Diversity is the Language of the World

By John Kinsella, CMC, CCE, WGMC, AAC

In the last 20 years there has been a demand in our industry for bilingual chefs and cooks. Today there is more demand for chefs and cooks who are trilingual. What does it mean to our profession?

When I hear the word "diversity," I think of the multiracial, bilingual workforce that we deal with every day. Gone is the day of an all-white kitchen staff, with women in pantry positions only and other minorities, such as African-Americans and Hispanics, employed as kitchen cleaners and dishwashers. Today 60% of the incoming student body in culinary schools is female and 20% is minorities of all races and creeds.

We are governed by stringent laws that protect those in the workforce from a hostile kitchen environment that would cause an employee to feel threatened or humiliated. Today, the screaming, ranting chef is a thing of the past, and I say, thank God for that. I believe that if you hire somebody to do a job in your kitchen, that person should be ideally suited to work on your cooking team. With the fervor that has been created over illegal aliens in the United States, it is going to be more difficult every day to find the right staff for your kitchens.

I'm a former immigrant, and I am now a naturalized citizen who went through the process of obtaining the proper visas and green cards so that I could work here. When I arrived at the Terrace Hilton in Cincinnati, we had a staff of 30: five African-Americans, 12 women, and the balance white males. Today, in that same hotel--no longer a Hilton--the majority of the staff is African-American, Hispanic and female. What I'm trying to say is that the demographics of our industry have dramatically changed. It is fine to celebrate women in our industry, which we will do with demonstrations at our national convention, but the whole purpose of the federation is that we represent the total culinary population of the United States.

Even in Cincinnati, we have students who come from the former Eastern Bloc countries to work for the summer or the season. They arrive here in such numbers because they want to learn all the different cuisines that are represented in U.S. restaurants. They also want to learn how to handle volume feeding, such as banquets and large parties. They come here to learn how we cook and serve our food. They bring a strong work ethic and expose us to a trilingual workforce. At the Marriott River Center in Covington, Ky., the majority of the service staff is Polish, Ukrainian and Hispanic. And, the United States is seeing a greater interest from China in having us train its culinarians and service people so that they can provide the services expected by visitors at the 2008 Olympic Games.

I am pleased that we are the leaders in the hospitality industry because of the innovative things we do in our hotels and restaurants every year. Several years ago I spent 10 days in the Ukraine training chefs in the basics of Cajun and Creole cooking. My interpreter, Olga, could speak eight languages and was working on a doctoral degree in foreign languages. She has since achieved her goal of graduating by the age of 23, and now works at the university as an associate professor. She is working on her second doctoral degree, in English literature, language and prose.

To me, Olga represents what diversity should be: a continual growth and learning experience that allows us all to work and play together and develop the ultimate multicultural society. Those who think that diversity represents just one group of the human family are wrong. We are all involved in diversity as we treat each other with respect, assist each other to grow in both our professions and home lives, and enjoy watching our children grow up together without prejudice. They should learn that engaging in racial prejudice, religious hatred and demeaning behavior that makes anyone uncomfortable within a group is both cruel and wrong.

Finally, when I was a young apprentice, my chef told me that you didn't have to like the people you worked with, but you had to respect them, because they were the only group of people who understood what we do every day in the kitchen and the dependency we have on each other while we are working.

I look forward to seeing you in Orlando. Great cooking to you all.