Hi. My name is Kevin Wunder. You may know me as the guy who made you a kick-ass Subway sandwich that one time at the Eagle's Nest. More likely, you didn't pay much attention to who was making your sub because you were too busy watching the sandwich like a hawk, making sure I wouldn't grab one of those gross tomatoes, or use a dirty knife, or use bread that is crumbling and falling apart. Well I can assure you that I didn't. I can also assure you I did my best to be polite (and perhaps even jovial) in my service to you that day. Regretfully, I am unable to say the same for some of my former co-workers.
Have you gone to the Eagle's Nest and witness the person serving you roll his or her eyes, scoff loudly, or otherwise (in any number of ways) make it obvious the displeasure your presence was causing him or her? Or how about the complete lack of consideration the "sandwich artist" showed in making your sandwich, recklessly tossing items onto the bread, mangling every inch of it (without remorse) so that by the time he or she finished, the sub would have been more enjoyable to eat if it were thrown into a blender and made into a power-shake? Or how about the mile-long line at the front register? Or how about the ridiculously overpriced items?
It would take forever to list every possible bad experience I know most patrons of the Nest have been subjected to, so I'll get to the point. In my two-plus years as a hardworking, dutiful Eagle's Nest employee, I came to some depressing conclusions about how students are treated by those who run this school. What I saw occurring behind the counter would be enough to make anyone footing the bill for an education here absolutely livid. The problems with service in the Nest also reveal some of the larger issues of corruption and apathy for student concerns that plague the administration of this institution. Let me explain.
I began getting curious early in my career at the Nest as to why certain co-workers were able to get away with such levels of unproductiveness and daily exhibits of cruelty toward customers. It turns out they're being paid upwards of $12-$15 (with benefits), while student workers like myself are being paid $7.75 with NO chance for a raise. That's right - there is no possibility for a raise if you are a student working at the Nest. This situation seemed fishy, so I looked a little deeper.
What I found was that all those non-student employees at the Nest, as well as at every other on-campus food vendor/restaurant, are part of a union the school has a contract with through the management company Bon Appetit, which runs the Eagle's Nest, TDR and the Tavern). Because of the multi-million-dollar contracts AU has with Bon Appetit, there is absolutely no way for the managers here to discipline or fire the union workers. And the bad service they give us extends beyond rude workers and high prices - do you ever wonder why the food in TDR is of such low quality (considering the cost of meal plans)? And believe me: Housing and Dining officials and the managers at Bon Appetit know how students are being treated - they simply don't care. After all, they personally OK the high prices the Nest charges and they personally decide your meal plan prices. They know full well about the snotty way students are treated by some of the workers and they know full well how low quality the food is. Let me reiterate: THEY DO NOT CARE.
Of course, coming to this school as a knee-jerk liberal (of sorts), I would hesitate to be so hard on co-workers coming from harder economic and social conditions, and I would be equally hesitant to be critical of unions. But let me tell you one particular story to illustrate the point where my compassion ends and my bleeding heart clots up: a Japanese student came in to get a sandwich one evening, and stated his order to one of my (not-so-esteemed) colleagues. Unfortunately for him, he committed the unforgivable sin of saying it with a Japanese accent. My co-worker yelled back: "WHAT?!" He repeated his order.
"What did you say!!" Her signature attitude now left the realm of sass and entered bitch. "I can't understand you!" He tried again. This time she finally understood him. But would this mean an end to the mishap? Of course not. "SPEAK ENGLISH! It's called PAR-MA-SAN O-RE-GA-NO!" I guess you could say she was interested in helping him pronounce English better (which is ironic, considering she barely speaks the language herself). And I might be inclined to laugh at all the kookiness if her tone wasn't so sadistic. He repeated it again trying to sound it out for her. She stood there with her hands on her hips, not moving to get the bread she knew he wanted (he was almost shaking in fear at this point). She finally scoffed, mumbled something mean and began making the worst sub ever (on par with every other sub she'd ever made).
This is a school that prides itself on its international programs, boasting a large foreign-student population. This is how these students are treated by the people serving them here? Now you might be wondering what I was doing watching all this. Let me just say that what was happening in front of me that evening was not out of the ordinary, and I learned early on that complaints do nothing. Interjecting on behalf of the poor guy would have been a mistake - I would have incurred her wrath, making the situation worse. (Believe me, I tried, but when nothing ever changed, I couldn't help but stop caring.)
We attend one of the most expensive schools in the country, and AU's president is one of the highest paid. Why exactly is he paid so much? Because his administration is good at fund-raising and bringing in lucrative contracts with outside businesses. A front-page Eagle headline before winter break read "AU Donors Get What They Want." This realization should enrage any student (and his or her tuition-paying parent) who is sick of dealing with the high prices and low quality of service and food on campus. And believe me - I've got plenty more tales about the nasty food you're being served and could spin spans of more yarn about the service being forced upon you.
In return for hefty payments to the school, the administration has handed these companies a monopoly and created a gift-wrapped captive market in which to exploit you. The time has come, at least in my own summation, to do something about this, and I'm certain we as tuition-paying students have many options for courses of action. A good start might be to press our student representatives to stand up and demand a basic level of accountability. I know it's fun to make fun of SC kids and how powerless they are - but as of right now, they're the only organization with the resources to make at least some kind of noise on your behalf. So when you go vote (Saturday-Monday), make sure you pick someone who will be willing to stand up to President Ladner and his cronies.
Well that's it for now, friends. Until next time: keep your eyes on the sub (and enjoy your tuition raise.)
Kevin Wunder is a junior in the School of Public Affairs.
