Oct. 21, 2021 "I'm a burnt-out barista, and I don't know if I'll return to my minimum wage job": Today I found this article by Chloe Peel on CBC news. This was really good and tells about her experience working and going to school during the pandemic:
This First Person column is the experience of Chloe Peel, a student and barista in Montreal who is currently on leave for burnout. For more information about CBC's First Person stories, please see the FAQ.
"We're hiring!" signs adorn the doors and windows of seemingly every business in Montreal, and yet nobody seems to be applying. Everyone is wondering where the workers have gone, and yet nobody is checking in on those workers — often students and young people — who still occupy these service jobs.
The reality is that we're burned out. I speak from experience as I am a 21 year old currently on medical leave from my job as a barista due to the enormous stress of this seemingly easy job.
Even before the pandemic, young people were speaking out about the low minimum wage in Quebec, about employers not being flexible enough with our work schedules to accommodate school and internships, about clientele being increasingly rude and demanding much more. Since then, our list of frustrations has gotten exponentially longer.
We worked in person from day one of the pandemic, stocking grocery store and pharmacy shelves and preparing quick meals for essential workers (the reason fast food restaurants stayed open). Not only have we been the public's only consistent in-person interactions over the past nearly two years, but we also became enforcers of public health regulations. From mask mandates starting in July 2020 to the still-new vaccine passport, we're the ones who have to enforce these rules. We're the face of changes that so many people don't understand, and are often reluctant to comply with.
This leads to a lot of abuse. I've had people yell and swear at me. A fellow barista had a drink thrown at them.
With the mounting pressure on us at work, on top of also having to adapt to our new lives of Zoom university and our social and dating lives coming to a complete halt — which left us isolated in our tiny student apartments — many of us tried to speak up.
The general response: if you don't like your work conditions, find another job. So, facing job insecurity and public apathy, we did as we were told and found other sources of income.
At my café, less than half of the staff from this time last year is still around. Many quit out of frustration; others, like me, were advised by medical and mental health specialists to take some time off. This crisis has a domino effect.
Once a handful of people quit, we become short staffed and clients get longer wait times, which in turn leads to more complaints from frustrated clients that we try to manage — only further discouraging the brave souls who have been sticking it out.
And why would anyone want to apply for a job in an environment where the current staff are barely hanging on? Especially for our strikingly low minimum wage.
But at the same time, quitting isn't an option for everyone — meaning the risk of burnout for some is even higher. Young people typically work service jobs to pay for school or to build up experience in their field. For this system to work, these "student jobs" can't be our entire lives.
Applying for new jobs is time and energy consuming, and interviews and training tend to have much less scheduling flexibility than the shifts we would work once we're hired. Many of us simply can't afford that instability.
To all those asking what happened to service workers? We either escaped the industry or crumbled under the pressure, after being constantly reminded that nobody really cares about "unskilled labour." As for what to do now, I suggest taking time to listen to those who are still around. Most of us simply want to be treated, and paid, fairly. We deserve better, so either provide better working conditions and wages or accept that we're moving on.
Even after the Canada Recovery Benefit ends, these problems aren't going anywhere.
Chloe Peel is a young woman with a penchant for writing who hopes to use her voice to advocate for the issues that affect young working-class adults.
I'm a burnt-out barista, and I don't know if I'll return to my minimum wage job | CBC News
There are 23 comments:
I thought in Saskatchewan, we had a minimum call out of 3 hours, regardless whether or not it is busy enough. Used to be that way and I don't think it has changed.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ontario-gig-workers-uber-lyft-skip-employees-1.6216443
No one should be expected to be treated with rudeness and disrespect regardless of the status of their job.
If you have a friend who is nice to you but treats servers like trash, just remember, that's how they would be treating you if your roles were reversed.
But my question to you is where did they learn this or who taught them this Behavior
Say thanks to them and leave a tip, or more. They deserve it.
How about what we are observing is the need for growing low skill jobs as part of our changing real economy? The problem, their decupling from their ability to support a basic standard of living? They are part of our social economic echo system, as are the needs for people to fill them! STOP the notion these people need to get better educated or need a change in attitude and self motivation! That is insulting and little else!
The solution is not found in GDP growth to rationalize greater funded public debt as a solution by government! Even less, public subsidy of growing numbers thinking they do not need to work because society can afford it, in our current context?
We need a full workforce that is diversified and productive to meet all our needs to deliver economic Alpha?
Knowing the system can also be a full time job, but is it productive for society, if that is a growth area for able body workers? « less
you seem to be portraying barista as no-skilled employment. Sure the physical skills are not extremely difficult, however not many people have the inter-personal skills necessary to serve the public in such an environment without getting burned out
Jan. 4, 2022 "Small businesses face 'bloodbath' in Ontario clampdown: Restaurateur": Today I found this article by David George-Cosh on Bloomberg news:
Ontario's new rules aimed at curbing the spread of the Omicron COVID-19 variant may lead to a "bloodbath" for small businesses already struggling to stay afloat, according to one restaurant owner.
Mohamad Fakih, founder and chief executive officer of Paramount Fine Foods, an Ontario-based chain of Middle Eastern restaurants, said in an interview Tuesday he wants the Ontario and federal governments to provide additional assistance to affected businesses, notably those in the restaurant sector, to avoid widespread closures.
"It's very, very difficult for people to continue getting these restrictions, one after the other; businesses can not stay open," Fakih said. "We saw a lot of restaurants that were lost in our community because they couldn't stay open during COVID."
Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced the new restrictions Monday following what he described as a "tsunami" of new COVID-19 cases in the province over the past several weeks and as hospitals put off non-urgent surgeries as staff prioritize treating people suffering from the virus. Those new restrictions, which take effect Wednesday, include a ban on indoor dining as well as ordering gyms, theatres, concert venues, and many other indoor businesses to temporarily shut down. The measures will be in place until at least Jan. 26, the government said.
Fakih said that while he agrees with the latest restrictions aimed at stopping the spread of the Omicron variant, those new rules are likely to throw a wrench in plans for many small business owners who have taken on significant debt to keep their doors open during the pandemic. A recent study by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) found that small businesses have added an average of $190,000 in debt to stay in business despite various provincial lockdowns.
"By the time you create a repayment plan on your debts and the pattern of bringing some profit, they change the restrictions again and you start all over to replan your financial bottom line," Fakih said.
Ontario said it is providing some deferrals on property taxes and an energy rebate to small businesses during the current lockdown period, but the CFIB said in a release on Monday that those supports are not nearly enough to help organizations impacted by the newly-announced restrictions.
Paramount operates more than 70 locations around the world, the majority of which are located in Ontario. Fakih was named to the Order of Canada last month for his philanthropic work aiding new immigrants to Canada.
Over the years, Fakih expanded his business by employing many of those immigrants to work at Paramount, offering new Canadians a steady job and an opportunity to contribute to the country's economy. However, the latest lockdowns bring in labour uncertainty that could make it harder for restaurants to re-hire any lost staff, he added.
"We have lost a lot of employees who do not want to be in the restaurant business anymore," he said. "You hire them, then you let them go, then you hire them, then you let them go and that's not sustainable for anyone to do the career."
Small businesses face 'bloodbath' in Ontario clampdown: Restaurateur - BNN Bloomberg
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