After two years of stress, Montreal restaurateurs and staff quietly face heavy psychological toll
For the last 20 years, restaurant owner and chef Pablo Rojas has carved out an impressive career.
A certain saying summed it up, he said: “Do what you love, you’ll never work a day in your life."
Or at least “it was like that until the pandemic hit,” he said.
Quebec will be reopening restaurants at half capacity -- again -- on Monday. But the long-term psychological toll of uncertainty and stress over the last two years has already done damage to many in the industry that will be hard to undo anytime soon.
Rojas says the pandemic has forced him to close two of his four restaurants. Still open are Le Petit Italien and Provisions butcher shop in Outremont.
Despite a successful career, even he is wondering if it’s all worth it.
“Even me, I’m starting to think what’s going to be my future for the next two, three, four years,” Rojas said.
In a recent Instagram post, Rojas tried to convey just how difficult the pandemic has been and the mental health toll it has on restaurant workers.
“I’ve seen firsthand the effect all of this is having on the mental health of my team,” Rojas wrote. “People who have been with me for years talking about suicide because there’s no light at the end of the tunnel.”
For much of the pandemic, Nicole Turcotte’s dining room at Dinette Triple Crown has been closed. She’s decided take-out is the safest option to prevent any spread of COVID-19.
“For the most part, I would say that people are in survival mode,” Turcotte said.
She says staff are afraid after two years of financial instability.
“It feels like we’re on a little boat floating in the ocean and it’s been battered, but it’s still floating,” Turcotte said. “It does feel like one or two more waves cross the bow and we’re all going to bail out.”
Psychologist Dr. Syd Miller says several of his clients work in the restaurant industry. Many are more anxious than they were when the pandemic first started.
“What they’re telling me is they don’t know how much longer they can hold on," Miller said. "Hold on financially, hold on emotionally."
He says it’s not easy for someone to change careers. For many, restaurants are part of their identity and in some cases have been passed down through families.
“I’m already hearing it from some of my clients, they’re starting to think what’s the next step in terms of career or in terms of how I do this business,” Miller said.
A 50-per-cent capacity limit won’t be profitable for Rojas, but he’s just happy for his staff, who will get back to work and find their old routine.
“People that are ready to give up, people that are isolated going into work -- you don’t realize how much it’s important for you,” Rojas said.
“When you have nothing to do anymore, when you don’t need to go out, I mean, it is hard.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Most of Canada to receive emergency alert test today
The federal government will test its capacity to issue emergency alerts today, with the exception of Ontario, where the test will take place on May 15.
OPINION What King Charles' schedule being too 'full' to accommodate son suggests about relationship with Prince Harry
Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, has made headlines with his recent arrival in the U.K., this time to celebrate all things Invictus. But upon the prince landing in the U.K., we have already had confirmation that King Charles III won't have time to see his youngest son during his brief visit.
Ontario man devastated to learn $150,000 line of credit isn't insured after wife dies
An Ontario man found out that a line of credit he thought was insured actually isn't after his wife of 50 years died.
Boy Scouts of America is rebranding. Here's why they're now named Scouting America
After more than a century, Boy Scouts of America is rebranding as Scouting America, another major shakeup for an organization that once proudly resisted change.
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
Rape, terror and death at sea: How a boat carrying Rohingya children, women and men capsized
In March, Indonesian officials and local fishermen rescued 75 people from the overturned hull of a boat off the coast of Indonesia. Until now, little was known about why the boat capsized.
'A huge difference': These adults born in the '90s partnered with their parents to buy homes in Ontario
An Ontario woman said it would have been impossible to buy a house without her mother – an anecdote that animates the fact that over 17 per cent of Canadian homeowners born in the ‘90s own their property with their parents, according to a new report.
How Drake and Kendrick Lamar's rap beef escalated within weeks
A long-simmering feud between hip-hop superstars Drake and Kendrick Lamar reached a boiling point in recent days as the pair traded increasingly personal insults on a succession of diss tracks. Here’s a quick overview of what’s behind the ongoing beef.
opinion Tom Mulcair: Trudeau's handling of Poilievre's 'wacko' House turfing a clear sign of Liberal desperation
When Speaker Greg Fergus tossed out Pierre Poilievre from the House last week, "those of us who have experience as parliamentarians simply couldn't believe our eyes," writes former NDP leader Tom Mulcair in his column for CTVNews.ca