After a 16-month battle with COVID-19, essential workers like restaurant staff members, have experienced skyrocketing amounts of burnout and fatigue. As a form of gratitude, one Battle Ground business owner wanted to thank his employees in a non-traditional way.
Playmakers Sports Bar and Grill owner Mike Casetta, along with his business partner Matthew Seise, treated his team to an all expenses-paid vacation.
About 15 employees, who Casetta calls the “COVID crew,” traveled to Coeur d’Alene, Idaho for a fun-filled trip.
“The community has been so supportive during all of COVID-19,” Casetta said. “I want to give a shout out to the community for their support of small local businesses because COVID-19 came so quickly and just does not seem to want to disappear.”
The group left Sunday, Aug. 15 and returned on Thursday, Aug. 19, Casetta said. Some employees brought along their families as well.
During the vacation, the staff received tickets for Silverwood Theme Park. They could also spend a day or two relaxing at the rental home, which included a zipline and rock climbing wall.
Casetta said he wanted to fund a trip to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico but it wasn’t possible with a delay in passport processing, and some staff members didn’t have their paperwork yet.
For one server, Emierald Failano, the trip served as a much-needed time to unwind.
Failano, who started working at Playmakers about a year ago, works alongside her partner at the restaurant. To add to her workload, she recently had a baby in May.
“If our boss hadn’t been so genuine and kind about everything, and if we wouldn’t have worked as hard as we did to be able to have this gift, we probably wouldn’t have been able to take this opportunity,” Failano said.
Casetta said the restaurant workers juggled operations while being short-staffed. Some employees would “call out”’ sick because of COVID-19 exposures, causing servers and the kitchen staff to work flexible hours.
“We wanted to treat our team to a fun-filled retreat as a thank you for all their hard work and dedication and the crazy hours they worked,” he said.
Failano also said it was a hectic year for Playmakers.
“We’ve been trying to survive as a small-town bar,” she said.
While the staff members were on vacation, Playmakers underwent a small remodel, which included the installation of garage doors and new windows, as well as the resurfacing of the parking lot.
On June 30, the state reopened under the Washington Ready plan from Gov. Jay Inslee’s office. Now with the delta variant making up the majority of COVID-19 cases, Inslee announced masks will be required indoors once again, regardless of vaccination status. The announcement was made on Monday, Aug. 21.
Casetta said regardless of COVID-19 restrictions, the community has helped keep Playmakers doors open and a couple dozen community members employed.
“We all have fun and games at work as well, but to be outside of work and to make bigger and better connections has been awesome,” Failano said.
