The emergence of Ghost Kitchens in the restaurant industry: Operational and labour perspectives.

Abstract

The emergence of Ghost Kitchens in the restaurant industry is a contemporary phenomenon that appeared recently in the context of the so-called Gig economy. This new business model became very popular during the COVID-19 pandemic in global scale. Ghost kitchens started as outsourced food production kitchens for popular high-street restaurants with no direct contact with customers (delivery only). Recent developments involve the creation of virtual restaurants from the big online delivery platforms (such as Deliveroo and Uber-Eats) who dominate the market. Despite their popularity, certain ethical considerations arise related to the working conditions and potential worker exploitation cases. The existing research on this topic is limited to only a handful of empirical studies and anecdotal accounts related to the working conditions in Ghost Kitchens. This paper provides some useful insights from an operational and labour perspective. It is hoped that this paper will trigger further discussion and research on this topic.