{"id":1851,"date":"2026-06-03T15:35:55","date_gmt":"2026-06-03T15:35:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1851"},"modified":"2026-06-03T15:35:55","modified_gmt":"2026-06-03T15:35:55","slug":"boston-is-already-a-drunk-city-bartenders-resist-proposal-to-keep-bars-open-later-during-world-cup","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1851","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Boston is already a drunk city\u2019: Bartenders resist proposal to keep bars open later during World Cup"},"content":{"rendered":"<article>\n<div>\n<p><span>While World Cup fans from around the world prepare to descend on Boston this month, many workers in the city\u2019s hospitality industry are approaching the tournament with caution, now that it looks like their night shifts could last a little longer.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1849\">Game 60: Orioles at Red Sox lineups and notes<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span>State Representative Carole A. Fiola, a Fall River Democrat, recently proposed legislation that would allow Massachusetts cities to authorize bars to remain open until 3 a.m., an hour later than the state\u2019s current 2 a.m. closing time, and designate public areas where people could consume alcoholic beverages, during the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The proposal, backed by Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, would apply from June 1 through Aug. 31.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Supporters argue the measure could generate significant economic benefits for the city. However, many in the service industry say the extended hours could create new challenges for employees already working late nights.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div>\n<div><span>Get Food &amp; Dining Headlines<\/span><\/div>\n<div><span>The Globe&#8217;s most recent food stories, delivered to your inbox every Wednesday.<\/span><\/div>\n<div>\n<div><label>Enter Email<\/label><\/p>\n<div><button>Sign Up<\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><span>For bartenders, servers, and managers, the workday does not end when customers leave. Employees often spend an additional hour or more cleaning, closing tabs, and preparing the establishment for the next day.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cAn extra two hours is a lot to put on the staff,\u201d said Amanda Wahlen, a server and bartender at Loco Taqueria &amp; Oyster Bar in Boston\u2019s Fenway. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Wahlen, who commutes from South Boston, said she could leave work as late as 5 a.m. if the bar decides to remain open till 3 a.m.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cIf I work till 5 a.m., I\u2019m going to sleep all day and no one will be seeing me,\u201d Wahlen said.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Workers\u2019 concerns extend beyond longer shifts.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cI don\u2019t mind walking back 35 minutes,\u201d Elijah Johnson, an arcade associate at Cheeky Monkey Brewing Co. in Fenway, said. But \u201cmaybe for female workers walking home late at night, it would be worrisome.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>The issue of safety does not apply only to the commute home. Some worry larger crowds and increased alcohol consumption could lead to more confrontations inside the bars.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1847\">Wu endorses state Senator Nick Collins\u2019 primary challenger, ratcheting up Democrats\u2019 feud<\/a><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cBoston is already a drunk city,\u201d said Tairon Martins, a bartender at Allston dive The Avenue Bar, as he prepared a drink at a bar already full at 6 p.m. \u201cThe extra hours aren\u2019t going to do anything but cause more trouble,\u201d he added. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cIf I know anything about sports, I know the people are very passionate about them,\u201d Wahlen said. \u201cThat mixed with alcohol brings fights and aggression.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Others acknowledged the potential financial upside but remained uncertain whether these benefits would outweigh the costs.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cWe are still unsure if we will keep the bar open, but I can foresee that it could bring in more business,\u201d Randi Robbins, a server at Cheeky Monkey Brewing Co., said about the potential change.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Still, she questioned whether the influx of international visitors, who may not be accustomed to a 20 percent tip, would actually translate into higher earnings for workers.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>\u201cUsually, drinkers are nicer with gratuity,\u201d Robbins said. \u201cBut tipping is different everywhere, even when we give the best service.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>While workers remain divided on the proposal, which is still awaiting Senate approval, the bill\u2019s success could hinge on whether lawmakers believe the economic boost from the World Cup can be balanced with employees\u2019 well-being, safety, and quality of life. <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span>Similar measures have passed in other states such as Rhode Island, which last week cleared a path for bars to remain open until 4 a.m. during the World Cup. Now, hospitality workers across Boston wait to see whether the city\u2019s biggest international event will become an opportunity, or an additional burden, for them. <\/span><\/p>\n<p>Read more <a href=\"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1845\">A fake Trump endorsement in N.H. is a reminder for voters to stay skeptical online<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A later last call could pose safety concerns, service industry workers argue.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1850,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1851","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sport"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.6 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>\u2018Boston is already a drunk city\u2019: Bartenders resist proposal to keep bars open later during World Cup - Boston Relocation Insider<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1851\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\u2018Boston is already a drunk city\u2019: Bartenders resist proposal to keep bars open later during World Cup - Boston Relocation Insider\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A later last call could pose safety concerns, service industry workers argue.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1851\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Boston Relocation Insider\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-03T15:35:55+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/?p=1851#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/?p=1851\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/c08a982d5d5e7124cea9158df226037e\"},\"headline\":\"\u2018Boston is already a drunk city\u2019: Bartenders resist proposal to keep bars open later during World Cup\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-03T15:35:55+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/?p=1851\"},\"wordCount\":662,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/?p=1851#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/487730d55464c6d4dae41f0f0c830bcc.avif\",\"articleSection\":[\"Sport\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/?p=1851#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/?p=1851\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/?p=1851\",\"name\":\"\u2018Boston is already a drunk city\u2019: Bartenders resist proposal to keep bars open later during World Cup - Boston Relocation Insider\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/?p=1851#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/?p=1851#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/487730d55464c6d4dae41f0f0c830bcc.avif\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-03T15:35:55+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/c08a982d5d5e7124cea9158df226037e\"},\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/?p=1851#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/?p=1851\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/?p=1851#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/487730d55464c6d4dae41f0f0c830bcc.avif\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/487730d55464c6d4dae41f0f0c830bcc.avif\",\"width\":1440,\"height\":960},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/?p=1851#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"\u2018Boston is already a drunk city\u2019: Bartenders resist proposal to keep bars open later during World Cup\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Boston Relocation Insider\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/c08a982d5d5e7124cea9158df226037e\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"sameAs\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\"],\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\\\/?author=1\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"\u2018Boston is already a drunk city\u2019: Bartenders resist proposal to keep bars open later during World Cup - Boston Relocation Insider","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1851","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"\u2018Boston is already a drunk city\u2019: Bartenders resist proposal to keep bars open later during World Cup - Boston Relocation Insider","og_description":"A later last call could pose safety concerns, service industry workers argue.","og_url":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1851","og_site_name":"Boston Relocation Insider","article_published_time":"2026-06-03T15:35:55+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1851#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1851"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/#\/schema\/person\/c08a982d5d5e7124cea9158df226037e"},"headline":"\u2018Boston is already a drunk city\u2019: Bartenders resist proposal to keep bars open later during World Cup","datePublished":"2026-06-03T15:35:55+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1851"},"wordCount":662,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1851#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/487730d55464c6d4dae41f0f0c830bcc.avif","articleSection":["Sport"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1851#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1851","url":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1851","name":"\u2018Boston is already a drunk city\u2019: Bartenders resist proposal to keep bars open later during World Cup - Boston Relocation Insider","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1851#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1851#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/487730d55464c6d4dae41f0f0c830bcc.avif","datePublished":"2026-06-03T15:35:55+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/#\/schema\/person\/c08a982d5d5e7124cea9158df226037e"},"breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1851#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1851"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1851#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/487730d55464c6d4dae41f0f0c830bcc.avif","contentUrl":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/487730d55464c6d4dae41f0f0c830bcc.avif","width":1440,"height":960},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?p=1851#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"\u2018Boston is already a drunk city\u2019: Bartenders resist proposal to keep bars open later during World Cup"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/","name":"Boston Relocation Insider","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/#\/schema\/person\/c08a982d5d5e7124cea9158df226037e","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/50b1ad2e498f523425ee0a8cc5180a210646db1622662a3d56cc405d3e0c346a?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"sameAs":["http:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com"],"url":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/?author=1"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1851","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1851"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1851\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/1850"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1851"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1851"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bostonrelocationinsider.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1851"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}