Article
A winning combination
Hiring developmentally disabled employees can create lifelong loyalties.
March 17, 2008
Hiring developmentally disabled adults to work in fast-casual restaurants is more than a feel-good story, advocates say; it's an opportunity to tap into a rarity in foodservice — loyal, long-serving employees.
"Getting someone in the foodservice industry that doesn't turn over, that's hard to find," said Tom Swanston, executive director of Chesapeake Service Systems, a Virginia-based organization that provides vocational opportunities for people with developmental disabilities. "Whenever a restaurant hires a person with a developmental disability, it shows they care for their community. But that's not something we push, though. We don't want pity hires."
Hiring people with disabilities such as Down syndrome, cerebral palsy or mental retardation helps change the stigma that they can't do anything productive, Swanston said. When they are in a work environment, and able to perform a task, they feel they finally belong somewhere. That creates a valuable benefit for both parties — fast-casual chains enjoy a dedicated, loyal employee and the person finds some much-needed self-actualization.
"They are so glad to do the work and do their tasks, their retention rates are incredibly high," Swanston said. "There is a lot of turnover usually in restaurants, but these folks will stay for years. It's much more than a job for them; it defines them as just like everyone else and that's their dream, to be like everyone else."
Roxanne Crotser, general manager of a Fazoli's in Chesapeake, Va., employs a developmentally disabled 35-year-old woman and a deaf man in her restaurant. She, as Swanston said, realized quickly how loyal a nontraditional workforce could be.
"Unless they're sick, they're here," she said. "I always know they'll be here and I never have to worry about them. To them, I think it brings a sense of pride that they are able to come into the restaurant and help us, and they do help us a lot."
The woman began working in Crotser's store in 1999 and has served as a dining-room attendant ever since, making sure tables are clean, the ice machine is full, the trash is taken out and the floors are clean. She also works one-on-one with guests, bringing them items such as lids or extra breadsticks. The deaf man works in the kitchen, making pasta during the lunch rush hour.
Crotser worked with Chesapeake Service Systems to find both of her nontraditional employees. Every state maintains a list of organizations like Chesapeake Service Systems through their departments of rehabilitative services.
"We've done the (Chesapeake Service Systems) program for several years," Crotser said. "We've had several disabled adults in the past working here. We don't really have any hesitations to hiring them."
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That approach to hiring a nontraditional workforce is embraced by Fazoli's from a corporate level, said Elizabeth Moore, chief franchise officer.
"One of the Fazoli's brand's guiding principles is to enhance the lives of those we touch," she said. "The philosophy applies not only to guests, but to employees and vendors. Our managers are empowered to make their own hiring decisions, but we urge them to focus on what individuals can do as opposed to what they can't."
Swanston acknowledges that some organizations need to see the benefits of a nontraditional workforce before they'll consider it. Once an organization can see that disabled people can work, produce and function, it breaks down barriers.
"They have to be a benefit to the business," he said. "We never sell them on their social responsibility to do this."
Of course, certain safety concerns have to be addressed before hiring developmentally disabled individuals, such as possible kitchen hazards, Moore said. But Fazoli's tries to place nontraditional employees in roles in which they'll thrive.
"In exchange for our commitment, we get loyalty and longevity," Moore said. "We're a community-minded brand and doing this translates into a real sense of tying into the community. We're trying to do what we can to support not only that employee but the community as a whole."
Heine Bros., a small chain of coffee shops in and around the Louisville, Ky., area, takes the same approach. The company has employed Jackie Nalley for eight years. It discovered Nalley, who has Down syndrome, when she was in high school after her special-education teacher began bringing students into local businesses to work for 30- to 60-minute timeslots. The teacher aimed to get the students acclimated to a work environment with small tasks and a feeling of accomplishment.
"Her school had decided that they were going to look for work for these kids, to get them out in the community and as self-sufficient as possible," said Andrea Trimmer, Heine Bros. director of operations. "We got really close to the students and got excited whenever they were coming in."
Seeing Nalley's response to the work, her mother approached Heine Bros. to see if the company would consider a more permanent arrangement for her daughter, Trimmer said. The company agreed and placed Nalley in one of its stores.
"Her abilities were so much more than we thought in the beginning," Trimmer said. "Jackie's task list just kept growing and growing."
Nalley now works five days a week, rotating between two of Heine Bros.' six Louisville stores. One of the locations is near her home, so she can walk to work. She takes a bus to the other. Her responsibilities include sweeping, wiping down tables and bagging coffee and tea.
"We have so much fun with her; she's always in the best mood," Trimmer said. "It also just feels good that she's there and we're letting the rest of the world know that people with Down's are people, too. I think it really adds to the experience when you come into our stores."
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