Covid 19 Reflection

I feel Covid 19 has made everyone a little bit stressed out. Recently there was a movement on social media that was initiated with the intention to flush out bad players in the coffee industry. And now people have calmed down so I feel it's the right time to reflect on it.

I understand there are problems in most companies, in every industry. I studied in culinary arts and have been in the industry and heard from friends and family to know crazy things can happen when stress levels rise. Employees might feel some inherent issues in a company which are not addressed properly. But when you look from the employer's perspective you can start to understand it might be that they don't know how to deal with it so they just let it slide. Of course it's irresponsible to do that, but public shaming does not help the situation.

Managing a business is not easy and Covid 19 has certainly made everything much more stressful. So I believe both sides need to give each other some breathing room.

It's been a long tradition that most employees don't feel valued by their employers and coffee shops don't see baristas as permanent positions. Perhaps it stems from the idea that most people see the barista job as a temporary stepping stone.

What if we find a new way. To offer people not just a living wage, but money to raise a family, with a future in the industry. That's a future I would like to see. It requires trust and respect from both sides and some companies have already achieved it.