Remember lunch? You know, the midday meal when work paused, laptops folded shut and you focused solely on eating some food, maybe with another human being? The sad desk salad has proliferated through the pandemic, leaving way too many nine-to-fivers working through lunch or just not eating lunch at all. Random handfuls of afternoon snacks don’t count.
A new survey conducted by Grubhub of 1,000 full-time New York and national employees revealed that skipping lunch is indeed a national dilemma. In fact, the survey found that lunch is the causality of the ‘work-first’ mentality: 40% of workers nationally said that they take fewer lunch breaks than they did 2 years ago.
This survey also found that over half of working Americans (70%) say they’ve skipped lunch because they’ve been too busy.
Take your takeout outdoors
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Lunch is important though! Nearly half of employees nationwide (47%) report that having a true lunch break would improve their mental wellbeing – and 1-in-5 even cite they’d take a lunch break over a higher salary. That’s a valuable meal!
And because nearly 3-in-4 (72%) New Yorkers think lunch is the most important meal of the day and 81% value it more now than pre-pandemic, Grubhub has decided to use this consumer research to give all of NYC free lunch, up to $15, redeemable in their app on Tuesday, May 17. All New Yorkers have to do is use the code FREELUNCH at checkout from 11 am–2 pm.
An online widget has been set up to help New Yorkers remember to order lunch and maybe even step away from their screens while enjoying it. Those who share their free meal on on social with #FreeForLunchSweepstakes will also be eligible to win a $50 Grubhub gift card.
$15 doesn’t exactly get you a steak and martini lunch in the city, but it’s definitely a worthwhile treat — and a fun event to participate in. Maybe May 17 will become national eat lunch day in the future!