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Restaurant Employee Relief Fund Growing, Application Process Starts April 2

March 31, 2020

Original content c/o: National Restaurant Association

Starting Thursday, April 2, restaurant employees can apply to receive a check for $500 from the National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation Restaurant Employee Relief Fund.

The National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation has launched the Restaurant Employee Relief Fund to support U.S. restaurant employees financially impacted by the coronavirus crisis.


Beginning April 2, restaurant employees can apply online to receive a one-time, $500 check to use toward bills, including housing, transportation, utilities, childcare, groceries, medical bills and/or student loans.

Beginning April 2, restaurant employees can apply online to receive a one-time, $500 check to use toward bills, including housing, transportation, utilities, childcare, groceries, medical bills and/or student loans. The Foundation will administer the grants, offered on a first-come, first-served basis.

As of March 31, private donors and corporations had raised nearly $10 million for the relief effort. They include PepsiCo, Uber Eats, Constellation Brands, Moët Hennessy USA, Robin Hood Foundation, Ecolab, Cargill, Boston Beer Company, Shift4 Payments, P&G Professional, Ventura Foods, United HealthCare, The Elliot Group, Davis Wright Tremaine LLP, and the Light Foundation

Donate to the Foundation’s Restaurant Employee Relief Fund

Celebrity chef/restaurateur Guy Fieri is helping the Foundation launch the campaign nationwide, which encourages everyone to contribute to the fund.

WATCH: Guy Fieri talks about the Restaurant Employee Relief Fund

“As we all know, the restaurant industry has been devastated by the economic impact of the coronavirus crisis, with employees across the nation out of work due to forced business closures,” said Rob Gifford, the Foundation’s president. “Early estimates indicate that as many as five to seven million restaurant employees could lose their jobs. This fund is designed to help those struggling employees.”

He added that restaurant employees will receive 100% of the money raised.

Funds will be available to restaurant employees who can demonstrate that they:

  • Worked on a part- or full-time basis in the restaurant industry for at least 90 days during the past year
  • Had a primary source of income in the restaurant industry for the last year
  • Experienced a decrease in wages or loss of job on or after March 10, 2020
  • Live in the U.S., an overseas U.S. military base, or any U.S. territory
  • Are over the age of legal majority in their U.S. state or territory

To receive funds, the applicants must complete their grant requests online. Again, go to rerf.us, starting April 2, to apply. The NRAEF team will then review and verify the request and confirm eligibility. Individuals requesting assistance are eligible one time only. The NRAEF will mail checks to the recipients.