy Hour Prices All Day

Happy hour is an opportunity for guests to receive a discount on their favorite menu items. Guests love to get their hands on anything that saves them even more money.

Consider leveraging Labor Day to offer happy hour prices all day long. Make your business stand out and give guests an extra reason to visit.

Kids Eat Free

If families are traveling over the holiday weekend, they’ll be looking for kid-friendly options. Offering a “kids eat free” promotion will be great for attracting parents and their kids into your establishment.

A few things to keep in mind if you go this route:

Hungry for even more promotion ideas like these? We have 16 fresh takes on increasing foot traffic to your bar in 2022.