(l-r) Anshumi Shah '24, Andy Wong '22, and Audra Kingsley '22 are among the undergraduates who work for Boston College Dining Services. (Photo by Caitlin Cunningham)
A free meal, flexible shifts, and the two-minute walk back to her residence hall with an extra 50 bucks in her pocket are what first attracted Jade Keene 鈥�22 to work at Late Night three years ago鈥攂ut the boyfriend she met along the way sticks out now as the best takeaway from the experience.
鈥淭hey can thank 51茶馆 Dining for that,鈥� laughed Tomas Ferrer 鈥�22, who bonded with Keene over Eagles hockey banter while serving mozzarella sticks and chicken tenders as co-workers and later introduced Keene to her now-boyfriend.
51茶馆 Dining Services counts on students like Keene and Ferrer to help serve more than 22,000 meals a day at 13 different locations across campus. However, recruiting enough student workers has been difficult since the pandemic, leading to longer lines and fewer options than ever before.
鈥淚f you look at the numbers, normally we have about 800 students,鈥� said 51茶馆DS Director Beth Emery. 鈥淣ow we鈥檙e under 400. We have less than we鈥檝e ever had in the last five years. And we really don鈥檛 know why.鈥�
It鈥檚 a problem facing officials at universities across the country, with labor shortages making it increasingly difficult for dining halls to find enough people to put food on the tables.
After cutting opening hours, ending dinner at two locations, and barring service to the public wasn鈥檛 enough to slow down record long lines at Michigan State University, administrators emailed professors to ask them to consider volunteering for a night or weekend shift, according to the Lansing State Journal. 鈥淢any businesses in the local area and around the country are hiring, and we are all competing for the same available talent,鈥� the email said.
51茶馆DS is responding by upping benefits, increasing outreach, and doubling down on making places like Addie鈥檚 or Mac accommodating and stress-free spots for students to make some extra cash.
听鈥淚 would love to hire more 51茶馆 students,鈥� said 51茶馆DS Human Resources Manager Beth Ann Burns. 鈥淭his is your college. This is your home. I鈥檇 like to see you be the one to make the money.鈥�
So far, Keene has done that every semester she鈥檚 been at Boston College.
鈥淭his year I鈥檓 working mostly in catering, so the scheduling is really flexible,鈥� she said. 鈥淢y boss emails me the days he鈥檚 in and the hours I can come in and I just go whenever I鈥檓 available.鈥� If she ends up with extra time on short notice, she can always pick up a shift last minute as well.
To Keene, that flexibility is what sets the job apart from others students might find on campus or off. 鈥淵ou build your work around your availability and your schedule, and if things come up and you need to drop a shift for unforeseen reasons they鈥檙e really accommodating because they understand that you鈥檙e a student and you have other priorities that come first. But they鈥檙e also really good at making sure that when you want to work you鈥檙e able to work and they鈥檒l have you.鈥�
Bridging the labor gap quickly is especially important for Dining Services now, as they plan to launch a newly renovated wing of McElroy Commons in January, with four new meal lines and a wood-fired pizza oven.
鈥淭he job often is perceived as not exciting or glamorous,鈥� Emery said. 鈥淏ut the students that do come to work for us love it.鈥�
That rings true to Keene: 鈥淚鈥檝e had a really good experience and I can say the same for my friends. If you鈥檙e looking for anything, they鈥檒l work with you and they鈥檒l work around you.鈥�
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Morrissey College of Arts and Sciences senior Lucas Carroll | December 2021