Non-union dining hall workers ask for job stability

An effort to push for better wages and benefits for non-unionized dining hall workers at Penn became public Monday morning. But those who help prepare students’ food were already complaining discreetly about inequities in their working conditions.

At Penn, 109 full-time and more part-time food service workers are employed by the Bon Appétit Management Company and are not unionized. In contrast, the positions of 121 dining hall workers employed by Penn are covered by a collective bargaining agreement negotiated by a chapter of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.

“We offer wage and benefits packages that are competitive for the food service industry in each area that we operate,” said Bonnie Powell, Bon Appétit’s director of communications. She declined to comment on specific information relating to working agreements.

As at-will employees, Bon Appétit workers have less job security than their peers.

An employer “can hire somebody who’s an at-will employee for any reason or no reason,” said Laurence Goodman, a lawyer specializing in labor and employment law at the Philadelphia law firm Willig, Williams and Davidson.

Unless their layoff violates specific state or federal laws, workers are not legally entitled to keep their job.

The DP spoke to several Bon Appétit workers, all of whom asked to remain anonymous for purposes of job security. Their names are changed and denoted with an asterisk.

In regards to layoffs, Thomas*, a part-time worker, said, “They can just take our bags and tell us to go anytime.”

When students leave during the summer, dining hall staff — both those employed by Penn and by Bon Appétit — can receive unemployment benefits.

But Bon Appétit employees have no guarantee of being rehired from one year to the next. They remain unsure of their employment situation until late August, according to one employee, Charlie*, who has worked at Penn for almost 10 years.

“Every summer, I get a letter in the mail and they tell me to come back,” he said. Sometimes, he added, employees do not receive a letter, signifying they have been laid off.

Powell confirmed that the company does notify “some” workers’ about their continued employment in August, adding their line of work is “seasonal, based on the academic calendar.”

Part-time Bon Appétit employees do not receive any paid vacation time or sick days, according to Thomas*, who is seeking full-time employment at Penn.

As a result of his less stable working conditions, he feels his unionized colleagues treat him differently. “They treat part-timers like we’re the bottom of the scrap,” he said.

Many workers also decry their wage rates. Charlie* said his starting salary was $7.50 an hour. Today, he works a full-time week at Penn, and has a part-time job outside — for a total of 60 hours per week. Most of his colleagues also have to work part-time jobs in order to support themselves and their families, he added.

Charlie* said the raises he has seen vary between 1 and 1.5 percent every year. Thomas*, whose starting wage was $8 an hour three years ago, now works for only $8.08 an hour.

“Salary increases vary,” said Powell, adding that “some hourly associates received more than 1.5 percent.”

From 2008 to 2012, the inflation rate in the Philadelphia area averaged 1.7 percent, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data.

Employees aren’t informed about their raise level before they receive their paycheck. It is determined by managers and chefs “based on overall job performance, level of responsibility, and our business and operating needs,” Powell said.

Zach*, a Houston Market employee, said he feels his position is precarious. He expects to receive some care from his employer in the event of an injury and enjoys receiving free lunch from the market. But overall, “we don’t really have something to lean on,” he said.

The AFSCME DC47 could not disclose any information concerning the wage rates or raises of Penn employees, said council representative Paul Dannenfelser.

But he said the collective bargaining agreement provides workers with higher wages, better benefits and “a voice,” he added. “We believe people do better in an union.”

Several of the workers who agreed to talk looked at unionizing as a possible solution to secure better benefits. “They should give us some type of union,” said Thomas*. It would “put us on the same level.”

Kareem Wallace, an organizer in the Justice on the Menu campaign and a cook at Hillel’s Falk Dining Commons, indicated an interest in unionizing with AFSCME.

Dannenfelser said that he is “not sure why there is a difference” between dining hall workers at Penn.

“It’s something that we’re looking into,” he added.

Bon Appétit, which also manages the University’s overall dining hall program, has been contracted by Penn since 2008. The company prides itself for its partnership with The Coalition of Immokalee Workers, an organization that promotes better working conditions for the Florida farm workers supplying their tomatoes.

This focus on workers’ rights is “part of what we like about them,” said Mary Witt, the vice president for Business Services, weeks before the Justice on the Menu campaign was publicized.

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.