Sunrise's Nat Barr on the shocking statistic being fuelled by work from home
It seems Australians are still loving food delivery services, even with dine-in options back on the menu.
Even as COVID lockdowns become a distant memory, new KPMG research shows the number of delivery drivers has doubled in the past decade — with 86,000 people now employed in the role in 2024.
The statistics published in The Sydney Morning Herald on Monday also show a rise in kitchen-based roles such as cooks while front-of-house positions such as managers and wait staff have dipped.
Uber Eats, Australia's most popular food delivery service, estimates it reached 88 per cent of the population in 2024.
Work from home is still considered a huge driver for the service.
Sunrise host quizzed Western Sydney Women CEO Amanda Rose and journalist Joe Hildebrand about the numbers on Tuesday, asking: 'Sign of the times, Joe?' Barr asked.
Hildebrand replied: 'I think it is. I don't want to mention the 'C-word' but I think COVID sort of unleashed all these things that should never have been unleashed but now they're here.
'It's like working from home — I think working from home is terrible, you should be out there, going to the office every day, and participating in the community and helping your small business, and engaging with your colleagues.'
Hildebrand said many employees are reluctant to return to their desks, and it's a similar case with easily accessible home delivery with many people now of the attitude: 'I'm not leaving the house under any circumstances.'
Barr added: 'The studies have shown its costing you thousands of dollars a year to work in the office.'
Barr then turned to Rose, who said: 'I like the fact it's provided jobs and an opportunity for a lot of people in delivery driving.
'What concerns me is the small business owner who has to pay a high fee to use the delivery driver and they might have to let go of certain staff or they have to shut their business down.'
Big names in the food delivery industry such as UberEats and Door Dash take 30 per cent commission from restaurants.
'That's worrying because hospitality businesses are one of the top three (categories of business) closing their doors at a faster rate than any other type of business,' Rose said.
'We could end up having this convenience turn to no one making it, so all the businesses shut down and the only people to choose from are the McDonald's or the KFCs.
'To have the choice of that home-made, beautiful tasting food from the local Italian restaurant, that will go if we don't put in the effort to support it.
'So, I say try to break it up and, if you can, visit (your local restaurants) in person sometimes.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Advertiser
2 hours ago
- The Advertiser
Someone has taken out the $100m Powerball draw
Someone has become Australia's third biggest lottery winner ever, after taking out the entire $100 million jackpot in the Powerball draw. The winning division one ticket was sold at one of The Lott's outlets in Sydney's eastern suburbs. The winner was not registered and their identity remained a mystery on Friday morning. "Someone has become an overnight mid-week multi-millionaire but possibly doesn't know it yet," The Lott spokesperson Matt Hart said. "All Sydney players who had an entry in this week's draw should check their ticket as soon as possible." There were also more than three million wins across divisions two to nine in Thursday's Powerball, collectively taking home almost $61 million in prize money. Some six division two winners each picked up more than $282,000. About 10 million Australians were expected to take a punt on winning the $100 million top prize. The last time a jackpot of that magnitude was up for grabs, ticket sales peaked at more than 6400 a minute. A Queensland woman was the last person to take home $100 million in February 2024, pocketing half of a $200 million Powerball jackpot. She later moved from Brisbane to the coast. "On a day-to-day basis, not a huge amount has changed," she said this week ahead of Thursday night's draw. "I still get up for the 6am gym session and the dog still needs to be walked and fed." An Adelaide man still holds the country's largest pay cheque from a lottery jackpot, after winning $150 million in May 2024. The odds of a single entry winning the division-one prize are more than 134 million to one. The winning numbers on Thursday were 28, 10, 3, 16, 31, 14 and 21 and the all-important Powerball number was 6. National Gambling Helpline 1800 858 858 Someone has become Australia's third biggest lottery winner ever, after taking out the entire $100 million jackpot in the Powerball draw. The winning division one ticket was sold at one of The Lott's outlets in Sydney's eastern suburbs. The winner was not registered and their identity remained a mystery on Friday morning. "Someone has become an overnight mid-week multi-millionaire but possibly doesn't know it yet," The Lott spokesperson Matt Hart said. "All Sydney players who had an entry in this week's draw should check their ticket as soon as possible." There were also more than three million wins across divisions two to nine in Thursday's Powerball, collectively taking home almost $61 million in prize money. Some six division two winners each picked up more than $282,000. About 10 million Australians were expected to take a punt on winning the $100 million top prize. The last time a jackpot of that magnitude was up for grabs, ticket sales peaked at more than 6400 a minute. A Queensland woman was the last person to take home $100 million in February 2024, pocketing half of a $200 million Powerball jackpot. She later moved from Brisbane to the coast. "On a day-to-day basis, not a huge amount has changed," she said this week ahead of Thursday night's draw. "I still get up for the 6am gym session and the dog still needs to be walked and fed." An Adelaide man still holds the country's largest pay cheque from a lottery jackpot, after winning $150 million in May 2024. The odds of a single entry winning the division-one prize are more than 134 million to one. The winning numbers on Thursday were 28, 10, 3, 16, 31, 14 and 21 and the all-important Powerball number was 6. National Gambling Helpline 1800 858 858 Someone has become Australia's third biggest lottery winner ever, after taking out the entire $100 million jackpot in the Powerball draw. The winning division one ticket was sold at one of The Lott's outlets in Sydney's eastern suburbs. The winner was not registered and their identity remained a mystery on Friday morning. "Someone has become an overnight mid-week multi-millionaire but possibly doesn't know it yet," The Lott spokesperson Matt Hart said. "All Sydney players who had an entry in this week's draw should check their ticket as soon as possible." There were also more than three million wins across divisions two to nine in Thursday's Powerball, collectively taking home almost $61 million in prize money. Some six division two winners each picked up more than $282,000. About 10 million Australians were expected to take a punt on winning the $100 million top prize. The last time a jackpot of that magnitude was up for grabs, ticket sales peaked at more than 6400 a minute. A Queensland woman was the last person to take home $100 million in February 2024, pocketing half of a $200 million Powerball jackpot. She later moved from Brisbane to the coast. "On a day-to-day basis, not a huge amount has changed," she said this week ahead of Thursday night's draw. "I still get up for the 6am gym session and the dog still needs to be walked and fed." An Adelaide man still holds the country's largest pay cheque from a lottery jackpot, after winning $150 million in May 2024. The odds of a single entry winning the division-one prize are more than 134 million to one. The winning numbers on Thursday were 28, 10, 3, 16, 31, 14 and 21 and the all-important Powerball number was 6. National Gambling Helpline 1800 858 858 Someone has become Australia's third biggest lottery winner ever, after taking out the entire $100 million jackpot in the Powerball draw. The winning division one ticket was sold at one of The Lott's outlets in Sydney's eastern suburbs. The winner was not registered and their identity remained a mystery on Friday morning. "Someone has become an overnight mid-week multi-millionaire but possibly doesn't know it yet," The Lott spokesperson Matt Hart said. "All Sydney players who had an entry in this week's draw should check their ticket as soon as possible." There were also more than three million wins across divisions two to nine in Thursday's Powerball, collectively taking home almost $61 million in prize money. Some six division two winners each picked up more than $282,000. About 10 million Australians were expected to take a punt on winning the $100 million top prize. The last time a jackpot of that magnitude was up for grabs, ticket sales peaked at more than 6400 a minute. A Queensland woman was the last person to take home $100 million in February 2024, pocketing half of a $200 million Powerball jackpot. She later moved from Brisbane to the coast. "On a day-to-day basis, not a huge amount has changed," she said this week ahead of Thursday night's draw. "I still get up for the 6am gym session and the dog still needs to be walked and fed." An Adelaide man still holds the country's largest pay cheque from a lottery jackpot, after winning $150 million in May 2024. The odds of a single entry winning the division-one prize are more than 134 million to one. The winning numbers on Thursday were 28, 10, 3, 16, 31, 14 and 21 and the all-important Powerball number was 6. National Gambling Helpline 1800 858 858
7NEWS
4 hours ago
- 7NEWS
Hunt for mystery Sydney winner of $100m Powerball jackpot
The hunt is on for the lucky winner of Thursday night's $100m Powerball draw with the mystery player not registering the winning ticket. One player managed to snag the entire jackpot, Powerball's richest for 2025. Know the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today The winning numbers for Powerball draw 1517 are: 28, 10, 3, 16, 31, 14 and 21. The Powerball is 6. However Australia's newest millionaire remains a mystery, potentially completely oblivious to his or her newfound fortune. The winning ticket was bought in Sydney's eastern suburbs, so residents of the area or anyone who may have visited and purchased an entry into the draw while there, have been urged to check their tickets. 'If you discover you're holding the division one winning entry, hold on tight to that ticket and phone 131 868 as soon as possible so that we can start the prize claim process,' officials from The Lott said. In addition to the jackpot winner, six players took home $282,000 each in division two, while 187 players scored $11,200 in division three. Thursday's winner instantly rockets to equal third in terms of most lucrative individual lottery wins in Australian history. The last time Powerball reached $100m heights was in November. Just six Australians know exactly how it feels to win a Powerball prize of $100 million or more.
Sydney Morning Herald
5 hours ago
- Sydney Morning Herald
Our critic liked this local hangout in the leafy east so much, she visited it twice in one day
Where nearby restaurants are dress-up and splurgy, Central Park Cellars is come-as-you-are and stay-till-whenever. Previous SlideNext Slide It's not often I like a place so much that I visit twice in one day, but not every venue is Central Park Cellars. On this afternoon, I'm in the leafy east in need of tea and a chat with a friend. We planned a brisk stroll in nearby Central Park, but the weather's being unkind. With our backs to the wind, we're blown down Burke Road. A place with 'Cellars' in its name doesn't sound like cuppa territory but, 10 minutes later, we find ourselves ensconced in a charming window booth sipping cups of lemongrass-and-ginger tea. Down the back, a chef rolls pasta in a picturesque flour haze. Closer to us, shelves of high-quality independent wine are ready for drinking here or ferrying home. In the toilets, the wallpaper features line drawings of local dogs. At a sheltered table outside, a young family carves out 20 minutes: the parents sip prosecco and beer, the kids are brought to quiet stillness by hot chips. In the other window nook, a happy rambler receives crossword assistance from a glass of Musk Lane syrah. I'm eating out with friends later and now I know where. I want the pasta I saw being rolled, and I want some of that wine, too. So here I am, back again in the evening, in a den that gets fuller and louder as the minutes roll by: mates, dates, cross-table talk from parents who know one other from school drop-off, a book club that doesn't even pretend to open a tome. Waiters work gamely, teetering on the cresting wave of a busy weekend. 'A chef rolls pasta in a picturesque flour haze. I'm eating out with friends later and now I know where. I want the pasta I saw being rolled.' The building has been a licensed grocer since 1930. When the business came up for sale a few years ago, two couples decided to buy it, bringing skills from business, healthcare and marketing to their first foray into food. Mick and Paula Stephenson, Craig Buffham and Fiona Doyle have refined the wine offering (and promise they've tasted every wine they sell – well, they do say hospitality is tough), improved the menu and smartened up the interior, installing soundproofing, timber panelling and banquettes. There's music on Fridays and, where nearby restaurants Grazia and Riserva are dress-up and splurgy, the Cellars is come-as-you-are and stay-till-whenever. The menu was designed by Andrea Serreli, who left recently to take on the head chef gig at hatted Scopri in Carlton. His long-time protege, Mandeep Paudel, is now leading the kitchen under the guidance of the owners and with buy-in from regulars, who aren't shy of expressing opinions. There's pubby stuff, such as barramundi tacos, fried chicken, a shareable, 400-gram rib-eye and bloody good chips served with house-made chicken salt. I have more of this addictive salt on the rim of my Salted Hen cocktail, a margarita-adjacent walloper with mezcal and jalapeno syrup. An Italian thread to the menu explains the citrus-cured snapper, octopus with Sardinian walnut sauce, and lovingly made pasta and risotto, which are both available as $20 midweek specials. The food isn't faultless: the risotto's on the chalky side of al dente, although the pea and mascarpone combination is delicious. The beef-cheek ragu is a little thin, but the flavours are honest and the accompanying tagliatelle is supple and silky. Everything is offered in such warm spirit that it's easy to overlook the rough bits of the diamond. I'm a sucker for tiramisu and the one here is flawless, a delightful drawcard to get me back for visit number three.
