Photo via @rlozada25/TikTok
December 7, 2021, 2:55 pm
Another viral TikTok video is sparking a discussion on what should be considered acceptable labor practices for huge companies after showing a single young woman cooking 12 meals for 12 customers entirely by herself in a Waffle House kitchen. The video shows many plates lined up on the counter of the open kitchen while she works to cook without a single other employee in sight, complimenting her as “truly amazing.”
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“This lady deserves ALL the tips,” the overlay voice says. “She’s cooking it all for 12 people by herself.”
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The TikTok user who posted the video said in comments that he and his two companions tipped her a total of $100 for her hard work and hoped the other customers tipped generously as well. However, many commenters have expressed the opinion that she should have walked out on the job rather than have to work so ridiculously hard for what is probably very low pay. The restaurant chain known as Waffle House does not have a good reputation in this regard.
“[S]he should have walked out,” said one commenter. “Running yourself into a breakdown from exhaustion is not worth your life. Unionize and protect yourself.”
Others criticized the poster for ordering food at all once he saw that she was working alone.
“Damn she by herself and you still decided to order?” wrote another user. “Idk I would have walked out the door the moment I realized it.”
Many of the comments seem to echo an increasingly pro-labor sentiment in the U.S., where the minimum wage has stagnated for over a decade while every cost of living has steadily increased, along with general worker productivity and profits for companies like Waffle House. Workers have been quitting in droves, particularly in the service industry, feeling that their jobs aren’t worth it when they don’t pay enough to live in a one-bedroom apartment and are leading them to absolutely nowhere.
Some, unfortunately, don’t feel like quitting is an option when they have debt or have to provide for their families. This could be the case for this Waffle House cook.
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Perhaps the most disturbing comments come from those familiar with the working conditions at Waffle House, with many calling a single person cooking for 12 people “normal.”
“That’s normal for Waffle House,” said a commenter. “I was always by myself. Every Thursday and Friday morning. Weekends we had 2. Friday/Saturday night we had 2.”
Whether or not this is normal for this particular restaurant chain does not change the fact that it’s unsafe and practically guaranteed to lead to burnout, mental health degradation, and potentially dangerous workplace accidents. Studies have shown that working overtime increases the risk of workplace injuries by 61 percent, while general “overwork” is terrible for one’s physical health, literally leading to overworked people dying significantly younger than those with good work-life balance.
*First Published: December 7, 2021, 2:55 pm
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