CUNY Student Good Food Jobs

The CUNY Student Good Food Jobs program, part of the CUNY Urban Food Policy Institute (CUFPI), aims to strengthen New York City’s food workforce. In particular, this program assists the tens of thousands of CUNY students who support themselves and their families by working in the food sector to learn about their rights as workers, connect with unions and worker organizations serving food workers, and advance their careers by getting more skills and training from the many CUNY academic programs in food-related fields.

Interviews with students revealed a strong demand for information on worker rights. Additionally, food service workers can be found working at over 15 CUNY campuses in on-site dining services, including cafes, coffee kiosks, and cafeterias.

Hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers work in the food industry, making it one of the largest sectors in the city. Included in this workforce are fast food workers, grocery store cashiers, food deliverers, chefs, waiters, school cooks, workers in food manufacturing plants, and more.

The food sector contributes significantly to New York’s economy, offering entry-level jobs with few formal entry requirements. But despite being critical to New York City’s economy, the jobs in this sector generally:

  • pay below-average wages,
  • offer limited benefits,
  • lack adequate workers health and safety protections, and
  • offer few pathways to career advancement or higher wages.

Engage with the CUNY Urban Food Policy Institute team working on this issue

Findings from our interviews and prior research from the CUNY Urban Food Policy Institute and our partners, suggest steps that four key constituencies can take to work towards the vision of a fair New York City food system:

  • CUNY, including central administrators, administrators housed at CUNY’s 25 campuses, faculty, and students;
  • City and State policy makers;
  • Labor unions and worker organizations; and
  • Food employers.

Collaboration is at the heart of our work at the CUNY Urban Food Policy Institute. Let’s join forces to improve the working conditions and lives of New York City food service workers!

Contact us at: jacquelyn.sullivan@sph.cuny.edu

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CUNY Resources

If you’re looking for free or low-cost resources to help with health, financial, and educational challenges you might face while in college, check out A Guide to Surviving and Thriving at CUNY. Created by CUNY students for CUNY students this online guide provides links, phone numbers, and other contact information for services across New York City. Don’t miss the CUNY Guide to Health Insurance and Healthcare found at the same webpage.

CUNY Student Food Workers, Know Your Workplace Rights!

NYC Fair Workweek Law

If you are a fast-food worker in New York City, you might have protections under the City’s Fair Workweek Law. This law increases protections for fast-food workers by requiring employers to provide regular scheduling, limit their ability to cut a worker’s hours, and provide a reason for firing a worker (known as “just cause” job protections). Follow this link DCWP – Workers – Worker Rights – Fast Food Workers (nyc.gov) for more information about how the NYC Fair Workweek Law protects fast-food workers, and follow this link DCWP – Workers – Worker Rights – File Workplace Complaint (nyc.gov) to file a workplace complaint with the City’s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (NYC DCWP).

NYC Paid Safe and Sick Leave Law

Under NYC’s Paid Safe and Sick Leave Law, covered employees have the right to use safe and sick leave for the care and treatment of themselves or a family member and to seek legal and social services assistance or take other safety measures if the employee or a family member may be the victim of any act or threat of domestic violence or unwanted sexual contact, stalking, or human trafficking. Follow this link DCWP – Workers – Worker Rights – Paid Safe and Sick Leave (nyc.gov) for more information about how the NYC Paid Safe and Sick Leave law can protect you.

Minimum Wage for Fast Food Workers

Fast-food workers in NYC, Long Island and Westchester currently make a minimum of $16.00 per hour. Effective 1/1/2025, the minimum wage increases to $16.50. Click on this link to learn more about your rights as a fast-food worker. Click on this link to learn more about your rights as a fast-food worker: https://dol.ny.gov/minimum-wage-fast-food-workers-frequently-asked-questions

NYC Food Delivery Workers Rights

NYC food delivery workers can set the maximum distance they are willing to travel for an order and app companies must respect these limits. For 2024, NYC’s minimum wage for the time that app-based workers spend delivering food from restaurants is $19.56 per hour (not including tips). The minimum wage for NYC food delivery workers increases each year on April 1st. Learn more about your rights to pay and working conditions at this webpage: https://www.nyc.gov/site/dca/workers/workersrights/delivery-worker-rights-english.page. To file a workplace complaint with the City’s Department of Consumer and Worker Protection (NYC DCWP), follow this link: https://a866-dcwpbp.nyc.gov/worker-complaint/file-complaint?topic=delivery-worker.

NYS Department of Labor Wage Theft Hotline

If your employer is not paying you what they owe you, you can file a complaint with the New York State Department of Labor (NYS DOL) wage theft hotline. Call 833-910-4378, press ‘3’ to speak confidentially with a representative about filing a complaint. Interpretation services are available if you would prefer to speak in a language other than English. You can learn more on the NYS DOL website: https://dol.ny.gov/unpaidwithheld-wages-and-wage-supplements

Health & Safety at Work – OSHA Rights

Federal law entitles you to a safe workplace. The Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 created OSHA, which sets and enforces protective workplace safety and health standards. Your employer must keep your workplace free of known health and safety hazards. Click on this link (https://www.osha.gov/sites/default/files/osha3165-8514.pdf) to learn about your rights under OSHA.

National Labor Relations Act – NLRA Rights

In 1935, Congress passed the National Labor Relations Act (“NLRA”), making clear that it is the policy of the United States to encourage collective bargaining by protecting workers’ full freedom of association. Click on this link (https://www.nlrb.gov/about-nlrb/rights-we-protect/your-rights/employee-rights) to learn about your rights to seek better working conditions and designation of representation without fear of retaliation under the NLRA.

Organizing Your Workplace

Reach out to these unions and worker advocacy organizations to see if they can help you organize with your co-workers to improve working conditions and unionize your workplace.

Unions

Worker Advocacy Organizations

Already Have a Union, Fighting for a Contract?

  • Labor Notes is a media and organizing project that promotes union organizing through its magazine, books, website, and conferences. Read news updates about organizing in the food service industry and more at: https://www.labornotes.org/. Join trainings online and in-person at: https://www.labornotes.org/events.

Building a Safe and Healthy Workplace

One of the most common working conditions of concern to workers is health and safety. Workplace hazards can lead to illness, injury and even death. Health and safety hazards in the food service industry include slips, trips and falls; burns and cuts; strains and sprains due to heavy lifting and repetitive motions; heat extremes; stress; and workplace violence, among others. Below are resources about food service health and safety hazards and solutions, rights to health and safety and how to organize with co-workers to stay safe on the job.

Health and Safety Resources

Factsheets

CUNY Labor Education

  • The CUNY School of Labor and Urban Studies (SLU) through its Labor Studies Department offers courses on labor law, labor history, worker health and safety and many other topics. SLU holds public events on current issues in the labor movement, including trainings on worker organizing: https://slu.cuny.edu/about/.

CUNY Food Studies

Are you interested in pursuing a career in the food service industry? There are multiple food-related academic programs across CUNY campuses. No educational institution in the city prepares more people for the food sector than CUNY.