Chapter 3,478,346,890: Food Industry

A slight peek in my 3,478,346,890th chapter in my book of life is going to be about working in the food industry. Well, yes, I've been working at a restaurant for the past approximately eight weeks, and I have a list of pros/cons about working there.

Let me first say that I adored the people I worked with, especially the managers, because they were almost always willing to learn how to sign and to interact with me...but working in a hearing dominant environment really shifted my option into leaving the job.


I'm not here to degrade people who are working in the food industry, but to bring awareness of how to treat people who work in the field--especially Deaf people.

Yesterday marked my last day working for multiple reasons, the main one being the developing disgust of working with actual food itself. I would come home and be not hungry because I just pulled a double shift working with food...you get my drift. I smelled like food all the time, even after showering for thirty minutes and even during my days off--I could still smell food on myself. It just got too much for me, I couldn't take it anymore, I was super unhappy.

Before I explain the other reason why I left, I'm not a quitter. I strive to accomplish almost everything that I do. I don't live leaving a book half-read, I don't like leaving something undone or bailing out on something. This time, I did. I left because I was super unhappy and money wasn't happiness... I also couldn't take being the Deaf one in the team, I had a difficult time fitting in and being able to follow the fast paced lunch rushes when my co-workers were talking over each other about food fixes or rapid orders...I was never informed of any of them so often my food that I made would be sent back and re-done by a hearing co-worker--and when I asked them why it was sent back, they would tell me to "not to worry". Nor did I have a formal training in food production--the system was down every day I came in, so instead I got hands on training on whatever I needed to do those days.

I started getting frustrated when we had down time during our breaks and my co-workers would wander in the back to chat with others instead of trying to make conversation with me. I carried around a mini notepad and a pen with me all the time during my shifts and breaks. Sure, there were some awesome co-workers chatting with me, but during the closing shifts--those were the longest and boring hours.

One of the final straws that broke the camel's back was when I was assigned to do a 2 pm check, but again, I never got a formal training--just a point and push to the things I needed to do which was to clean and make food. I didn't know what you were supposed to do during a 2 pm check, so I asked around for someone who could show me how to do it. A girl came up to me and told me what needed to be done, but she explained it in such a "you do dat, check dat out" (not joking, she talked like that to me, not even putting effort in her English). I really didn't understand what to do, so I told her that. What followed me telling her was a bunch of dramatic eye rolls and telling the other food production guy that "she doesn't understand what to do even when I explained it to her."

I can lip read.

I understood everything she was saying to the guy and honestly in that moment I felt really embarrassed because I didn't understand the 2 pm check. I truly didn't. So the guy tried to explain it to me too, but again he explained it in a way that made me feel even more stupid like it was TOO simple to explain. (I eventually learned it was to up stock -- move the food up to the line-- the food, make a list of what needed to be down stocked -- moved down to the refrigerated drawers -- then check off how many we had of each indifferent in the refrigerated drawers and the line...see how slightly complicated that was, but easy to explain?)

When I told the guy that I didn't understand him but maybe he could do a few of the checks and I could get a visual on what I needed to do--he laughed at me and told me he was off in a couple of minutes. At this point, I'm thinking okay nobody wants to show me how so I stood there for a couple of minutes trying to figure it out and re-reading what both of them wrote...

A trainer came by and asked the girl what was going on. She started explaining that I didn't understand what a 2 pm check was, I blew. I was DONE with her attitude. She did not explain it to me in the best way she could--she half-assed it. I showed the trainer what she wrote, and I was like I really do not understand. Then I shoved my "you can do the 2 pm check for me since I do not understand it" note to the girl who was talking stuff behind my back, I wrote the note with such force that there were *~dramatic spaces~* between "DO NOT UNDERSTAND." Then I left the food production area to get cleaning supplies, might as well angrily clean something.

As I was turning the corner, the trainer and the girl started laughing looking at my note. Great. Thanks.

You can just imagine how angry and embarrassed I was.

I told my manager that I truly didn't understand how to do it and I was sorry that the girl had to do it for me, but also that I never got trained in it. My manager told me not to worry about it.

You might think that I didn't try hard enough, maybe I did or maybe I didn't but my story isn't the only one out there. So many Deaf friends I've met had the same frustrating story. It is truly difficult to be working in a fast paced hearing dominant environment that has no patience in stopping everything to communicate with you.

Often in a hearing dominant environment, when you don't understand something or you can't follow a conversation you're told "never mind" or "don't worry about it"... That is always NEVER fair. How am I supposed to learn, be trained or alter my methods if I'm told not to worry about it or never mind?

This is not helping the Deaf community succeed, if you tell a Deaf person this, you are NOT helping and you are pulling us down to be below you. No question or debate about it.

The best ally a Deaf person could have would have been my manager who wanted to be sure I was okay with everything, I once worked in the drive through area and refused to be placed back in the food production just because I couldn't wear the headsets to prepare the food before it was inputted so it would be faster. It was one of the worst shifts I ever had, but I'd like to think I proved them wrong. My manager was understanding of my experience, and she was so excited to be working with me I thought I would have been the born again Jesus. I truly adored the people who were eager working with me and eager about learning sign language--those were one of my most favorite shifts.

If you're a Deaf person working in the food industry, I tip my hat to you and I would love to hear your stories, because this is one of the hardest things I had to do the last few months. It emotionally, mentally and physically drained me.

I'm still open to working in a more Deaf friendly industry/restaurant if I need to, but this was an eye opening experience as a Deaf person that needed to be written about for my own sanity and to see how my journey has developed.