Pictured above: The Reef, located on the first floor of the University Student Center, opens at 10 a.m. and closes at 7 p.m. on Saturday.
Thomas Iacobucci | The Crow’s Nest
By Kayla Reed
I, like many students, work a job — a job that pays for my meal plan that, despite being one of the less expensive options, still had $600 leftover by the end of last semester.
One would think that maybe I just didn’t go to The Reef often enough. And one would be right. But the thing is, I couldn’t go often enough. Due to taking classes, my availability for working is limited.
I’m available to work on weekends and a couple of week nights, which entail closing shifts, which are typically over at 9 or 9:30 p.m. You know when The Reef closes on weekday nights? 9 p.m. So unless I have time earlier in the day to grab a sandwich and put it in the fridge for later, I have to either eat out or go without. The former is crazy expensive to repeatedly do, and the latter sucks.
Weekends are even worse; opening shifts start at 9 a.m. The next shift starts at 10 a.m. Either morning shift leaves me without breakfast because The Reef doesn’t open until 10 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday. If I am scheduled on a weekend morning, I am not able to eat anything until 3 or 4 in the afternoon.
And if I don’t work weekend mornings? Weekend night shifts begin at 4 or 5 p.m. and last until 9 or 10. The Reef closes at 7 p.m. on Friday and Saturday. That is ridiculously early, even for people who don’t work.
On Saturdays, The Reef is open for a total of nine hours: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. That is 37 percent of the hours of a day. One is expected to eat all three meals in the span of nine hours.
I know what you’re thinking. “Just go grocery shopping and have food in your dorm,” or “plan ahead so you don’t have to eat out.” But I shouldn’t have to plan ahead to make sure I have something to eat, especially when I’m paying $1,500 for food that is not available when I need it. The Reef’s hours are severely disproportionate to the amount of money we pay to eat there.
I understand that some of The Reef’s employees do not want to work more shifts or longer hours, and I totally get that. But I’m sure there are some that do and need or want the money. And, worst case, they can hire more people. Plenty of students are looking for jobs, and on-campus jobs are ideal for those without reliable transportation.
God knows Sodexo makes enough money to pay for more employees — they made $600 for free off of me alone. They profit off of leftover meal plan money, and they ensure that there’s leftover money by being inaccessible to students. Sodexo and the school are currently making money by giving students the choice of spending money they don’t have elsewhere or leaving them to go to bed hungry.
