Dear Foxy "Family,"

I am still angry.

In Savannah, GA there is a group of workers striking in lieu of unfair wages, unsafe conditions and overall fuckery at the area’s most popular cafe chain. As a former worker of the Foxy Loxy Cafe franchise, here’s how my experiences, I believe, have led to what we are now seeing. What is being said here are my own thoughts, and while might align with the current workers, I implore that I am not speaking for the strikers. For more info, check out The Savannahian for details and background of the strike.

To the striking workers, current and former employees and those that have been treated unfairly over the years, I support you implicitly. Get at it. Except you, Adam.

I’ve never been accused of being less than “difficult” for most of my working life. Yet, I was praised for how direct I was and am. For my memory, my efficiency, attention to detail, and the ability to sell, organize, and make “difficult” things less so. Difficult people were a forte. I train people well, because I understand them well enough. Was I always successful? No, but I did my best.

I digress.

The issue, however, had never been the perceived “difficulty” I exude when it benefited the business. Being the “squeaky wheel.” The dragon-lady that is always too particular. No, it was its existence in tandem with a severe people-pleasing habit. Then, to sacrificing my own mental and physical health for the ease of someone else. For the common good. Falling prey to a specific tactic, and one only: promised “family.” The idea that support comes from all sides.

Unimportant why, but to be clear, I’m not the only one in this boat. Someone who feels the necessity to prove themselves and bolster their side of existence. To say: “Hey, I’m worthy of being here and this is what I feel I need.”

Suddenly, when that conversation arises in lieu of needed change—that’s when I’m “difficult.” Because, now, it goes against the bottom line, philosophy, and system put in place to exploit us. To use us to our last drop of ability, while calling us unstable and not like *insert generation here.* The subjects of “no one wants to work anymore” and the blame for the failures of old mechanics that do not work in the now.

Where my “difficulty” really shined, perhaps, was when it was confused that just because I was and am openly sensitive, it meant that I would be less than infuriated by unfairness, injustice, and negligence.

Lol, no.

I am not unconfrontational. That’s how I kept it safe. I will 100% take on the responsibility of de-escalation and match energy when need be. You threaten one of my coworkers because you took the wrong coffee and you decide that it’s their fault? I am not afraid of tantrums thrown by so-called adults. But not everyone is like that, so, I take that on when needed. Happy to do so. No one deserves to feel unsafe at work.

However, I don’t revere challenges. It’s challenging enough to get up at 4:30am every day. It’s challenging enough to deal with people and their perceived notions of our worth. I am, however, entirely unafraid of saying what needs to be said. I don’t “tell it like it is” in the way that people lie about their abilities to confront an issue.

I just do it. My radar goes off and we, may indeed, have an issue.

And yet…somehow, that was misunderstood. That when it went, again, against the wishes of the garbage and misquoted adage that “the customer is always right…” when we are not discussing the “taste” of the matter. Reality says that customers can dictate what they want, not what we can offer. We can compromise. But we cannot upend and create on the fly for someone because they decided to want ceremonial, no sugar matcha. Not understanding that our matcha powder comes with the sugar in it and they don’t know what ceremonial matcha is, how expensive it is to source, etc.

Do you somehow think we grow the leaves ourselves? Where do we live? Do some basic geographic calculations. In fact, think about how business works since one is so inclined to tell us how to run it, and yet people (customers) feign ignorance when it suits them. And now they want to throw something at my coworker and berate their intelligence.

Not here, absolutely not.

In one hour I would have the responsibility of checking in the large bakery order, setting up the large bake case, brewing the first coffee carafes, washing the bakery delivery dishes, and likely checking in 3 other deliveries before we were even open. The day that followed is all about timing. Expediting any bakery case orders from the front to keep the cashier and barista at their station to keep the line moving (as it was always out the door) while I ran around to fill orders, call out names, and grab anything that either working human or customer needed. All the while constantly cleaning, organizing, and checking off the million and one things on the god-forsaken check list of monumental tasks expected to be done.

You cannot tell me that isn’t a skill. And you cannot tell me it wasn’t hard.

And you certainly cannot tell me we were paid enough for the labor.

Expecting us to accept tips as a function of our hourly rate is ludicrous considering it is not consistent, and it screws your customer over by pushing the cost off to them.

We deserved reliable pay for our reliable work.

I felt intensely responsible for the human beings on shift with me. To listen and learn what worked best. And to pick up the slack when needed. This was beneficial…to a point. Only when it didn’t prove too difficult.

When I wasn’t speaking directly to you, the owner.

But sure, I’ll read that book given to me on “leadership.” Another version of snake oil salesman claiming these “simple rules” will improve your work place. Meanwhile, you have no idea the actual function or life of communication in your own cafe spaces. You misunderstand the complexities of how change happens. How complaint, deemed “gossip = bad” and then punish people for it.

Let’s expand on that:

Tell me this, how else do we take down a predator without first gathering evidence? How does “gossip” not function as a means to confirm suspicion? Surely, there are always people that are irritating. It’s ok to complain about that. It is different to take it out on the person unjustly. Are we not all adults that practice sorting through rational and irrational feelings that can speak privately to each other about them, to seek guidance, validity, or the lack thereof? How else am I to know I am wrong about someone, if I haven’t spoken to anyone else about their experiences with that person. How else am I supposed to realize that it’s an outlier day for the offending person, if I don’t first talk about it with someone who can either confirm or deny their character is acting with malice or not.

Humans gossip. It’s a communication tactic. It is complex and it is neither good or bad. It just is. And no amount of Brene fucking Brown is going to convince me otherwise, along with every other capitalist, that we shouldn’t use it to organize. It has one singular goal: to seek confirmation. It organizes that irrational feeling of unease into rational timelines of occurances. This is useful in complicated instances. Can it be used badly? Yes. But we would hope that most people would shut down a “school-yard” bully. We are not children. And yet, I’m handed this garbage book as a blue-print for leadership. When, at best, it is badly translated qualitative data that aims to create an illusion of freedom in the workplace.

If you don’t understand that leadership lives differently for every single employee, is implemented and accepted in various ways, then I don’t know what to do for you. Company philosophy is one thing. People are another. The two may be at odds through our capitalist structure, but perhaps then you would admit that your “family” is simply a way to exert control to make sure that we all stay in line.

I have never done that. I will never do that. Good luck with that.

Congrats on buying the Gingerbread House during a pandemic, while your workers crowdfunded for pay. And, sure, you’re down right now. And some may argue that I’m kicking you while you are down, but I seem to remember coming to you for a raise:

You offered me 50 cents extra, IF I committed to more work. My now husband and I, who worked for you at the time, couldn’t afford our rent. And we were committed workers. We stayed late. We did extra. We were already doing more work. Training new hires, being examples as best we knew how.

I seem to recall coming to you with harassment concerns happening to me and others. I was punished for that. That script flipped so fast, even I was surprised. And I rarely am.

There are microcosms of actual families that were hurt under the Foxy “Family” umbrella. That part seems to be forgotten in the name of good business.

And I am still angry about it. Disgruntled, in fact, doesn’t begin to cover it. Do better.

—Minna Ilse Kast (Kristina Ilse Vetter, former shift-lead at the Foxy Loxy Cafe)

Action Network Org Petition for Foxy Loxy Cafe workers:

Sign Petition Here to Support!