hospitality fails
Addressing Racism in Chicago’s hospitality Industry
By Lauren Dacy
Seeing so many non-black service industry leaders in Chicago remain silent despite cries for help from our communities has been, at best, incredibly disheartening, and at worst, actively harmful. Let’s not mince words: I have directly benefited from the inherent racism of the industry my entire life, earning raises, jobs, and more pervasively, the trust of white employers easily. I have consistently seen BIPOC candidates passed up for jobs in favor of the more comfortable (i.e., white) pick. When BIPOC candidates have made “the cut,” I have seen coworkers face discrimination and inequitable pushback from employers when speaking about their lived experiences with racism in the workplace, or asking for greater support and safety on the job. I have seen BIPOC folks endure racist policies, guests, coworkers, and ownership teams--often remaining silent for fear of losing income or healthcare. I have seen this all because I was in the room, and I wasn’t vocal enough about what and who was blatantly wrong. The time is up for complacency.
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Nearly every business or organization I have worked for since moving to Chicago in 2011 has maintained staff and leadership teams that are overwhelmingly white (in most cases, 95-100%). In all but one service industry position I have held, the most customer-facing and highest earning staff teams have been over 90% white, while support staff teams, such as bar backs and server assistants, have been over 95% BIPOC. The ONLY job where this wasn’t the case was a BIPOC-owned restaurant that is now closed. This isn’t an isolated experience either--ask any server or bartender you know in Chicago for their stories. Or just scroll through Instagram accounts for some the Chicago’s largest hospitality groups: Ace Hotel, The Robey, Hogsalt, One Off Hospitality, Lettuce Entertain You, and Land & Sea Dept., all of whom have posted black squares online (and have majority white boards and ownership teams), but are still consistently unable to answer direct questions about what they are ACTUALLY going to do for Black Lives in their own restaurants moving forward.
The concurrent cultural uprising and global health pandemic is making these disparities in access to power and resources in the workplace, and how the service industry is failing in its response, abundantly clear. As COVID-19 pushed shockwaves across the service industry in Chicago, multiple restaurant groups aggressively fired staff, equipping general layoffs to save their own bank accounts. Many staff members were left in a lurch, oftentimes waiting upwards of eight to ten weeks to receive unemployment insurance. Meanwhile, the same companies mishandled donated funds, and failed to provide security for furloughed staff. Then, staff received a second blow as restaurants closed again (the same week “patio season” was officially deemed OK) in reaction to Black Lives Matter protests following the murder of George Floyd. How many restaurants have we seen over the past two weeks make a social media post about closing for “time to reflect” while simultaneously rushing to board up windows and doors? The symbolism could not be more abrasive: Virtually? we’re with you. Physically? stay back.
The current momentum behind calling non-black business owners in and asking them to do the work of creating an equitable workplace must be embraced and maintained. It’s starting to work. And if they don’t listen, we stop spending money there. Money speaks. If it didn’t, they wouldn’t have boarded up in the first place. Unsure about whether your Chicago fave is problematic (spoiler: they probably are)? Check here, and then check here. And then do your own research, too. Prowl their social media posts or websites and ask some important questions: what measurable actions are they taking to address inequity and racism in the workplace? Have they acknowledged that Black Lives Matter, that police are the problem, that we desperately need fundamental change? Where is their money going? Where is their food going? What are they doing with their access to these resources? What are current and former employees sharing about their experiences at work?
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We can no longer sit by, cashing in at work, chilling on a patio, and be afraid of rocking the boat at the expense of someone else’s personhood. It is time to sink the boat. It is the responsibility of white folks to actively work toward the dismantling of white supremacy in our communities, businesses, families, and hearts. Most importantly, we need to stop placing the work of fixing this pervasive cultural disparity on those who have been most harmed by its function. The world is full of modeling resources that can be learned and implemented.
Most diversity and inclusion training received by service industry workers is focused on how not to get sued by a coworker or reprimanded by HR. I have seen entire staff teams begrudgingly attend a half-day training then go on to spend the next week or so making it the butt of every joke while management fails to enact any long-lasting changes in policy or practice. I believe we can aim much higher than an end goal of avoiding a lawsuit or more paperwork. We can aim higher than avoiding pain for white management while reinforcing oppression of BIPOC staff.
Implementing actual diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) goals that are measurable and achievable is a necessary first step. SMARTIE metrics and worksheets help ensure that your goals are
-Strategic
-Measurable
-Ambitious
-Realistic
-Time-Bound
-Inclusive
-Equitable
Is management committed to hiring a professional translator for all staff communications, both in person and in writing? Or is an employee put on the spot at meetings, asked to translate last minute, and not receiving additional pay for that service? Why is that an afterthought? How can restaurant management offer opportunities for bar backs to become bartenders, or for server assistants to become servers, or for prep cooks to become line cooks to become line leads, and sous chefs? If a business has never or only rarely makes pathways clear for promotion of BIPOC employees, then that business is operating with an inherently exploitative system that reflects the white supremacy of the rest of the world. Break it down. Rebuild it.
While you’re working to rebuild that, go ahead and hire an external company to audit your practices. Instead of another dry HR training, consider sending your entire leadership team to a comprehensive Anti-Racism workshop. Start changing at the roots, in your leadership’s fundamental understanding of how our world operates. It’s one thing to take a break for reflection behind new plywood windows. It’s another thing entirely to act on those reflections. There is no longer space for all of us to continue reflecting without action.
White people: let’s work together. Let’s take what we have been reading and learning and put it all into practice. Let’s create an actionable plan to foster equity and anti-racism in our work. We all have healing to do. We have people, businesses and structures to call out and rebuild. And we will have to continue doing that over and over again. Let’s get to it.
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Additional Resources:
Restaurant Workers in Danger: An Open Letter to Mayor Lightfoot and Governor Pritzker by Don Woolf
CHAAD: Chicago Hospitality Accountable Actions Database
SMARTIE Goals Worksheet from The Management Center