With seven years of experience in the industry, starting as a dishwasher before eventually becoming a sous chef, Reno Sichantha was no stranger to having breakdowns with his coworkers.
It was when cheerful coworkers suddenly transformed into shadows of their former selves that he realized the toll the industry was having on them.
“All this pressure and shit is just, like, I don't know, it just brews such an easy environment for someone to become a habitual drug user,” Sichantha said.
Sichantha said these personality shifts were accredited to heavy substance use he saw employees engage in daily, with some people doing drugs before their shift “just to get their day going.”
Chris Muthra, a long-time Chef de Cuisine who was in the industry for 12 years, said many of his experiences in high-end restaurants echo Sichantha’s experiences.
The established chef said the presence of drugs within the industry created many issues for him and his co-workers before ultimately becoming the reason he left the industry despite his love for cooking.
“There's a lot of cooks, and there's a lot of chefs that join the industry for the rock star drug lifestyle, and there's a lot of chefs that join the industry for the art side,” Muthra said.
He said at one job, a child had gone into cardiac arrest after the consumption of his meal. When the parents pressed charges, it was revealed that it was because of cocaine that had fallen from the chef’s nose into the meal.
Muthra said he signed an NDA about the situation after the charges were dropped.
Akira Dakilla, a past server and bartender who worked in the industry for years said she left the job after experiencing similar concerns.
Dakilla said she often saw employees consuming substances and also saw a high number of managers also consuming and pushing that consumption.
“I mean, like, some of the managers I had were kind of like, coercing people a little bit, I guess. But for the most part, I think it's just knowing that they're doing it makes people want to do it, too.” Dakilla said.
This information isn’t foreign to Mike von Massow, a professor at the University of Guelph who specializes in how food works and the inner functions of the food service industry.
“It’s an intensive work environment. It’s hot. You’re working with knives. I think that this culture becomes perpetuated,” von Massow said. “So, it’s evolved, and then it just becomes the way it is.”
Von Massow said drug consumption has always historically been part of the culture in kitchens. It is one of the ways people bond, whether it’s cannabis or harder drugs.
He said the environment kitchens created only perpetuates these habits. Many people within the industry have limited free time in a high-stress industry.
“[You go to] work, and then go party a little bit, go home. You sleep till 2 a.m., and then you got to get ready because your shift starts in three hours,” von Massow said. “It becomes difficult to connect with friends who are not in the industry.”
Von Massow said he is working on a survey of food service workers about their experiences. He said the research found a correlation between the length of a career and the entrenchment of an “us-against-the-world" mentality that develops as people who suffer together stay together.
Dakilla said that while many places follow this rhetoric, it doesn’t have to be the life that one has to follow.
“I would just say, like, it's normal to bounce around between places a lot, so don't get discouraged by that. Or, like, if you get fired from one place or something, it's super common,” Dakilla said, “It's just, you don't have to stay at one place longer than you need to if they're really that bad, for instance.”
In an email statement to Et Cetera, the Ontario Restaurant Hotel and Motel Association (ORHMA) said it is aware of these issues and is actively supporting food service workers.
The organization recently began collaborating with the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) to provide resources for frontline workers, supervisors and managers.
“This holistic approach ensures that all levels of staff have access to the resources they need to maintain their mental well-being and effectively support their teams,” it said.
ORHMA said it has a Hospitality Stay Strong campaign, which promotes awareness and support to nurture and develop healthy workplace environments. It said it includes training programs that focus on mental health awareness, access to counselling resources and the promotion of work-life balance.
“The ORHMA recognizes that substance abuse in all industries poses significant challenges to employee well-being and guest safety,” ORHMA said in the statement. “We believe by prioritizing substance abuse prevention and intervention, businesses can enhance the safety, productivity, and reputation of the hospitality sector in Ontario.”
