True Life Cornell: I Work in a Dining Hall

Ever wondered about the behind-the-scenes politics of a Cornell dining hall? *Andrea ’12 dishes (no pun intended) all about it:

Working in a dining hall can be really frustrating. You’re not working independently so you have to deal with a lot of group politics. Freshmen can supervise juniors, and sophomores can manage seniors. It can be a lot to get used to, especially when for upperclassmen. Promotions come around a few times a semester and there is definitely opportunity to move up in the hierarchy, but it can be difficult to stand out when you’re doing mostly pretty menial work. You may not value the ability to clean up a salad bar in under fifteen minutes, but that’s the type of thing that will get you noticed. And when you’re like me and you’re a bit uncoordinated and slow when it comes to physical jobs, speeding up the time it takes to do stuff can be like learning a new skill.

Working with full-timers can also be something to get used to, if you don’t typically engage with Ithaca locals who aren’t your professors, but it can be good to get a healthy dose of reality outside of that safe Cornell bubble. They always have a ton of crazy stories and life experience to divulge so it’s fun to be on shift with them.

Another fun thing to do on shift is to observe the behavior of students eating in the dining hall. Tongs, for example, can pose more of a threat to the typical Cornellian than you would imagine. Some observations I’ve made in my time on shift:

Yes. Those are tongs. They are not used to open lids, they are used to grab food once the lid is open. No, tongs go on top of the lids that cover the food, same way you found them and the same way all the other tongs are placed. The covers do serve a purpose, please put them back on the food when you’re done. No, please do not use the tongs that you just dropped on the floor to pick up additional food. Have you ever heard of a little thing called sanitation?

More drama comes from the lack of prestige that comes with working in a dining hall. It can be embarrassing sometimes to see someone you know who doesn’t know already that you work there. It can make you thankful for the wide-brimmed baseball caps they make us wear instead of hairnets, because it’s fairly easy to hide under, or at least to use it to avoid eye contact. This also relates to dealing with those students who tend to pretend you don’t exist, like when you’re taking a temperature or cleaning an area and they just go around you as if you’re not really there. Hint: we are real people. We go to the same school as you, and we appreciate manners.

But though it doesn’t sound glamorous, working in the dining hall can be a great experience. Here’s how you can make the best out of this job:

Make friends: Get to know your coworkers. Engage in work-related social events, try carpooling after work or bonding over some weird thing your boss said during shift. If you treat the dining hall like a workplace, then it will be just that — a boring, no-nonsense alternative to McDonald’s. 

Talk to your coworkers and that dreaded feeling of work will soon start to feel a lot more like fun. I work with some of my closest friends, so sometimes it feels like I am getting paid to hang around with my friends and do things that don’t require me to think. It’s like Cornell Dining is somehow condoning my procrastination. Befriending your training captains and supervisors will also help you to see everyone as equal so you don’t feel as bad working “under” someone younger than you. 

Stay active: At first you might feel tempted to nibble on those fries, but keep in mind that even though you’re surrounded by food, eating is discouraged. “It looks unprofessional to snack on the food that you’re serving,” my co-worker *Jake points out. “And it’s unsanitary too.” Think of working in the dining hall as exercise — I stay active and on my feet until break for about four hours every shift. Cleaning up my station after dinner is just another part of my cardio routine. I like getting off work feeling exhausted. It reminds me that I’m earning my money.

Pick the right shifts: There are good shifts, and there are bad shifts. Listen to what more experienced staffers have to say about all the different positions, and try out a bunch yourself before deciding on permanents. For the more adventurous crowd, working different shifts offers plenty of variety and experience handling all types of situations. And as my co-worker *Lee points out, this also “allows you to build up your resume in case you’re looking for opportunities to get promoted.” Avoid: salad bars, beverage stations, DMO, popular or messy foods. Look for: pizza, dessert, stations with minimal set-up required, stations with optimal opportunity for employee interaction. 

Embrace people-watching: This is a time-tested recreation that not only keeps you busy during lazy shifts, but can also successfully unite you and your coworkers, but with way less personal drama than office gossip. Indulge and enjoy ragging on your peers with your new dining cohort. 

*Names have been changed
Sources
*Jake
*Lee