HEALTH AND SAFETY ISSUES

Cutting corners on health and safety in the workplace can have a negative impact on the quality of food service as well as on the workers. Bay Area food service workers report that they come to work sick because they cannot afford sick days, that they are denied access to adequate medical care when injured on the job and that they cannot afford medical care—even when they have employer-sponsored health insurance.

Josefina Espinoza: Injured at Work
WebEx Communications, September 2006

In March, I was working fast. There was a lot of work to be done, as usual. I was getting a plastic container to fill up with lettuce from the dishwasher station. The trays were stacked up and fell on my face, and my nose was bleeding. My co-workers came in to assist me but they found that there was nothing in the first aid box. When my manager came, I explained what happened. He told me to wash my face then he went back to his office and slammed the door! I couldn’t tend to my injury until after work. The next day I woke up with an inflamed nose and a headache.

Ruban Zambrano: Worried About Safety on the Job
Credence, October 2006

I worked for Guckenheimer for three years, at Credence in Milpitas. I was hired as a grill cook. While I worked there I didn’t have the health insurance.
In July 2006, I was picking up the steam table that was used for burritos. I picked it up with towels on the handles, like I always did, and it spilled on my left arm. I knew I needed to see a doctor. The chef manager told me to put it on ice for fifteen minutes. Then forty minutes later I called a manager from Credence. He told me I needed to go to the doctor and that he would talk to the chef. After he did, my manager sent me to see the nurse at Credence and she said I needed to go to the doctor. It took an hour and a half for me to finally leave to see the doctor.
Then I had to drive myself to the doctor Guckenheimer uses in Milpitas. On the drive my arm felt like it was burning because the sun was shining on it. The doctor gave me some cream and bandaged my arm. He wrote a note to the chef telling him that I could return to work immediately, but I was not supposed to work over hot areas. When I went to work the next day the chef put the note on his computer and told me to go work on the grill anyway. Working at the grill, it felt like my arm was burning. I was very mad because I knew I was not supposed to be working there in the first place.
Now three months later, my arm still feels like it is burning when I touch it.

Adriana Gonzalez:
Injury Did Not Affect Workload
Genentech, May 2006

On September 5, I hurt my leg. I was walking towards a van and fell. My manager saw and brought me inside and called the hospital. The chef brought me to the clinic where I was told to return at 9 in the morning for an x-ray. My boss asked why the appointment had to be in the morning, because I had to work. Someone from the office took me to my appointment with the doctor. After my injury, I had the same amount of work as before. They did not reduce my workload while I was healing from the injury.

Aurelio Alvarado: Doesn't Receive Breaks
Applied Materials, August 2006

  During 8 hours of work I never get my 10 minute breaks. We get pushed to run around like ants rushing everywhere to get the work done. I am in charge of stocking kitchen supplies and products in the refrigerator and shelf. Most of the products are heavy, weighing approximately 30-50 pounds each. I lift boxes and boxes of sodas, oranges, potatoes and onions without a belt, dolly or a pushcart. I now have a permanent pain in my back that feels like someone is punching me.

Paul Perez: Workload Causes Pain
Applied Materials, September 2006

I am only 26 years old and I am in constant pain as a result of this work. Guckenheimer puts a lot of pressure on us to move fast. I am constantly bending over, doing heavy lifting and rushing around doing more than one person’s job. I believe in pitching in to get the job done but sometimes when I get home I can not lift my right arm over my head. It feels like my bones are hitting and grinding against each other. I like to play with my son at the park but when I feel like this after work I do not have much energy to do anything.

Etelberto Cruz: Insufficient Protection on the Job
WebEx Communications, October 2006

My back hurts—it feels like pulsing pain. I am exhausted after work. I used to work in the construction industry but I have never felt pain like I do now. I work for 30 minutes in the freezer stocking supplies without any protection, and later I wash dishes, pots and pans with warm and hot water and assist the cooks. The back and forth between temperatures isn’t good.

Greg Ayers: Doesn't Always Receive Breaks
Juniper Networks, November 2006

In the 10 years I’ve worked for Guckenheimer, I’ve worked in at least 5 different cafes. In every one of the places, I’ve had multiple responsibilities, more than any one person could handle. We cannot always take our breaks because there is too much to do. By the end of the day my lower back hurts from lifting all the trash, my fingers get numb from pulling things off the dishwashing carousel, washing out the pans and the grease pans, and my feet are sore from walking back and forth from the prep area to the kitchen to the line with dishes, bringing in deliveries and taking pots and pans to the catering area. Don’t get me wrong, I take pride in doing a good job. But working in food service really takes a toll on you.