The restaurant industry of Durango’s employees, managers and owners comment on what it is like to experience both the perks and conflicts of the business itself.
Employees
Courtney Hancock was hired by a local sushi restaurant in July of 2016, she said.
“I was actually hired because I previously knew one of the managers who worked here,” Hancock said. “I didn’t have to get interviewed or anything, I just sort of walked in and she gave me a job.”
It depends on the day when it comes to fairness of wages, she said. Any time one works in the tipped industry one has to rely on other people to pay one’s wage.
“I 100 percent survive on the tips I receive from customers during my shift,” Hancock said.
On average, waitresses at her workplace make anywhere from $80 to $150 a night in tips, Hancock said.
“I absolutely have to tolerate behavior from customers in order to receive an adequate tip,” Hancock said.
There is a lot of entitlement, Hancock said. Both waiters and waitresses have to deal with a lot of people whenever they may have various difficult emotions due to being hungry.
“I think the restaurant industry may have invented that word because of some of the customers that come in,” Hancock said. “If anything takes too long after they are already hangry, they get mad.”
Waiters and waitresses can meet a lot of delightful people and get good experiences through that, Hancock said. But one also has that flip side that one has to deal with as well.
“If I were to put a gender behind this classification of hangry people, I would say they both can be pretty equal,” Hancock said. “Females can be just as crazy concerning their food as males can be.”
Regarding administrative authority, there has never been inappropriate behavior from higher-ups at this establishment, but she has worked in restaurants where that has happened before, she said.
“I have never commented on this inappropriate behavior”, Hancock said. “I always have just rolled with it. I have been working in this industry for about 14 years. It has a certain way of how it works.”
Mitchell Patcheck was hired by a local barbecue restaurant in August of 2017, he said.
“I don’t think I was hired for my looks, gender or anything of the sort,” Patcheck said. “I had family who already worked here who gave me a good recommendation.”
Patcheck does not tolerate inappropriate customer behavior in order to get more tips, yet there are other workers that do in order for them to make extra money, he said.
“I think for the amount of hours I put in compared to other people, I am not necessarily fairly waged,” Patcheck said. “I think I deserve more than what I am currently paid.”
Liz Hemminger was hired by the same barbecue place in the summer of 2012, she said.
“I was hired mostly I think because of my personality,” Hemminger said. “I think you need to have a good personality to work here, but I don’t think gender or looks matter.”
Tips are an added bonus at this establishment, Hemminger said. Normally one doesn’t even get tips half the time, you just have to deal with people because it is a customer service job.
“I don’t necessarily experience any inappropriate behavior from higher-ups,” Hemminger said. “If something inappropriate is ever said, I usually think it is funny, but they never cross the line.”
Managers
Ian Kitch, manager of a local pizza place, said that the qualities he looks for in his employees are common sense, hard work ethic, an appreciation for what it is they are doing, the ability to multitask and good customer service in his employees.
“There are a lot of students in this town who need work,” Kitch said. “It’s a pizza place, it doesn’t require much experience in the restaurant industry. It is unlike fine dining where you have to have a ton of experience.”
There is not a difference between genders regarding work ethic and task force, Kitch said. There have been a lot of female cooks here. There have also been a lot of guys who worked up front more with customers, he said.
“Laziness and a lack of attention to detail are the biggest downfalls an employee can have,” Kitch said.
Cody Civiletto, manager of a local bar-b-que place, was hired in December of 2015, he said.
“I think I was hired because I knew people who already worked at this establishment and I am a good worker,” Civiletto said.
For his employees, he looks for good work ethic, the ability to take initiative on things and to work hard, Civiletto said.
“When it comes to hiring, I want my employees to be confident whenever they are talking, dress professionally and appropriately, and their work history to see if they have any experience in the restaurant industry in general,” Civiletto said.
The biggest downfall or quality an employee can have is a bad attitude, Civiletto said.
Regardless of their gender, this local restaurant gives anyone a fair chance to work there, Civiletto said.
Owners
Dan Howell, part-owner of a local restaurant, has been a part of the business since 2004, he said.
“The most important aspect that allows this business to run efficiently and effectively is being able to hire good employees that we trust,” he said.
Their philosophy is to give their employees a lot of decision-making ability, Howell said.
“I always used to joke around here that the quickest way to get fired was to come ask me something that I could possibly not know,” he said. “We want our employees to take initiative.”
The goal is to do a good job encouraging employees to make a lot of decisions on their own and not beat them up if it may be the wrong decision, Howell said. This is how to progress in a business.
“I don’t succumb to stereotypes involving gender work ethic, and I have always tried not to pick out differences” Howell said.
There are not any overall generalities one could make about someone's gender and how it relates to the workplace, Howell said.
“We want extroverts working here,” he said. “We want people who are comfortable talking to strangers and engage with the customer.”