Victory for Restaurant Worker!

Steven Leo is returning home from his restaurant job with more money in his pocket and a swing in his step. He can tell his wife, a garment worker making $6.75 an hour in Daly City, that they can finally take their two young daughters to Disneyland. Through community pressure to defend workers’ rights, Steven just received a check for over $3000 from the Mandarin, the restaurant that he worked at. Owners of the Mandarin have finally agreed to pay Steven for two months of working 12 hour days on his feet with no overtime.

This is not an isolated incident. Violations of basic labor law are rampant throughout the restaurant industry. Unfortunately, the California Division of Labor Standards and Enforcement does little to address the problem. The DLSE is under-funded and workers’ rights are not the political honey that draws attention and staff. In essence, the only body with say-so in the restaurant industry is the Golden Gate Restaurant Association, a membership only group of restaurant owners with an annual budget in the hundreds of thousands, an army of lobbyists, and a largely sympathetic corporate media. This leaves workers like Steven Leo voiceless and powerless.

Young Workers United is a committed group of students, restaurant workers and organizers determined to raise Steven’s voice, and the voices of all workers. After the successful campaign to raise the SF minimum wage to $8.50 from a measly $6.75, Young Workers United (YWU) went out on the streets to ensure the new law was being enforced. Through daily outreach at restaurants and retail outlets, YWU found Steven. YWU and Steven came up with a strategy to win Steven justice. YWU brought the Mandarin to the table using community power and direct action.

After numerous calls and delegations to the Mandarin, Young Workers United and Steven Leo decided to take public action. Armed with handfuls of flyers detailing Steven’s story, they stood in front of the Mandarin and asked customers to tell owner Whitney Chen to negotiate with Steven. After a few hours of flyering, and a face-off with security guards, the group received a call from the Mandarin to settle the claim. Without community enforcement of labor laws, the Mandarin and other restaurants can continue to break the law with impunity.

The average customer at a restaurant assumes her meal is prepared and served by workers who are being paid the minimum wage, receiving overtime, meal periods, breaks and other standards of labor law. However, conversations with restaurant workers shine a different light on the situation. The reality is that many restaurant workers, especially immigrants, are not even receiving the minimum wage. Servers experience other injustices. In over 100 surveys of restaurant workers, Young Workers United found many cases of unfairness, including public humiliation of workers by customers and management, favoritism, sexual harassment and racial discrimination.

Young Workers United is calling for broader change throughout the industry. Through pounding the pavement and talking to workers, Young Workers United is building a grassroots organization for restaurant workers to talk about- and solve- their problems, not only personally, but throughout their profession. Steven Leo attends these meetings, promising to defend other restaurant workers the same way they stood up for him.

While restaurant workers like Steven Leo win their money and respect back, community members have been supportive with dollars and feet. In addition to being aware of the issue, Young Workers United urges the San Francisco community to donate time and money to this important cause. Young Workers United also offers education and materials to inform the public. One educational opportunity is coming up soon. Young Workers United and the SF Youth Commission is hosting the world wide premiere of “Eyes on the Fries: Young Workers in the Service Sector” on June 10th at City Hall at 6:30 pm. Learn about the lives of service sector workers or commiserate through this fascinating film. Restaurant workers in upcoming campaigns will also speak about what you can do to help.