Workplace Traua in Professional Kitchens: Experiences of Part-time Undergraduate Culinary Arts Students in Ireland

As the hospitality industry continues to struggle with attracting and retaining employees, chefs in particular, research on culture in kitchens continues to grow. A recent report in Ireland exposed a culture of bullying and harassment of employees in the hospitality sector. Internationally, researchers have explored the complexity of navigating, belonging, and coping in professional kitchens and have subsequently identified how trauma is embedded in the practice of cooking and serving food. The research to date has largely focused on the perspectives of cooks, and chefs, particularly those who work in elite restaurants, so little is known about the student experience. Part-time students can offer valuable insights as they have experiences both in their working world and in higher education. The focus of this paper is to highlight recent findings of ongoing doctoral research on professionalism in culinary arts. In-depth semi-structured interviews took place with ten participants. Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) informed the research approach and was used in the analysis of the data. Although the research sought to address a gap in the professionalism literature, by seeking participants who were part-time culinary arts degree students whilst working in industry, an experiential theme on trauma emerged. Several participants shared their experiences of working in professional kitchens revealing negative cultures and environments. In this regard, the research adds to the discussion by confirming that workplace trauma is evidenced across the sector. It further highlights the need for a change in culture to attract future generations to the profession.