Exactly. It's a nice thing to say until someone proposes it being done.

I think most people don't realize how thin the margins really are on food services stuff. Or even most services.

To increase salary of fry cooks and drivers to be better. You need to charge more. But if everyone else is already on tight budgets then they also need increases in salary as well.

And now it becomes a bigger economical issue. I know it's not a zero sum game and I'd like to see everyone's wages increase. But it's a hard bigger problem.

If society was interested in maximizing the sheer quantity of fried cooks, society would’ve created those incentives. Instead three sets of incentives exist nowadays:

1) Improve your skill set and move up within restaurant industry, hopefully towards high-end cuisine or managerial position.

2) Get out of the industry altogether and acquire some specialization like a plumber’s or electrician’s license.

3) Use the paid gig to acquire skills, remain in the industry but readjust your stake to equity instead of salary, by running a food truck, a burger stand or a pop-up taco spot.

All venues pretty much scream “Get out of this fry cook gig as soon as you can. There’s no outcome where you’re guaranteed a happy retirement and a golden watch”.