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P A C I F I C / P R A I R I E June 2016 | Vol. 22 | No. 3
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Ritual employees earn a certified living wage By Bill Tremblay, Assistant Editor
Canada Post Publications Mail Agreement No. 40010152
VANCOUVER — In the absence of gratuities, staff at Ritual are earning a certified living wage. The west Vancouver restaurant, which opened in late March, pays its employees $20.68 an hour plus benefits following a probation period. The pay rate earned certification from the Living Wage for Families Campaign. “I’ve worked in kitchens as a cook for over 10 years. I felt tips were not fairly distributed amongst all employees,” said Nevada Cope, chef and owner of Ritual. “I was really passionate about making it fair for everyone, from dishwashers to servers to cooks. I kind of levelled the playing field.” The campaign determines a living wage based on the amount of money a family of four needs to meet its expenses including costs like rent or groceries. The wage fluctuates from about $16 per hour to $21 per hour depending on the region of British Columbia. Cope said in Vancouver dishwashers typically make less than $12 an hour. “That is not good for living in Vancouver. You’d need quite a few roommates for sure,” she said. Cope added paying a living wage creates a stable work environment, and helps retain employees. “I thought the servers would still want to be on tips, but I found a lot of servers still applied. In some cases they were happy this was going to be a living wage restaurant,” Cope said. “They’re really happy to just have something stable.” To help cover the cost of paying a living wage, Cope increased menu prices by about 15 per cent.
Nevada Cope “They don’t even really notice,” Cope said. “I’ve had a few customers who are a little more price conscious, but they see the quality of the food and service and understand where the money is going.” As well, customers are asked to not leave tips for staff. “There’s actually been a few customers who get kind of mad, they say ‘I want to leave you money.’ They’re surprised,” she said. If a customer leaves a tip, it’s donated to A Living Spoon, a charity that provides nutritious meals to people with HIV or AIDS. In its first seven weeks, the restaurant raised about $4,000. Cope worked at catering facility, Italian Cultural Centre, before opening Ritual. The 48-seat restaurant and its 10-member staff serves classic American and Mexican comfort food.
Although an above average pay rate for her employees created stress as Cope established a customer base, her socially responsible approach to business attracted like-minded clientele. “We’ve had charities come in for lunch with a whole group of people and there’s lots of sharing on Facebook,” Cope said. “People like the message. It’s been really positive.” While Ritual staff are paid a living wage, Cope said she understands the practice isn’t sustainable for all restaurants. “Sometimes restaurants have a lot of partners. If they have six people in the pot of wealth, money is a little bit thinner,” she said. “I’m the sole owner and chef. I have a little more playing room, it would work for some restaurants, but maybe not everyone.”
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