A Message from Tom Vogel,
CEO of Uncle Julio’s
The most difficult decision of my life was to lay off 4,188 of our Uncle Julio’s family. Thousands of committed, hard-working team members are now in the unemployment line. Our remaining team members, including some restaurant managers and support center employees, have either eliminated their salary or cut their paychecks drastically.
These decisions, though necessary, are creating hardships for everyone in our Uncle Julio’s family. That’s the part that really hurts. Had we not made that decision, our entire company would be closed permanently by now. As you know, this same type of decision is being made across the restaurant industry, especially in small- to medium-sized companies like ours. But the fact that these layoffs are widespread does not in any way reduce the responsibility that the leadership team and I feel to assist our Uncle Julio’s family.
"for every dollar in donations, Uncle Julio’s will provide a matching amount"
We have launched a new initiative, the Uncle Julio’s Relief Program. As you may know, we are currently offering curbside to-go and also delivery, a service that is staffed by our salaried managers. Most of our guests are tipping generously, and we could not be more grateful. Starting today, all tips and donations generated from curbside to-go during this crisis will fund the relief program. To add to that, for every dollar in donations, Uncle Julio’s will provide a matching amount so we can assist our most recently unemployed team members.
We will get to the other side of the coronavirus outbreak. And eventually, our country and our company will prevail. In the meantime, the leaders of Uncle Julio’s and I pledge to work tirelessly to get our furloughed employees back working as soon as possible in the restaurants and in our restaurant support center.
As guests, you can help our displaced team by:
- Giving your business to full-service restaurants like Uncle Julio’s. We are offering our authentic Mexican food with both curbside service and delivery in select locations. The more business we have, the more people we can employ.
- Making a donation to the Uncle Julio’s Employee Relief Fund. Your donations will help those who need it most. Every donation will be matched by Uncle Julio’s. Donations can be made at participating takeout restaurants or online.
I look forward to the day when we can bring our family back together to serve you.