Who Needs Protection?

We had a uniform line-up today. Jim was sent home for wearing the wrong shoes.

Our class today started back at the time of the Industrial Revolution, which, according to Andy, was about the 1940s. Oops. Back up there a little bit, buddy.

Chef did an excellent job of summarizing the working conditions under the industrialists, which resulted in the rise of the labor union movement, which was formalized in 1935 with the Wagner Act. He succinctly led the class through a discussion of the work-related legislation introduced in the intervening years, including the Fair Labor Standards Act (1938), setting guidelines for wages, hours, and child labor; the Equal Pay Act (1963), mandating equal pay for equal work, regardless of gender; the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (1967), which protects individuals over 40, the Occupational Safety and Health Act (1970), and the Americans with Disabilities Act (1990).

Chef Stazi built a strong case for his point of view, which is that the time for labor unions has come and gone. These days, laws provide us with much of the protection we once needed from unions. Union regulations often preclude managers from firing any but the most egregiously incompetent employees. They also provide a level of benefits that set a benchmark within most industries.

We had a pretty open and balanced discussion about sexual harassment, much of it taken from the perspective of the employer, and the liability created by inaction. Unfortunately, the two worst offenders among our class just happened to be absent today.

As we walked down the hall during break, Silvia said, "What I'm learning in this class is how many times I've been screwed over on the job." "Those days are over," I told her.

We talked about the difference between exempt and non-exempt jobs. Chef talked candidly about management's need to convert as much staff as possible away from hourly to salary or shift pay, to keep labor costs lower and more predictable. "The worst job in the kitchen is the sous chef's," he said. "You have a lot of responsibility, you don't get the credit, and your salary, when averaged out to an hourly rate, is usually less than you made before you got promoted."

We have a guest Italian chef on campus for a couple of weeks, and we ended the day by watching him demonstrate an appetizer dish of foie gras with a sauce made from peaches. Molto, molto benne!