Is this their way of saying that people don't want to go back to starvation wages and managed to find better jobs post COVID after being laid off?

This is basically McDonalds - "We laid our employees off during an economic disaster, now they won't come back without better pay :'("

Every labor shortage = employers not paying enough.

Inflation my ass

I can't think of any reason to worry about McDonalds food becoming less cheap. Let it compete with healthier alternatives on the basis of its total market-driven cost.