Cardiff Business School spoke to sixty two chefs in Michelin Star Restaurants about their experiences
A shocking report by academics at Cardiff University has shown that across the world’s top restaurants, there is a culture of extreme violence and abuse shown towards chefs.
Three academics at Cardiff Business School spoke to sixty two chefs across six years and they found that chefs often suffer in order to gain recognition and respect from their fellow colleagues.
Dr Rebecca Scott, one of the report’s co-authors said one of the most unexpected outcomes of the research was how much the suffering of chefs allowed an entry to the restuarant’s elite group.
Dr Scott said, “What became clear was that if you are able to suffer, you are through the gate-keepers
“You are seen, not only by the internal members of staff, but also by external people.
“For example, bruises or burns which were identified by members of the public on the London Underground were a sign of- ‘oh, you must work in that kitchen’. So it was a recognised embodied marker of identity.”
The report contained first-hand experiences from the chefs. Their stories included being being burnt, repeated beatings, broken bones and sexual abuse. Some of the more shocking experiences were deliberately left out due to confidentiality being at risk.
One chef experienced endurance games, aimed at trying to resist pain for as long as possible,
The anonymous source said, “They would get you to put your hand into flour, then into it eggs and then into breadcrumbs. . . . and the game was who could hold their hand in the fryer the longest, with the breadcrumb mix until you – until – before you feel it burning and take it out”
As well as analyzing why chefs experienced violence and the specific situations in which they occurred, Dr Scott explains that the report also tried to tackle the issue.
“It would be wonderful to see these sorts of workplaces really cultivate alternative workspaces that are not built on aggression, violence and bullying
“These value systems need to go hand in hand with policy changes. Restaurants should have HR resources for chefs.
“Furthermore, there needs to a greater protection over their hours. As a lot of chefs work don’t have a structured work routine, they can become overworked and stressed.
“By giving workers more breaks in between hours will prevent issues surrounding violence from taking hold.”