Final Report

question on word

Stakeholder Interviews and Analysis

Summary Description of Stakeholders and their Interests.

a) Who are the stakeholders interviewed?
The stakeholders that took part in the interviews work, have worked, or have family, in the food
service industry. The interviewees consist of customers, low-level employees, managers, chefs,
restaurant owners, culinary educators, and family members of the stakeholders. These
stakeholders have been directly affected by the over-consumption of drugs and alcohol in the
food service industry.
b) Which stakeholder groups are covered?
The stakeholder groups that are covered are those who are the employees, customers, general
public, shareholders, community, and business support; all are in the food service industry.
c) Which stakeholder groups are excluded?
The stakeholder groups that are excluded are the community, suppliers, creditors, retailers and
wholesalers, nongovernmental organizations, the government, and competitors.
d) A summary of the interests of each stakeholder group, with references to the interviews.
Stakeholder Group and Interests

Shareholders want a continuous satisfying return on investment, and they are willing to have
employees work long hours. “There were days where it would be a whole 12 hours, it’s called
‘clope’, where you close and you open so you’re there working from 6:30 pm to 2:30 am, and
have to be back there at 10 am to work till 4 pm” – Olimpia

Employees in the food industry want to maintain stable employment, some hold more than
one job because what they earn is not enough to live. The long work hours bring a lot of stress
and pressure to their lives. This includes management as well. “Alcohol and drug use are
definitely at play when it comes to finding a way to de-stress within the industry…it’s easy to
partake after work or even during your shift when you are surrounded by it.” – San Gabriel

Customers are usually not aware of the substance abuse experienced by food service workers.
That does not mean however they are inherently apathetic to the subject. “if my waiter or cook
was drunk or on drugs. Bartenders maybe are the only ones that have a free pass but I think it’s
still illegal. Overall I look down upon it.” – McAlpine

The General Public is affected by the use of drugs and alcohol in the food service industry..
The general public is interested in having healthy and safe family members that work in the
food service industry. “Our family has been suffering immensely due to my brother’s
negligence; he preferred to indulge in alcohol and substance rather than fulfilling his
responsibilities” – Ryan

Business Support Group consult in the food service industry. Its interest is to educate and
consult those in this industry and provide information to help them perform in a changing

environment. “Many employees will be recognized for their qualities as a worker (readiness,
excellence, and accountability) but won’t be noticed for their alcoholic addiction”. – Sorgule

Page 2. Summary Description of Stakeholder Power and Position on Power-Interest Map.

a) Table 2: A table that indicates the power of each stakeholder group along each dimension:
voting, economic, political, and legal. (I expect to reason for each metric, drawn from the
interviews. This reasoning must be referenced from specific interviews and can be attached as
an appendix).

Stakeholder and their Power (Voting, Economic, Political, and/or Legal) – Reasoning

Stakeholder Power and Reason

Shareholders High Voting
Power

Shareholders like Managers and owners can set rules in
place for their employees on how to behave on the job, like
strict no drug policies. Gordon Ramsay for example started
testing his staff and customer bathrooms for drugs.

Employees High
Economic
power

Employees who have problems with drug and/or alcohol
abuse can reach a point where they are no longer able to
work; this affects the business’ return on investment and
those around them. For example, Ryan talks about the
increased number of absentees; his brother started going out
more and avoided work which made his family financially
stressed. Also, Respondent #3 shares that the more he consumed
substances the more depressed he got, and the more mistakes he
made at work.

Customer High
Economic
Power

Customers can refuse service if they realize that the servers
are intoxicated or high. They can refuse to come back if
service was not to the desired standards. Customer
Montgomery McAlpine stated that he would look down on the
service personnel if they would be intoxicated, additionally, he
would be fearful that the drugs would reduce attentiveness
and that some things like allergies could be forgotten by a
server or the cook and end up deadly for the customer.

General
Public

Medium
Informational
Power

The general public has seen firsthand how drugs and alcohol are
used in the food service industry. “Then there was one person
that worked for this restaurant, my boyfriend’s restaurant,
there was a cigar box that they kept on top of one of the wine
fridges that had cocaine in, it was known by a few of the
people in the restaurant that were using it”. – Ciji

Stakeholder Power and Reason

Business
Support

High
Informational
power

Educator and consultant Paul Sorgule has the option to
spread awareness to employees and employers about the
problems of addiction in the workplace.

Types of Stakeholder Salience
b) Chart 1: chart the interest and power of each stakeholder on the interest — power map. This
again should be empirically justified by your interviews and not mere guesses.

Description of Coalitions that are Likely to Form For and Against the Social Issue.
a) Based on the chart, explain at least 3 coalitions, with reasoning on how and why they should
form.

1. Employees and managers

(working against drug abuse)
Employees and managers all are working long hours in the food industry to try to make a living.
All of them don’t want to rely on drug abuse to get through their shifts, but sometimes it leaves
them no choice. Creating a safe work environment is crucial for all workers but when substance
abuse on the clock is at play, that could have dire consequences, including workplace incidents,
so servers and cooks would want to decrease the chances of that. Employees and managers can
work against drug abuse by coming together and creating a safe, healthy environment to work in
without the use of drugs. Coming up with a strategy that includes working fewer hours,
spreading the hours evenly, and implementing more and longer breaks can limit or take out drug
abuse in the food industry. Improving education on worker safety, rights, and drug use is
important for maintaining a stable workplace.

2. Employees and customers (working against drug abuse)
One-way customers can help employees stop drug abuse is for the customers to have a basic
understanding of what type of environment servers/cooks have to go through in a work shift.
Customers have the outside perspective of the food industry but have no idea what is going on
inside. Some customers tend to be rude to their servers/cooks while dining in/taking out at a
restaurant without understanding what the employees are going through. For customers to gain a
basic understanding of employees’ experiences while working, and remove a load of stress for
them.

3. Employees (working for drugs to be allowed)
Working in the kitchen can be very stressful due to long hours, hot conditions, noise, and being
responsible for making sure the food comes out correctly and in a timely manner. Using drugs
and alcohol allows employees to decompress and relax. Without it, they may not be able to
remain calm and continue to work at the standard that is expected of them. This can lead to lower
quality and more rushed products because employees have no way to deal with the stress. It may
even lead to their termination for not being able to produce at the standard expected of them.

b) Based on your stakeholder power-interest map, and coalition summary, explain what
challenges emerge in attempting to address the issue. What possible solutions do you
anticipate?

1. Employees and managers

As an employee or manager, there’s not much you can do to avoid working long stressful hours.
A work shift is around eight hours, but working in a stressful environment may feel a lot longer
as some of the interviews have mentioned. Almost every employee is working to afford a living.
It’s challenging to choose between being able to make enough money for living and expenses
and working long hours, versus working fewer hours and not having enough money to pay bills
or rent. Employees have no choice but to sacrifice, work long hours, and continue to use drugs as
a way to relieve their stress. The www.dir.ca.gov article “In California Restaurant Workers have
Rights”, states employees have the right to have overtime pay if they work more than eight hours
a day or forty hours a week. This leads to employees choosing to stay a few extra hours after
their regular shift to earn the extra pay and being able to mentally and physically stay a few extra
hours, they rely on drugs to help. Lelia Nurse (interview) adds managers don’t really care about
their servers/cooks using drugs because the business just wants to fit in as many workers and
make the most profit from what they can get on a daily basis.

2. Employees and customers
It may be a challenge for the food industry to gain any customers’ attention on drug abuse being
used in the food industry because customers feel like that’s not something they should be
concerned about. Customers feel like they are always in the right. In Khushbu Shah’s article
“The Customer Is Not Always Right”, she tells us about her experience as a waitress. She states,
“customer entitlement is at an all-time high” as employees are not able to respond back to
customer abuse. Customers feel like they are entitled because of American hospitality of “The
customer is always right.” It’s a challenge for servers/cooks to address the drug abuse issue in the
food industry to customers because customers aren’t willing to participate and listen to what
employees have to say.

< Start of Appendice >

This chart below will help us see who are our stakeholders, it can be a tool to answer the
questions

Name Type of Stakeholder Stakeholder
group/s

Interviewed by

June San Gabriel Manager of the restaurant Señor
Sisig

Employee Jacob

Montgomery McAlpine Valued customer of Señor Sisig Customer Jacob

Ciji Girlfriend of chef/restaurant owner General Public,
communities

Claudia

http://www.dir.ca.gov

https://www.foodandwine.com/fwpro/customer-is-not-always-right

Olimipa Waitress and restaurant host Employee Claudia

Leila Former Baker, currently Nurse
working with addicts

Employee Christina

Steve Palmer Restaurant Owner/ Former addict Shareholder Christina

Gordon Ramsay Celebrity Chef, Restaurant Owner Shareholder

Annie

Paul Sorgule Chef, culinary educator, author,
and industry consultant

Business Support,
Employee,

Annie

Sebastian Former employee at a famous
restaurant

Employee Si Yu

Ryan Brother worked in the restaurant
industry.

General Public Si Yu

Emma Chapman Has experience in the front & back
of the house, as a cashier, barista,
and line cook.

Employee Angie

Lindsey Works in a bakery Employee Angie

Respondent 1 Waiter Employee Trinh

Respondent 2 Works Restaurant Employee Trinh

Respondent 3 Head pastry chef Employee Angie

Gabriel Rucker Restaurant owner Shareholder Draco

Razmon Poisson Started as a dishwasher and slowly
made my way up to a chef

Employee Draco

Appendices:

Interviews Conducted by Claudia Guzmán-Rodríguez

Interview #1
Interviewee: Ciji (Sonoma, Ca)
Stakeholder Group: General

Public Stakeholder Type: Girlfriend of chef/restaurant owner

Q. What is your connection with the food service industry?
A. My main direction is that I was in a relationship with somebody who owned a Michelin Star
restaurant, I believe this restaurant was open for nine years and I was with him for the last three
years of his restaurant until he had to close due to our last recession. I saw him go bankrupt and
lose the restaurant.

Q. In your experience in or with the food industry, what role did alcohol and drugs play?
A. Alcohol was a daily activity that was like oh like drinking by noon before your shift it was not
uncommon for people working on the line to drink before their shift. I wouldn’t say I would see
them drinking during the shift but before the shift and after the shift, they were functioning it
wasn’t like they showed up drunk. Then there was one person that worked for this restaurant, my
boyfriend’s restaurant, there was a cigar box that they kept on top of one of the wine fridges that
had cocaine in it that was known by a few of the people in the restaurant that were using it. He
was a very good-looking man, and he was very popular with the patrons he often dipped into the
cigar box. I often hung out at the restaurant after my work, I would get off and go have a glass of
wine and a bite to eat, so I saw the workings of this behind the scenes.

Q. Did you see if there was pressure that took place to use alcohol and drugs in the restaurant?
A. I don’t think I saw people pressuring each other to use anything, I think it was just already
these people had been working in the restaurant industry and that and the pressure of working in
the food industry service industry like it just kind of came along with that job because you’re
under stress for a certain number of hours and under pressure, and when you’re working for
certain chefs who are trying to put out a certain standard of a meal, these people are all under a
high level of stress because of the chefs.

Q. Why do you believe there’s high use of drugs and alcohol by those working in the food
service industry?
A. The fact that they’re working late at night, some people are showing up at you know 3:00 pm
or 4:00 PM and they’re working till late. Chefs usually get off the line before anyone else
depending on how busy they are, so they’re the first ones off the line. Then I think it’s probably
due to the fact that the hours are so late and just staying up and it’s just that late at night. It’s kind
of like a party scene, all these people are just working at the same job. I often found in this
restaurant is like everyone would get off and some people would like all go to like a bar, and a
lot of different people who work in the service industry that we’re getting off from other
restaurants would all be at the same bar. It creates a party, it’s definitely culture. I’ve seen this not
just with this one restaurant and this person individually, I’ve seen this with other chefs I’ve
dated, I’ve seen this more than once, and not everyone uses cocaine although that is heavily
prevalent, I see it all over the place. It keeps going because a lot of times people want to drink
before work because it’s the evening so they have to have a cocktail, but then they think I don’t

get too drunk so I’m going to even it out, and like have some of this [cocaine] before the crash
comes because it sobers you up.

Q. Being in that relationship, and seeing the people and knowing those people for three years in
the restaurant before your ex had to close the business, how did you see that use of drugs and
alcohol in the food service industry affect the business?
A. I see it ever really affected the food, or the quality, or level of like service because they just
like through and through always got really good reviews and people love them. I did see it affect
one person individually, that was a line cook it really took him down, he drank so much that he’s
legally blind now. I think the stress of it, the vicious cycle of drinking and going to work it’s like
a culture of some sort, and if you don’t have a healthy coping mechanism people just like get
caught and this perpetual cycle, and if they’re not aware of what they’re doing it’ll take them
down. Also, I think females in the food service industry have a better head on their shoulders
than men, I didn’t see as much substance abuse with females at all as I did with the men.

Q. Being a girlfriend of a chef for those years, how did it affect you as a part of the community?
A. I would say it really affected us because I was not used to that level of how late you’re up and
the winding down that they do, and how when they get home, they have to decompress from it. I
know that this person definitely used alcohol to decompress with everything, other stuff too. I
think the stress of the restaurant industry, food was his art like he loved cooking, he was like so
good at it, and large having a restaurant, but you know just the rising costs of food, this was like
what 2009 when I came in I think it closed in 2012, so like the trickle-down of the recession the
last recession which was what 2009 or 2008 had like this trickle-down effect to where again, like
what we’re experiencing now where people aren’t going out as much right now, pressure like that
where he had to inevitably close.

He had a great manager, she’s like OK we only have enough money right now to pay our staff
and pay our local purveyors and that was all he was left with and so the pressure of all the
numbers and running a restaurant I think for some people is so much that they just use all this
amazing wine. The bottles of wine that we were drinking were $30 or $40 bottles. How I was
affected was that my drinking increased, I was like Oh yeah it’s totally normal to have wine uh
like 12:00 o’clock on a Tuesday that wasn’t my norm as an aesthetician. It was Wine Time
Anytime.

Q. When you were dating the chef, did you notice any kind of harm reduction? Were there
managers who when they saw someone that has been drinking or under the influence of alcohol
or drugs do they do anything about it? Were there any tools or resources that were shared with
them for harm reduction?
A. No, in terms of like oh maybe you need to go get the help I didn’t see that. In the end, he had
a bad-ass manager, this chick was amazing, she’s cool, and she likes her wine but she definitely

like came with her a game… she would send somebody home if she didn’t feel like they were
competent enough to be on the line or in serving. I also have other friends that have owned other
restaurants, I mean I know one guy who is a partial owner and he showed up on acid to his shift
thinking it was OK because he owned the restaurant, and this is like a nice restaurant part of the
community.

Extra information from the Interviewee:

I know also of this guy firsthand that owns a string of restaurants in Sebastopol that came out in
the news on sexual harassment in the food industry, that’s prevalent which I think it’s probably
toxic masculinity … I also know of other restaurateurs that were known for that [sexual
harassment], maybe that can also tend to lead to substance abuse.

Interview #2
Interviewee: Olimpia (Napa/Sacramento, Ca)

Stakeholder Group: Employee
Public Stakeholder Type: Restaurant Server, Host, Back of the House.

Q. What is your connection with the food service industry?
A. I have been a server, and all the around, all over the back of the house, for the last 25 years in
the service industry and restaurant work from fine dining to high volume restaurants.

Q. In your experience in the food service industry, what role does the use of alcohol and drugs
play?
A. A high percentage.

Q. Who do you see consuming?
A. I think all around as uh serving staff to the cooking staff, to back staff; all around I see the
abuse of alcohol and drugs.

Q. Is there pressure that takes part in the use of alcohol and drugs in the food service industry?
A. There is peer pressure where you want to fit in and you want to be a part of it what everyone’s
talking about in the back or what everyone’s doing after work.

Q. Why do you believe there is a high use of drugs and alcohol by those working in the food
service industry?
A. By just myself being part of this industry I see that the reason I have abused these substances
is because of the stress and that you consume that you are with the job the hours that you’re
working you’re trying to keep up, you may not just have that job as your only job that you may

have this as another job too just make ends meat. There’s just a lot of pressure sometimes behind
me that I felt they used that I needed to abuse these substances.

Q. How many hours do you work when you work at a restaurant?
A. There were days I was working 16 hours a day, and there were days where it would be a
whole 12 hours, it’s called “clope”, where you close and you open so you’re there working on the
6:30 pm shift till 2:30 am, and then you have to be back there at 10 am to work till 4 pm. You
just keep going because you just need to make ends meet, or you just need to make that money.

Q. The use of alcohol or drugs, do you feel like that helps to carry those hours on.
A. Absolutely. I think drinking alcohol you’re always like hey let’s go grab a shift drink before
we start work, or hey let’s grab some drinks after work and we end up losing the hours of your
night and the tips that you earned to keep up to your part of that group to use on narcotics.
Cocaine is a large substance that is passed around, it’s something to keep up with.

Q. How does the high use of drugs and alcohol in the food service industry affect the business?
The production, the quality of service.
A. I don’t think necessarily affects or deflects [the business]. I think it’s just part of it it’s just a
part of the family where your owner will offer you drugs to keep up with your job sometimes,
where your boss or your managers are doing drugs, I think it’s just part of the family.

Q. How does the high use of drugs and alcohol in the food service industry affect you and/or
those around you, or those around you?
A. I have had a lot of fatalities, close friends overdosing, or substance abuse. I have seen a lot of
people not get out of it that they are repetitive, like a bartender that’s been there for the last 30
years. I think it may take a big part of your life just not getting out of this whole muddy sticky
hole.

Q. You see your coworkers in these positions with the use of drugs and alcohol and these holes,
have you seen harm reduction take place in these places?
A. I’ve seen suicide and addiction. A lot of suicide and I think those are the biggest harms.

Note: The interviewee seemed not to understand the question or hear the term harm reduction
clearly, so I tried to rephrase the question.

Q. Are there things that restaurant owners or management do to reduce the use of alcohol and
drugs?
A. There is a group out here in Sacramento, I don’t know the name of our association I can get
back to you about that, but I know that they’re out here to provide more sobriety for the industry
group. I believe that that is a default in the industry that there’s no help to get you out, I wish

there were more awareness, and more like “hey you have an issue we can provide you with
rehabilitation of some sort”. I wish there were more outreach for it.

Q. How do you feel that it could be implemented? Because you’ve worked in the industry for
these many years how do you wish or how would you like for that help to be implemented in the
food service industry?
A. I would say workshops, outreach, just more just saying “hey we’re here for you” just you
know not just saying hey here’s this if you want you can come it’s more like just more outreach
towards the industry, bartenders, servers, or whatever like “hey we have these classes, this
workshop, if you like to join it’s gonna be fun” or whatever it’s just a little more awareness in that
area.

Q. We use the term stakeholders, you’re a stakeholder in the business because you’ve been a host,
you’ve been a waitress, you’ve worked in different parts of the restaurants; Where do you feel or
think this help can come from most? Where do you think it would be the most helpful?
A. The break room, like maybe a sign, the owners can do so much. But I think more like peer
support, peers would be a good one because there’s peer pressure and you’d want that peer
support to help you get out of it too.

Interviews Conducted by Si Yu Wang

Interview #3
Interviewee: Sebastian

Stakeholder Group: Employee
Stakeholder Type: Restaurant Manager

● Sebastian is a former employee at a famous restaurant which he prefers not to name, and
he is sharing his experience of working in the food service industry and the way there is a
growing issue of substance abuse highly prevalent in the industry.

● He has witnessed that; indeed, substance abuse is a growing problem in the food industry,
leading to negative health, economic and personal issues not only for the employees but
also for their families.

● Sebastian believes that addiction and overdose increase the risk of several diseases,
including financial stress it causes to the families. It has become highly costly for
employees to tackle these situations.

● Food services workers are often found binge drinking, making addiction rates higher
among restaurant workers.

● Workers here mostly cope with their work-related stress by consuming high amounts of
alcohol and drugs, especially the chefs, to unwind from a grueling workday, and in some
cases, they use it as a coping mechanism for harsh working conditions.

● There is also a lack of education, and the workload is high most of the time, making
working conditions tough for the workers and pushing them into drugs and alcohol.

● There is also a high possibility because the restaurant industry revolves around
entertainment which is dining and drinking, which makes alcohol and drugs an integral
part of the business, and most of the items it is hard to resist.

● Sebastian has encountered workers with high addictions living life from paycheck to
paycheck, which also make them hopeless and depressed.

● There is also a lack of support from the management for such employees; if somebody is
suffering from addiction and is evident in their behavior, they would rather lose the
employee than provide them with the required help, which is not only sad but also unjust
at some levels.

Interview #4
Interviewee: Ryan

Stakeholder Group: General Public
Stakeholder Type: Brother of person that worked in the restaurant industry

● Ryan’s brother worked in the restaurant industry for ten years and critically suffered from
addiction to substances such as; alcohol and cannabis.

● Ryan believes that they have suffered most of their lives because of his brother’s
addiction habits.

● Ryan says that his brother got his job when he was in his twenties, and in his initial years,
they had a great time with him earning and sharing finances with his mother.

● Later, he started working too hard, as his shifts increased, and he started working
overtime.

● He was earning a fair amount, but as the months passed, his health started worsening, and
he would sleep a lot.

● Ryan talks about the increased number of absentees; his brother started going out more
and avoided work which made us financially stressed at some level.

● He was also getting detached from the family and wouldn’t share or talk about anything
that bothered him.

● My mother started asking questions to which he became violent, and at some, we had to
ask him to move out.

● My brother came back in the worst condition; he was homeless, jobless, and in bad
health.

● I have seen him suffer anxiety attacks, panic attacks, and depression until we managed to
get him help.

● Our family has been suffering immensely due to my brother’s negligence; he preferred to
indulge in alcohol and substance rather than fulfilling his responsibilities.

● Now that he is clean and getting in better health, he says he will never go back into the
food service industry because he will not be able to cope with the pressure and stress the
working environment puts on the individual.

● Ryan is now planning to work to help his family financially and emotionally and to be
there for them.

Interviews Conducted by Angela Pham

Interview Questions
1) Who are you? (exclude if they want to be confidential)

a) Age, where they reside, gender identity
2) What is your experience in the food service industry?

a) Brief summary of work
b) If currently working in food service, what is your job?

3) Have you experienced substance abuse issues while working in food service?
a) If so, how did that affect you on the job and off the clock?

4) Have you witnessed substance abuse at your food service job(s)?
a) What factors played into that issue permeating in the workplace?

What solutions do you have to reduce substance abuse in this labor sector?

Interview #5
Interviewee: Emma Chapman
Stakeholder Group: Employee

Stakeholder Type: Has experience in the front
& back of the house, as a cashier, barista, and line cook.

1. Emma – Female – Alameda

2. a) I have worked at both the front & back of the house at multiple restaurants, cafes, and
bakeries. I have worked as a cashier, barista, and as line cook at my most recent job

3. Yes (marijuana) – a) coming into work and feeling fatigued and general fogginess as well as
reduced ability to perform tasks effectively

4. Yes – a) In this situation I was working as a line cook at a restaurant with a very long and
narrow kitchen which required you to pass by multiple people with very little space in order to
move in and out of your station. This created an even more dangerous environment than is
already present in high-paced kitchens where lots of hot food is being made. There are lots of
things that can burn you or stab you with lots of knives hanging around behind you for example
hot fryers and broken ovens that caused the outside temperature of the door to reach 500° or
more so even leaning back the wrong way will give you a serious injury. In this case, my
coworker was intoxicated and was stumbling, bumping into people, and dropping hot stuff so it
was dangerous both for the intoxicated coworker and for those around him. I overheard the chefs

making jokes and comments about the coworker who was intoxicated but did not send them
home that day.

5. I think in order to actually reduce instances like this these issues should be approached with
concern and offering resources rather than a full punishment. Punishment for these things should
be a last resort and only if the behavior continues after the warning. It’s a dangerous issue in food
service because you put your other coworkers at risk but the problem should be addressed at the
root by retrieving help for the individual struggling with substance abuse.

Interview #6
Interviewee: Lindsey Meyer
Stakeholder Group: Employ

Stakeholder Type:Works in Bakery

1. Lindsey, Age-41, Resident of Alameda, CA, Female

2. I’ve been in the food service industry for almost 12 years. Mostly worked at bakeries doing
the early 3 am bake off shift or mixed swing shifts. The last few years due to my childcare needs
I’ve been lucky to score 9-5 shifts while still working in the industry. Had a short-lived stint
doing fine dining, but it wasn’t for me. Currently, I’m working at a well-known bakery in the
East Bay Area doing lamination and production work.

3. At one of my past jobs several years ago, it was just out of habit I suppose that after hours
when closed, everyone would start to drink while still working. No one was ever hurt and we
would still manage to get everything done but I for one really only started to look forward to
going to work to get drunk every night. On my days off I would be very anxious & agitated
because I wasn’t drinking.

4. I’ve seen lots of drinking in the food service industry. I know most people just shrug off
alcohol but I believe it’s the most over-abused substance all around. Honestly, when I look back
at that time I can say it may have been fun most nights, but we were all just stressed out from the
long work days that we were doing.

5. For me personally It’s only been having a better work/life balance that has made me cut back
on my drinking, but I know that not everyone is as fortunate as myself. I’m happy to see that
more business owners are flexible with their employees’ needs. I think just listening to others’
needs and prioritizing mental health would be a start.

Interview #7
Interviewee: Respondent 3

Stakeholder Group: Employee
Stakeholder Type:Works in a Restaurant

1. Confidential, age 35, Resident of San Francisco, Male.

2. a) I’ve spent the past 18 years in food service. Started in my family’s restaurant in New
Orleans and I’ve worked almost every job from dishwasher at Denny’s to sauce station in a
Michelin-star restaurant.
b) my current role is head pastry chef

3. I have experienced it firsthand.
a) It helped with stress to have a drink or two on the clock with coworkers but the more I did it

the more depressed I got, the more mistakes I made at work, and the angrier I got at home

4. a) I’ve seen people drink so heavily and do so many drugs that they ended up getting fired and
losing their family. Cooks passing out at their station, crashing their cars while intoxicated and
losing having their family leaving them.

5. Not worth it, seek professional help before it’s too late.

Estimated Interviews Conducted by Trinh Kha

Interview #8
Interviewee: Respondent 1

Stakeholder Group: Employee
Stakeholder Type:Waiter in a restaurant

Male, Resident of Leesburg, Virginia.

What is your experience in the food service industry?
Brief summary of work: He is a waiter at a local Leesburg restaurant, and has been in the
industry for six years. He has a lot of experience with many different types of customers during
his time as a waiter.

Have you experienced substance abuse issues while working in food service?
He has past history experiences drug abuse, he smokes cannabis before his shift to force himself
to work. He said his main source of job-related stress relief has been marijuana and alcohol. He
has been through a cycle of unhealthy work ethic “I smoke, I get stressed out. I drink, I get
stressed out because I’m drinking too much, which causes me to smoke, and then I start stressing
about work. Then the opiate thoughts come into my head, so then I stress again, and I drink …
It’s just constant back and forth.”

Have you witnessed substance abuse at your food service job(s)?
He has seen coworkers use a myriad of substances on and off the floor, even hard drugs like
heroin and crack cocaine.

What solutions do you have to reduce substance abuse in this labor sector?

Since the pandemic is still around, he claimed it is hard to be normal during this time and did not
have any solution in the meantime.

Interview #9
Interviewee: Respondent 2

Stakeholder Group: Employee
Stakeholder Type: Restaurant worker

Female, Resident of Leesburg, Virginia.
Leesburg Restaurant – Employee – Respondent 2

What is your experience in the food service industry?
She is a former restaurant worker and has been in the food service industry since the early 2000s.
She is also a co-worker of Respondent 1.

Have you experienced substance abuse issues while working in food service?
She also experienced substance abuse while working in the restaurant and she is in recovery
from drug addiction. She has been in a toxic cycle of using drugs before and after each shift to
get her through a day and drinking alcohol because she feels bad after the addiction.

Have you witnessed substance abuse at your food service job(s)?
She has witnessed substance use within the industry ever since she began her restaurant job, and
has seen “many others struggle with the harmful consequences of addiction, like when coworkers
have to go to their car to use in the middle of work because they can’t get through a shift without
substances.”

What solutions do you have to reduce substance abuse in this labor sector?
She is in recovery from drug abuse and wants to set a good example of recovery to others.
Outside of her restaurant job, She uses her background to guide others through recovery as a
trauma-focused yoga teacher. She said, “There are certain people who are on a trajectory that if
they continue going, they’re gonna end up in a place where it’s probably gonna become more
severe because that’s the nature of addiction—it’s progressive.”

Reference:
https://pulitzercenter.org/stories/tipping-point-covid-19-stressors-intensify-substance-use-and-ad
diction-american-food

Estimated Interviews Conducted by Annie Wu

Interview #10
Interviewee: Paul Sorgule

https://pulitzercenter.org/stories/tipping-point-covid-19-stressors-intensify-substance-use-and-addiction-american-food

Stakeholder Group: Business Support and Employee
Stakeholder Type: Chef

● Paul is a chef, culinary educator, author, and industry consultant.
● He has experience with cooks, chefs, and the environment of the kitchen.
● Paul states that part of the restaurant industry is having the front row of wonderful food

and wine.
● He also adds part of the industry where every night employees leave work and drink into

unconsciousness and overdose.
● He speaks about a chef named Joe who is young and educated, a talented cook, a reliable

worker, but a closet alcoholic.
● Joe would always be at work and picking up extra shifts when needed but Joe’s alcohol

addiction after work hours affected the way he is.
● Many employees will be recognized for their qualities as a worker (readiness, excellence,

and accountability) but won’t be noticed for their alcoholic addiction.
● Statistics show substance abuse in the food industry: #3 in heavy alcohol and #1 in illicit

drugs, nearly 13% of heavy alcohol users in the U.S. work in the food industry
● Speaking from experience, people think one or two drinks to have after a long day of

work is considered normal, but as time goes by it becomes an addiction, something they
rely on and they can’t go back to their normal work lives without it.

● As a chef, he experienced with his own eyes how food industry employees are challenged
when managers, cooks, chefs, or servers are uncertain and the environment of the
restaurant gets a rush so that employees find it easy to let alcohol and drugs take over to
cope with their stress.

Reference:
https://harvestamericacues.com/2020/12/04/chasing-the-devil-substance-abuse-in-the-restaura
nt-business/

Interview #11
Interviewee: Gordon Ramsay

Stakeholder Group: Shareholder
Stakeholder Type: Chef and Restaurant Owner

● Ramsay said all but one of the toilets in his 31 restaurants tested positive for coke.
● He states the reason for drug addiction is long hours and stressful working conditions that

come with the career of working in the kitchen affect the chef’s well-being, mental and
physical.

● His survey showed 27% of chefs rely on alcohol and 41% rely on stimulants to get
through a work shift.

CHASING THE DEVIL – SUBSTANCE ABUSE IN THE RESTAURANT BUSINESS

● A big reason why restaurant workers rely on substance use is because of the long hours
they are expected to work, 50 to 60 hours a week which is physically and mentally
draining to employees’ health.

● Employees are suffering and relying on substance use because of the unbalanced life
between work and personal lives.

Reference:
https://www.vice.com/en/article/evpwyk/gordon-ramsay-says-the-restaurant-industry-has-a-cocai
ne-problem-duh

Interviews Conducted by Jacob Garcia

Interview #12
Interviewee:Montgomery McAlpine

Stakeholder Group: Customer
Stakeholder Type: Consumer at Señor Sisig

What’s your name?
“Montgomery McAlpine”

Can I use your name in this report?
“yes”

What is your connection to the foodservice industry?
“I am a current stakeholder in senior sisig. I am a valued and prized consumer which in turn
means I hold a stake in the company.”

In your experience with/in the food service industry, what role does the use of alcohol and
drugs play?
“ In my experience, the use of alcohol and drugs in the food industry is there to boost sales in
terms of having a liquor license and having certain drugs in healthy foods… that definitely
would be frowned upon if my waiter or cook was drunk or on drugs. Bartenders maybe are the
only ones that have a free pass but I think it’s still illegal. Overall I look down upon it.”

Is there pressure to take part in the use of alcohol and drugs in the food service industry?
“Yes, that definitely is the stigma of it being a traditional pastime in the industry because it’s a
big thing with I think line cooks, they pick up smoking to get extra break time, also with the
anxiety of the industry many people use the vices they have in the store to relieve stress.”

How can the high use of drugs and alcohol in the food service industry affect the business?

https://www.vice.com/en/article/evpwyk/gordon-ramsay-says-the-restaurant-industry-has-a-cocaine-problem-duh

“Generally speaking people with drug and alcohol dependencies won’t make the best employees
but that’s a general thought. The use of alcohol is much more detrimental to the food service
industry than cannabis consumption.”

How can the high use of drugs and alcohol in the food service industry affect you or those
around you?
An easy way the use of alcohol and drug use can affect me or my family is if someone is under
the influence and forget about an allergy of a customer that can easily lead to hospitalization or
even death. The use of alcohol and drugs can make someone not as attentive to what they’re
doing and with food service, it can be dangerous.

Have you seen harm reduction take place in the food service industry?

“No, I haven’t because I’m a customer but I would like to know that if the employees are
struggling that there is something in place to help.”

How would you like harm reduction to be implemented in the food service industry?

“I would like for it to Always be an option like a fire extinguisher. Mandatory. However, it
shouldn’t be put in a bad light. I don’t think people should think that just because there are harm
reduction kits or outlets in place one of the employees is currently suffering from drug abuse.”

Notes from Jason Garica:

● Monty is a consumer of senor sisig on a weekly basis.
● Monty is also a user of drugs and alcohol
● Monty does not work and has not worked in the food service industry
● Monty has never encountered bad service because someone was under the influence

Interview #13
Interviewee: June San Gabriel
Stakeholder Group: Employee

Stakeholder Type:Manager at Señor Sisg

What’s your name?
“June San Gabriel”

Can I use your name in this report?
“Yes”

What is your connection to the food service industry?
“I have been a manager in the food industry for almost 4 years now.”

In your experience with/in the food service industry, what role does the use of alcohol and
drugs play?
“Alcohol and drug use are definitely at play when it comes to finding a way to de-stress within
the industry. Most times (with alcohol) you serve it in your workplace. it’s easy to partake after
work or even during your shift when you are surrounded by it.”

Is there pressure to take part in the use of alcohol and drugs in the food service industry?
“In my experience, there hasn’t been any pressure, however, I am most certain that others have
been pressured. inviting someone along for drinks is common, especially after a hard shift. I can
see how collective camaraderie can be seen and felt as pressure.”

How can the high use of drugs and alcohol in the food service industry affect the business?
“I can see how it can affect businesses internally and at times can be seen from a consumer
perspective, usually in the way of poor service. It also enables a lot of substance abuse which
leads to others being reliant on them.”

How can the high use of drugs and alcohol in the food service industry affect you or those
around you?
“It doesn’t affect me much, there are occasions when I will go out with coworkers to drink that
would be my only experience. I have however had coworkers who would drink a little bit while
working and this would be a daily occurrence, usually hiding their liquor in another drink.”

Have you seen harm reduction take place in the food service industry?

“I have not seen any harm reduction within the food industry at least in my experience.”

How would you like harm reduction to be implemented in the food service industry?

“I would like it to be an option for one, I’m sure there have been circumstances where the
business will actually help someone seek help. However, the most common case is that when
someone’s work starts to deteriorate because of high alcohol and drug use the first action is to let
them go and not necessarily help them.”

Notes from Jason Garica:

● June is a 26-year-old manager in the food service industry
● June works at a palace that serves alcohol
● June does not suffer from drug abuse
● June hasn’t had any employees that are in need of harm reduction

Estimated Interviews Conducted by Draco Zhao

Interview #14
Interviewee: Gabriel Rucker

Stakeholder Group: Shareholder
Stakeholder Type: Owner of three restaurants

Question 1: Please introduce yourself.

I am Gabriel Rucker, I grew up in Santa Cruz, California. I am a two-time James Beard Award
winner and the owner of three restaurants in Portland, Oregon.

Question 2: What is your experience in the food service industry?
I became interested in cooking because when I was younger, I enjoyed staying up late, smoking
cigarettes, and drinking and I noticed that chefs did those activities which made me want to
become one.

Question 3: Have you used drugs while working in the food service industry?
When I was a young chef in Santa Cruz, California, I was stressed out after ruining a batch of
creme brûlée. I spotted a bottle of raspberry vodka and poured myself a shot. It helped take the
edge off and soon the shots became a daily occurrence. Before, I even realized it, I had emptied
the bottle and this was the start of my drinking problems.

Question 4: Have you witnessed substance abuse by others in the food service industry?
After I decided to become a chef, my mom handed me a copy of Anthony Bourdain’s “Kitchen
Confidential,” which wrote about being a former line cook with brutally late nights, drinking on
the job, and drug use. This was what I considered my blueprint for culinary success.

Question 5: What solutions do you have to reduce substance abuse in the food service industry?
The way I dealt with it is first recognizing that I had a problem. Then I went to my father, David,
who has been sober for 27 years, to take me to an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting.

Reference:
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2019/09/11/celebrity-chefs-get-honest-addiction-se
ek-change-industry/2275670001/

Interview #15
Interviewee: Razmon Poisson
Stakeholder Group: Employee

Stakeholder Type: Started as a dishwasher and slowly
made my way up to a chef

Question 1: Please introduce yourself.

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2019/09/11/celebrity-chefs-get-honest-addiction-seek-change-industry/2275670001/

I am Razmon Poisson, I am a chef in Ottawa, Canada.

Question 2: What is your experience in the food service industry?
I started at 16 years old and worked in city restaurants as a dishwasher and slowly made my way
up to a chef.

Question 3: Have you used drugs while working in the food service industry?
The start of my drinking problems begins not long after COVID-19. The restaurant I ran was
forced to close in 2020 and later was able to reopen but with limited capacities. This was when I
started to drink more heavily and by August 2020, I would drink a 60-ounce bottle of Jameson
Irish Whiskey every day.

Question 4: Have you witnessed other substance abuse by others in the food service industry?
Yes, it was something everyone did.

Question 5: What got you to stop drinking?
On September 22, 2020, I was hospitalized for a week. I felt sharp pains and my eyes were
jaundiced. The doctor told me my liver was in danger of failing and my kidneys were being
affected by it. I was told that if I didn’t change my habits, I would probably die.

Reference:
https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/change-or-youll-probably-die-substance-abuse-remai
ns-a-critical-problem-in-ottawas-restaurant-industry

Interview and Estimated Interview Conducted by Christina Hermann

Interview #16
Interviewee: Leila

Stakeholder Group: Employee
Stakeholder Type: Former baker,

currently a nurse working with addicts

Can you talk about yourself and your relationship with attention in the food service?

Sure well, I’ve worked in a medical practice specializing in addiction, and I also worked in the
food industry as a Baker for ten-plus years, and I’m also an ex-addict myself, so I have a lot of
experience with all of it.

https://ottawacitizen.com/news/local-news/change-or-youll-probably-die-substance-abuse-remains-a-critical-problem-in-ottawas-restaurant-industry

Would you say the addiction started because you were in the food service, or was that
something that started before?

It started before. I mean, it’s, you know, there’s an environment of getting drunk and partying,
hanging out together and things like that. Still, I think that was instilled in me a little younger
than starting in the foot industry.

Would you say the food industry helped to develop the addiction?

I not necessarily helped it, but you know, like my coworkers like the party, so I know I was
yelling at my twenties, so a lot of people in that world are younger, so kind of goes hand in hand
to be young and then partying. You’re in this job that doesn’t really care about that much, not a
whole lot of responsibility; you know you can get away with it.

Would you say working in the food industry and working now in a doctor’s office that’s
specialized in addiction that there is a pattern you can see in your life and in your patients
that they’re more related or than that are more common coming from this industry or is it
widespread?

It’s really widespread, and we actually, I mean, we do have a lot of people that we’re with opiated
addiction and some alcohol and pencils. We see it all, but those things are more dangerous and
often deadly to come off from those to doing cocaine or things like that. We do have some people
in the food industry, many ex-chefs, and things like that, but we see a lot more white-collar
people. To be honest, nurses, doctors, and lawyers are the majority of our patients, which would
be surprising for probably a lot of people and very high-functioning addicts. Most of the people
that come in are functional, but we have also had many people that weren’t. We participated in a
government Grant for many years, so we saw more of that other side, people from a lower
socio-economic status. There’s a lot more of that at that point, but we don’t see much of it.

Would you say you don’t see the like low socio-economic people because they don’t have the
money or the support to get help?

Yeah, I think that’s a large part of it. It’s very expensive to live here and see a doctor and
insurance doesn’t cover many of these things. Since insurance doesn’t cover it, people have to
pay out of pocket. So we were really excited when we got to get put on at this grand because
we’re going to be able to help people who really needed help. The people who couldn’t afford
these services help them get their visits to get their kind of therapy with the doctor and try to get
them back up on their feet. I’m actually able to help a lot of people through those years. They
sadly ripped the rug out from under us because that’s what the government does, so they took the
grant away from everybody. We held on to some patients who really needed us and just did it for
free. I think a lot of it’s because people don’t have the means or the access to get help; that’s a
huge part of it.

Do you think the government failed these people in a way because they took those funds
away, or is there help available somewhere?

I think the government fails people using drugs in every way imaginable in providing them help
if they are having problems with addiction. I think they fail them by giving them safe places and
safe avenues to do it, safe places to test their drugs to see if they are safe. If they want to do
drugs, they are going to do it. You won’t stop an adult from doing drugs; they’ll do it if they want
to. I think the government fails in every aspect of it. In every step of the way, you know. I think
they should have safe testing sites; they should put sites for people to do drugs because they’re
going to do it anyway, and if things are safer, then that means there’s less likely people having
overdoses and dying and having problems, there would be a support system out there. They don’t
help people who need help to stop doing it, people who are struggling and unable to meet their
daily duties, and who have troubles with their life. The government doesn’t help them with that
either. They just push these people in need under the rug. They’re just a problem, and they just
call them a statistic and say that this is caused by some sort of overdose or something, and it’s an
epidemic and a problem. But really, the problem is there’s no social support network at all.

How would you say the government could make it better to give the support system, or how
could there be a system that’s put in place that those people have access to help if they want
it?

I think it’s really hard because there’s so much funding from places like NIDA where they’re
trying to make all the anti-drug stuff anti-drug this, even though they’re funding research for
pro-drug solutions. I firmly believe in legalizing things and making it safer for people to do what
they’re already doing so that the support system is in place. If that happened, as you see in some
other countries where it is decriminalized, like in Portugal, but certain things aren’t legal. They
still have that support they can access. They can get their drug tested; if they need help, they can
easily go and say I need help and they’re not worried about getting in trouble. There’s money and
means for them to get that help, and some other European countries do that too, which I think is
amazing. I know my stance is probably a little more far left of letting an adult be an adult and
make adult decisions within the parameters of keeping it together in your life, but it can be done.
If it is done properly, fewer people will die, and there’s less violent crime associated with drugs
when more safety is involved. It’s also safer for the surrounding community. If you make this
safer for these drug users, the surrounding community will have fewer problems. Many people
fear that because of the stigma of all the drugs and then worry about it. Still, they don’t think
about the whole big picture. If you make things more accessible to available and try to help the
people that do that, it will benefit them too.

You would say we have to take something that Portugal has, like a testing center, and save
places where you can shoot up, and there are no criminal charges for it, and people who
can provide support if needed?

Yes, it shows they have fewer users and more people asking for help. There are fewer problems
or fewer overdoses there’s less crime. They can buy their drugs, they can take their heroin when
they get on the street, and they can go and have it easily tested to make sure it doesn’t have
fentanyl in it or ecstasy or whatever that drug is that they’re using. They’re not going to have to
worry about that. They’re not going to be dying on the street. All these people and teenagers
know of these places. You won’t stop teenagers from doing something they want to do or try.
Egocentrism is not going away.

When I may ask, how did you get out of the addiction?

I took everything, heroin in particular. Obviously, I’ve dabbled in everything, but that was my
biggest problem. I went up and down. I was exceptionally highly functioning, with multiple
businesses and everything. But I just went in and out. You know I’d come off of it and then go
back, and I’ll come off again and go back. A lot of it was stressors, and the lack of support, not
having coping mechanisms, things like that, there’s a lot of other factors. I think a lot of it has to
do with American society not being supportive of each other, and that’s why there is so much
violence and so many shootings and all these other things. Because American society is all about
me, me, me; it’s not about how I can help my fellow man. If it was more like that, I think fewer
bad things and problems would happen, and fewer people wanting to do drugs do escape things.
When committing crimes associated with overdosing or drugs in general, it’s a societal problem.

Do you think bosses and managers are doing enough to help their employees improve or get
off of drugs and addiction?

I’m sure some do, but I think just the way the American workforce is set up, it’s capitalist. It’s
how much money I can make, how much I can squeeze out of you as a person, to squeeze you
dry, bleed you dry, make you work as hard as possible so that I can profit. It is that people don’t
look out for each other enough. And I think that’s a huge, huge problem. I’m sure my stance is
probably very different from many others.

Interview #17
Interviewee: Steve Palmer

Stakeholder Group: Shareholder
Public Stakeholder Type: Partner and founder of

the Indigo Road Hospitality Group

Tell me a bit about you.
I am a partner and founder of the Indigo Road Hospitality Group. This group operates a dozen
restaurant concepts in six cities. The drug addiction started before I even became a teenager. The
addiction controlled and took over decades of his life. Working in restaurants fed my need for
alcohol and drugs.

How long are you sober now?
I am now 18 years sober. We are killing ourselves with alcohol and drugs in that industry. My
friend and employee, Ben Murray who was really close, died from his struggle with alcohol. This
death motivated me to find Ben’s Friends organization. It is a support group for food and
beverage industry workers who struggle with substance abuse. I think it is important that we start
to speak out about the struggles of this industry. The industry normalizes drinking and using
drugs as a way to deal with the stress that occurs in that industry. Addiction has always been a
big tabu to talk about in the industry but I am happy that this slowly starts to change.

How was it for you coming out of rehab?
A big fear of mine was that I would not be able to work in the restaurant industry anymore
without drinking. I slowly realized that giving up alcohol didn’t mean giving up my community.
I can go out and not drink. Alcohol and camaraderie are two different things you can have
without the other.

What has changed over the years?
In the beginning not drinking alcohol was not as accepted as it is today. Bars start to adjust to the
increasing demand for non-alcoholic beverages and start to do alcohol-free concoctions. The
worst thing you can do is ask if it bothers you that they drink. Just be yourself, be normal, and
welcome us to the table without making a big deal about my drinking choice.

Reference:
https://www.ajc.com/entertainment/dining/restaurateur-steve-palmer-shares-struggle-with-sobriet
y-new-memoir/3AaXLS8iNMkUIqHHMFgx2I/

https://www.ajc.com/entertainment/dining/restaurateur-steve-palmer-shares-struggle-with-sobriety-new-memoir/3AaXLS8iNMkUIqHHMFgx2I/

Rationale Memo – Team 3

Issue

Substance abuse is a prevalent issue in the food service industry. The Substance Abuse

and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMSHA) conducted national surveys on alcohol

and substance abuse amongst full-time employees aged 18-64. These surveys took place from

2008 to 2012. Data showed that accommodations and food service were third in heavy alcohol

use and number one in illicit drugs (19.1%) use and substance use disorder (16.9%).

Substance abuse crosses all forms of food service and professions within the industry.

FSR brought up that food service is based on entertainment and that customers are “entertained”

through food and drinking. There is an ease of accessibility to liquor. Working in this industry

means irregular work schedules and socializing mostly takes place at night when drinking and

drug use popularly take place. There is peer pressure in the workplace. Most food service

workers have added stress from living paycheck to paycheck and having low job security.

There is little assistance with harm reduction for these workers. Approximately 14% of

employees get assistance for substance abuse from employers. Chefs shared with NPR how they

are dealing with the issue; there are grassroots organizations such as The Giving Kitchen based in

Atlanta and Chefs with Issues founded by Kat Kinsman. More plans can be implemented for

harm reduction in the food service industry.

Importance of this Issue

American Addiction Centers is a treatment center for substance use. “Substance Abuse

Among Food Service Workers” (Sept 2022), emphasizes that food service industry employees

have a habit of substance use as a form of self-medication because of the stressful environment it

brings. American Addiction Centers conducted a survey, which showed 40% of food service

workers aren’t able to get through a work shift without substance and considered it a part of their

work culture. “Addiction in the Restaurant Industry – Statistics & Treatment”, (Aug 2022) listed

https://americanaddictioncenters.org/blog/food-service-substance-use

https://americanaddictioncenters.org/rehab-guide/workforce/blue-collar-workers/restaurant-hospitality

factors that cause high levels of substance use by employees in the food industry; stressful

environment, low wages, irregular work shifts including late nights, work culture norms, alcohol

availability at workplaces, and peer pressure.

San Francisco Examiner’s article “New group aims to help San Francisco’s restaurant

workers get sober” (Johnson 2022), talks about Gina Helvie’s, who lives in San Francisco and

worked in the food industry for almost 20 years, experience with substance use in the food

industry. Helvie mentioned drinking on the job results in her own work performance to be higher

because the food industry is overly stressful and challenging. Johnson, author, stated it’s almost

impossible for professionals in the food industry to be sober because of the cultural pressures

that occur.

SAMHSA, a harm reduction service, engages with people who use substances and

addresses substance use through prevention, treatment, and recovery. Their mission is to prevent

overdose deaths and reduce health risks that are related to substance use.

The emotional impact of addiction is particularly relevant in this context, and it’s crucial

to understand how drug abuse affects these workers. The American Addiction Centers’ blog post

noted, “food service workers who struggle with addiction are more likely to experience

depression, anxiety, and stress, which can further exacerbate their addiction.” This is a critical

point to consider, it highlights how addiction can have a domino effect on one’s mental health,

and it can become a vicious cycle that is difficult to break.

Furthermore, the impact of drug addiction in the restaurant industry extends beyond the

individuals who are directly affected. Addiction can have a ripple effect on families, loved ones,

and the community; it strains relationships, and financial difficulties, and causes job loss.

Overall, the emotional impact of drug addiction in the restaurant industry is significant, and it’s

important to address this issue with compassion and a desire to make a positive change.

https://www.sfexaminer.com/archives/new-group-aims-to-help-san-francisco-s-restaurant-workers-get-sober/article_89cbaad9-f1c9-507b-b8a9-e8c77d378ff1.html

https://www.samhsa.gov/find-help/harm-reduction

One story is the life of a chef, author, tv personality, and service worker Anthony

Bourdain. Bourdain’s addiction to drugs, including cocaine and heroin, was fueled by the high-

pressure and stressful environment of the kitchen. In his memoir “Kitchen Confidential,”

Bourdain wrote about the rampant drug use he witnessed in the restaurant industry, stating that

“the kitchen culture is defined by drugs.” He had a lifelong battle with his drug addiction and

was very open about how it affected his life. Bourdain sadly committed suicide in 2018, but his

legacy continues to inspire everyone in the food service industry.

Drug abuse in the food industry is a serious issue that must be addressed with urgency.

Drugs such as opioids and amphetamines are often used in the food industry to increase

production and continue to work for long hours. However, the use of drugs has serious

consequences such as addiction, risk of overdose, and even death. As a society, we should

prioritize strategies to reduce and address drug abuse in the food industry.

One strategy that can be implemented is regular drug testing for workers in the food

industry. This would allow employers to know who may be struggling with addiction and

provide the necessary help and resources to overcome their substance use disorder. Regular drug

tests can also be a deterrent for individuals who may consider using drugs in the workplace. This

would serve as a way of reducing the number of people using drugs in the food industry. The

food industry has 21.1 million full and part-time workers and a large percentage of them use

drugs. It is imperative that we take action to address drug abuse in the food industry and

prioritize harm reduction strategies to ensure the safety of these workers.

It is urgent that the food service industry implement harm reduction assistance for

workers. This industry is one of the most stressful industries to be in. Most of the servers and

cooks in this industry are largely in their 20s and are dealing with low minimum wages and

limited resources. Young workers are easy targets and are likely to get influenced to abuse

substances and alcohol to get away from depression, stress, and anxiety. Based on a survey from

the Washington City Paper, many addicts are from the hospitality industry but there are nearly no

direct potential resources in the field that they can seek internally. The survey pointed out that

only a few restaurants provide Employee Assistant Programs (EAPs) to their employees. It is

important for managers to offer access to resources in the workplace, and motivation, for

workers to seek treatments. In recent years, many service workers have faced two battles: serving

the public in a fast and dangerous environment and drug addiction.

The issue has escalated since the recent COVID-19 pandemic, causing huge impacts on

business, and forcing many restaurants to cut off the hours of their workers, adjusting and coping

with new regulations, as well as new kinds of stress. According to an article from Pulitzer

Center, one of the restaurant workers in Leesburg confessed his go-to source for “job-related

stress relief has been marijuana and alcohol… it became a numbing thing. If I get stressed again,

I drink… It is just constant back and forth” (The Tipping Point—COVID-19 Stressors Intensify

Substance Use and Addiction in the American Food Service Industry). Many workers admitted

they keep coming back to use substances because it is easy to keep and obtain for them.

It is crucial that employers address the issue, the rate of drug and alcohol abuse in the

restaurant industry will not decrease if they don’t. Now is the right time for harm reduction to be

a priority in the food service industry.

Stakeholder Analysis

Market Stakeholders: Owners/Stockholders, Employees, Customers, Suppliers, and Creditors.

Nonmarket Stakeholders: Community and Government

Interests of each stakeholder

Owners/Stockholders – They have an ownership interest. Harm reduction is of interest to the

owners/stockholders because abusing alcohol and substance can negatively affect the economic

health of the business and its reputation.

Employees – Their interest is to have a fair exchange for their time and effort. Harm

reduction

would directly affect them and how they operate the business. Harm reduction will benefit

employees by increasing the opportunity to develop their job skills. Without harm reduction,

employees are putting their health and reputation in danger.

Customers – Their interest is in fair value and quality in service and products. Harm reduction is

of interest to the customers because they look forward to a service with respect and quality.

Customers will not return if they are not satisfied.

Suppliers –They have an interest in obtaining profitable orders, and notes are paid on time.

Unpaid notes can affect the good relationship they may have had with the client; suppliers wish

to build stable relationships with their business customers.

Creditors – They have a financial interest. Harm reduction is of interest to creditors because

they will be affected by any unpaid loan owners/stockholders may have. Creditors want

businesses to grow so they can pay off loans and apply for more money to invest in the business.

Government and Community – These two stakeholders have an interest in protecting the well-

being of the employees and the local community around it. Harm reduction is of interest to the

government and community because a profitable business contributes taxes and work to the local

economy.

Power of Stakeholders

Owners/Stockholders – voting power, economic power, informational power // Employees –

economic power, informational power // Customers – economic power, informational power //

Suppliers – economic power // Creditors – economic power // Community – political power,

informational power // Government – political power, economic power.

Stakeholder Coalitions

Stakeholders are likely to form by partnering and creating a program to introduce a harm

reduction plan to the food service industry in their area. A plan to increase harm reduction in the

food service industry will help stakeholders benefit from the change the results may bring.

Stakeholder Map

Ethical Theory

Virtue ethics proposes that people and businesses engage in a way that shows empathy and care

for persons who are battling addiction in the context of substance addiction and harm reduction.

It will entail offering services and assistance to people in need, fighting for laws that put a

priority on treatment and harm reduction, and refraining from stigmatizing or criticizing drug

users (Bauer, 2020). The businesses will work to help such kinds of people despite these people

impacting their business.

Utilitarianism implies that harm reduction tactics are ethically correct in drug addiction since

they lessen the harmful effects of drug usage on both people and society (Häyry, 2021). For

instance, providing clean needles and syringes helps lessen the spread of contagious illnesses like

HIV and hepatitis C, benefiting not just drug users but also their sexual partners and other local

residents. Under utilitarianism theory, businesses will work in a larger context and consider the

happiness of drug addicts as well as their policy by aiding them in treatment facilities. In this

way, these businesses will not only work for their customers, employees, and local residents but

work for drug addicts and homeless people.

Rights ethics analyze that people who use drugs have the right to seek medical care, treatment,

and social assistance without worrying about prejudice or penalty in the setting of drug addiction

and harm reduction (Milano et al., 2020). It also suggests that businesses and other organizations

have a duty to uphold the rights and dignity of drug users, even though their behavior harms

others by, for example, preventing customers from visiting neighboring shops and restaurants.

Project Timeline

Group Roles

Christina/Su Yi: Keep dates of what needs to be done and send reminders.

Angela/Claudia: Checking in with groups and helping coordinate different processes.

Jacob/Trinh: Assist make executive decisions, so the group stays in pace.

Annie/Draco: Confirm that references are qualified for the research.

Date – 2023 Team Member Action

3/1 – 3/5 Whole Group ● Rational Memo: Collect topic Ideas, pic topic, and research

3/5 -3/8

by 9 pm

Angela ● Describe and Explain Issue

Annie ● Providing the Argument

Jacob ● Appealing the Values

Draco ● Explain why change is needed

Trinh ● Why is the issue important

Claudia ● Stakeholder Analysis

Su Yi ● Ethical Theory

Christina ● Timeline

3/9 Christina Format everything checks for completion

3/10

by 5 pm

Whole Group ● By 5 pm: Do adjustments needed and proofread everything.

● Angela: Submit Paper by deadline time

3/13 – 3/17 Whole Group ● Find potential interview partners, reach out to these people, list potential interview partners

on google doc including with update of potential interview appointments/ or if they fall

through, and make a set of interview questions

4/4 Whole Group ● Last day of Interviews

4/6

by 5 pm

Claudia, Christina ● Summary and Description of Stakeholders

Si Yu, Jacob ● Power and Position Interest Map

Angela, Annie ● Coalitions that are likely to form For and Against the Social Issue

Trinh, Draco ● Organize Appendices, follow up with members if needed for complete data

4/7 Whole Group ● By 5 pm: Prove read everything notify in case of improvements need be made.

● By 10 pm: Submitting Analysis check that all changes necessary are made.

4/8 – 4/22 Claudia, Christina ● Cover Page final Report, who? Rules and responsibilities of business or broader industry,

work cited check and organization, formatting, and appendices

Si Yu, Jacob ● What? The impact that this business has on society. How? Does change happen

Angela, Annie ● Why? What ethical lenses can be applied? Why does the business do what it does?

How? Does Change happen

Trinh, Draco ● Where are the specific opportunities and challenges for change. Support other teams in

their research and writing

4/23 – 4/26 Whole Group ● Read final group report, make adds where needed, and give feedback to other groups

4/27 – 5/1 Whole Group ● Adjust your part with feedback from the group and add to your section if needed.

5/2 – 5/7 Whole Group ● Reread whole report, make adds where needed, give feedback to other groups

5/8 – 5/11 Whole Group ● Correct your part with feedback from others

5/12 – 5/13 Claudia, Christina ● Formatting the whole paper to make it look professional

5/14 – 5/16 Whole Group ● Read Paper in its final stage, assure that grammatical errors are corrected.

5/17 Claudia, Christina ● Final formatting, share final PDF to all group members

5/19 Annie ● Submit final report

References

Addiction in the restaurant industry – statistics & treatment. American Addiction Centers. (2022, August

29). Retrieved March 8, 2023, from https://americanaddictioncenters.org/rehab-guide/workforce/blue-collar-

workers/restaurant-hospitality

Bauer, W. A. (2020). Virtuous vs. utilitarian artificial moral agents. AI & SOCIETY, 35(1), 263-271.

Bush, D. M., & Lipari, R. N. (2015, April 16). Substance use and substance use disorder by

industry. Retrieved March 10, 2023, from

https://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/report_1959/ShortReport-1959.html

Danovich, Tove. (2018, January 18). In An Industry Rife with Substance Abuse, Restaurant Workers Help

Their Own. NPR. https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2018/01/16/577462426/restaurant-industry-workers-help-

each-other-rise-above-substance-abuse

Harm reduction. SAMHSA. (n.d.). Retrieved March 8, 2023, from https://www.samhsa.gov/find-help/harm-

reduction

Häyry, M. (2021). Just better utilitarianism. Cambridge Quarterly of Healthcare Ethics, 30(2), 343-367.

Johnson, S. (2022, July 5). New Group aims to help San Francisco’s Restaurant Workers Get Sober. San

Francisco Examiner. Retrieved March 8, 2023, from https://www.sfexaminer.com/archives/new-group-

aims-to-help-san-francisco-s-restaurant-workers-get-sober/article_89cbaad9-f1c9-507b-b8a9-e8c77d378ff1.html

Lawrence, A. T., & Weber, J. (2017). The Corporation and its Stakeholders. In Business and society:

Stakeholders, ethics, public policy (pp. 2–21). essay, McGraw-Hill education.

Milano, S., Taddeo, M., & Floridi, L. (2020). Recommender systems and their ethical challenges. Ai &

Society, 35, 957-967.

Substance Abuse Among Food Service Workers. American Addiction Centers. (2022, September 14).

Retrieved March 8, 2023, from https://americanaddictioncenters.org/blog/food-service-substance-use

https://americanaddictioncenters.org/rehab-guide/workforce/blue-collar-workers/restaurant-hospitality

https://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/report_1959/ShortReport-1959.html

https://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2018/01/16/577462426/restaurant-industry-workers-help-each-other-rise-above-substance-abuse

https://www.samhsa.gov/find-help/harm-reduction

https://www.sfexaminer.com/archives/new-group-aims-to-help-san-francisco-s-restaurant-workers-get-sober/article_89cbaad9-f1c9-507b-b8a9-e8c77d378ff1.html

https://americanaddictioncenters.org/blog/food-service-substance-use

Final Report Description: The final report will effectively answer the following questions:

Draw from your Rationale memo to answer the who/what and why questions.

Draw from the Stakeholder analysis to answer the Where question.

Answer question: one page with single space

Who?
The roles and responsibilities of a specific business or broader industry.

What?
The impact that this business has on society, in the context of a specific social issue.

Why?
Why does the business / industry do what it does? What ethical lenses can be applied?

Where?
Where are the specific opportunities and challenges for change?

What effect does this issue have on the Business Value Chain (aka – market stakeholders)? [e.g. suppliers, employees, consumers, the public, investors]

What effect does this issue have on the natural environment and society (aka – non-market stakeholders)? [e.g. the natural environment, the public, the local community, government, political environment]

Introduction (250words)

Problem? Answer question

Outcome (250words)

Who are the stakeholders? Answer question

Conclusion (300words)

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