START HERE: ABOUT THE PROJECT

Founded in Edmonton, AB, Canada. #YEG

FED UP? So are we. 

A feminist approach to eating out that seeks to highlight prominent issues regarding sex, gender, and race in the service industry. We aim to provide a comprehensive and accessible database of restaurant, cafe, and eatery reviews based off of a thorough checklist that anyone can bring along on an outing if they wish. Scores and ratings are directly drawn from the evaluations of anyone that chooses to fill out a checklist and submit it.

High-end and high-profile restaurants that monopolize the industry often escape accountability in terms of sexism and other forms of discrimination within their workplace, marketing, and service. We hope to shed light on this disappointing trend by encouraging you to assess the places you choose to eat with a more critical eye.

This database will doubtlessly aid you in choosing where to take your business.

Be a part of the project
Follow us on Twitter

#FEDUPYEG
#WGS201

How do you get started?

Start HERE by reading some of the important terms to consider in our surveys. Once you’ve done that…

Are you a patron or a guest being served at an establishment? Click here to fill out the survey.

Are you a current or former employee of a service establishment? Click here to fill out a survey tailored just for you.

Click here to submit your anonymous personal testimony from working in the service industry!

If you’re a superstar responsible consumer and would like to give a follow up letter to the business you review, you can find it here.

Thanks for your participation!

 

ARE YOU ANGRY AT US?

We would just like to clarify that we are not sorry and will not pretend to be sorry for calling you, your establishment, or any other business out on policies that create unsafe and disrespectful work environments. We are here to hold businesses accountable.

If you represent a company that has come under fire from the testimonies we have received, or an evaluation:  Companies have more power (power that is very easily abused) over individuals. We are here for the individual, and we will not be silenced by any personal harassment over social media or by any other means.

If you would like to engage in a respectful discourse with us over concerns you may have about an evaluation you received, or the way we are conducting our online activities, please email us at fedupyeg@gmail.com. We are more than happy to take constructive feedback, alternative perspectives, and reconsider things. If you see something you disagree with, don’t hesitate to contact us.

58 thoughts on “START HERE: ABOUT THE PROJECT”

  1. I’m one hundred percent in support of this project, but I’d change the “put on your grown up pants” text at the end. In my opinion it devalues this project and the serious nature of this issue. Just a suggestion, do with it as you like. Good luck with the project!

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  2. I went to the ranch on ladies night and I was allowed in for free, and my boyfriend had to pay. how are these sexist promations allowed to violate are most basic of human rights?

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  4. Sad when people only care about one gender, instead of trying changing violated rights of women, why not both genders? everything is a two way street, and you are sexist yourself. your half baked feminism ruins the world.

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    • Hi JC! We absolutely care about the experiences of both genders. We invite all people of any gender to share their personal testimonies or fill out our surveys – there are many injustices faced by men in the service industry, too. We have already heard quite a bit from the male perspective and will continue to welcome more.

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    • They didn’t say anywhere that this is just for women. If anyone is being biased here, it’s you for assuming that only women’s stories are accepted.

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    • What an ass! How dare you think that way let alone take the time to respond in this way. Women are not your mother. If you want to do something for men then why don’t you organize yourself and do it. These women are advocating for themselves. Celebrate that, congratulate them and stop your whining. Have you read the comments on the site guarding how women are treated by their male coworkers and their supervisors? I bet you are a real peach to work with. Feminist is a word that they are proud to call themselves. Nothing you say can Say will sully that.

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      • Oops my response above is to JC’s posting. And by the way congratulations on this fabulous site. This is an issue that as you have said is so blatant and so unfair that it is invisible to far too many people.

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    • JC, it’s clear this project is trying to stand up for both men and women equally. Men are also negatively effected by the sexist environments of some restaurants. If women are hired and given better shifts because managers think hot girls sell more drinks, then that leaves men at a financial loss based solely on their gender. That’s also sexist. Feminism isn’t men vs women, it’s men are equal to women. We should have equal rights to earn an income and be safe from discrimination in the workplace.

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  5. My first experience with the food industry I was asked by an older man if I would put my name and number on the back of his receipt. It was the A&W. I was 15.

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  6. There should be a site like this for every type of job for every city! People have the right to know about racism, sexism, ableism, etc. and bad management in general before applying for jobs. And eventually, maybe this would lead to real change and less abusive people in positions of power. Do you know of any other sites like this?

    Thanks so much for starting this for Edmonton!

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    • Hi Ary – thanks for the positive words!
      Unfortunately we are not aware of any other similar sites at this time – but surely there are some that exist. The closest thing we can think of is Glassdoor, which is a website full of employee’s reviews of companies where people can look at these reviews before taking jobs at said companies.
      If you find anything more similar to us, let us know!

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      • My girlfriend, from Calgary, showed me this and I’m looking to get something similar started back in London (UK). Once I’ve got some people interested I may be back in contact to ask how you set up the site / moderate etc!

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  7. I’m curious why it would be ok for a waiter to bring a woman a free drink from a stranger at another table, if she’s sitting with her husband.
    A man like that is a little creepy, but the waiter who actually approached us…. Bad form and no tip.

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  8. Good for you for examining these issues. When will we move to “Gender Studies” as a more generic and even handed approach to sociology? As other’s have stated herein, the nature of “Women’s Studies” includes a forgone bias in any studies or research.

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    • How come its okay to be biased, completely and totally 100% biased in every field of study, in virtually every institution, every family, every school, every university, every church, etc., etc., etc., but you consider it “biased” to have women’s studies??? When everything else becomes unbiased and “even-handed,” then I’d be okay with blending women’s studies into generic blandness. Until that day, no.

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  9. How about an active list of places to eat that pride themselves on treating their workers with respect? The negative comments need to be vented and the bad employers need to be publicly shamed but if we had a list of good places to choose from that would be a useful tool when we speak with our wallets.

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    • We’re currently tweeting out positive testimonies and reviews as well, though they seem few and far between – most people that come to us to share their stories are motivated by negative experiences. We will continue to share positive reviews as they are sent in, however, and hope to create a comprehensive list soon!

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      • Well, here’s a positive out of a negative! The restaurant where I work on Whyte Ave. is a very gender equal workplace. We had recently been looking for a head chef and after an exhaustive search, finally found the right candidate for the job. As it turns out he was a real MCP (male chauvinist pig) making the lives of all that worked there quite difficult, and was fired after 3 days!!! Justice was served

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  11. This is really interesting and important work! I would be interested to find out if these stories represent training from head offices (so, the unwritten rule of the company’s expectation of management and staff) or more reflective of the current management enforcing a toxic workplace culture. For example, how would a business’ corporate office react to this kind of feedback from staff, and negative publicity?

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  12. Sexism and ageism is endemic throughout all the major sports bars and restaurant chains. Apart from the “wear the shortest tightest clothing you find” rule, many establishments either fire or move women who reach the grand old age of 30 to a non table-serving role. This isn’t just ghastly establishments like Hooters, but mainstream chains. I did some outreach work with a young woman who had some issues unrelated to her job, and she was told to flirt with customers and “be sexy”. This in one of the most popular bar/restaurant chains in Edmonton. I’m so glad you’re doing what you’re doing.

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  13. In the Metronews version of your venture, you are quoted a couple of times using “girls”. I found this disappointing and annoying, since the context of the use of this term usually infantlizes women. If you want to say young women, great, but girls has got to be banished unless you’re referring to children up to a certain age. If you want to say girls’ night out or the girls are getting together for this-or-that, great, but girls are not twenty-somethings and older.

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    • I disagree. I often refer to myself as a girl instead of a woman, because I find that I associate the word women with gender performance. I’m sometimes uncomfortable referring to myself as a woman because I don’t do a lot of the things that people associate with woman, I am more comfortable with the word girl.

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  14. Hi There!
    Very excited to see this and participate! I own a fine dining, beautiful restaurant in Lethbridge AB called Plum (you can look us up!) I am a 36 year old, sole proprietor and have faced a lot of these issues in my career – as a server, manager and business owner. I wanted to just pass on a quick thought – I’m going to complete the survey and I have shared it on facebook for others to do same but it would be nice to have a survey category for “proud business owners that work hard to fight against sexism.” There are a lot of us and I believe there is room for our activism and thoughts as well! For now, I will submit under “superstar” but it would be empowering to submit under the category I really am – a diverse, inclusive employer that hires quality individuals, regardless of sexist expectations.
    Thanks, I will promote the heck out of this!
    Erica

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  15. Hi there,
    I was told that if I filled out your survey, my identity/email address wouldn’t be shown, but as I’m looking at the results of your survey, I see my email address displayed plain as day. If you could fix that, it would be super!

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  16. Hello!
    I’m a huge supporter of everything FEDUP is trying to convey and, being a server for the past five years myself, I have experienced first hand, gender stereotypes, sexualization, and harassment from customers that has been brushed off my management as “part of the job”. I’m a journalism student at the University of Winnipeg and I am currently conducting an investigation on the sexualization and mistreatment of servers in the restaurant industry. FEDUP is exactly the kind of resource I am looking for and I believe it would be extremely beneficial to interview one of the founders of the website via skype or e-mail. Please contact me by e-mail if you’re interested and PLEASE continue to stand up for what you know is right, you are making a difference.
    Maggie

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  17. Well, at least it’s nice to see that Stalinism is still alive and well. Rat out your fellow citizens and get a pat on the back. The Stasi and Gestapo would be proud. Also, it’s cute yet ominous and tragic to see a working-class issue get perverted into a “women’s rights” issue. Instead of presenting a united front against our Common Capitalist Oppressor, they have us hating on each other and destroying ourselves while they watch on gleefully. Ladies, please stop allowing yourselves to be used as pawns in this horrible Divide and Conquer strategy which was btw originally developed by the CIA and the Rockefellers through their agent Gloria Steinem, among many others. Peace among the sexes, races, etc., etc., etc., is the only way we’ll ever be able to get strong enough to confront that evil system that hurts all of us equally!!

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  18. PS: While you all try to change the world by talking about your hurt feelings, Saudi Arabia invaded Yemen…just today, and just like that. Now see, here is where You become a problem to me and the few responsible citizens that are left in our messed-up (thanks again in large part to you) society: something important has happened in the world, actually important, and you gave the media the perfect excuse to bury the story people truly needed to know in favor of your wishy-washy human interest bullshit activism. Thanks for keeping the sheeple mired in ignorance by prostituting yourself to the Man (oh, the irony!!)

    PPS: And don’t take so damn long to moderate my comments Tempo! I would expect more respect for free speech from a first-class feminazi 😉

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    • Omg, sonething else is happening somewhere else?! Guess I should just drop everything and concentration that one other thing!

      You know, it is possible to be concerned about more than one thing at a time right?

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      • @Boots

        Dominik also does not donate to the local food bank because of all the people starving in Africa. Why focus on the problems here when over there it SO much worse.

        P.S Dominik is practicing the first rule of misogyny – men blaming women for their problems. Keep up the good work Dominik.

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      • Gee, and there is SO much I could be doing about Saudi Arabia invading Yemen!

        On that vein, your disgusting racism is showing as you aren’t talking about the troubles in the Congo, Botswana, and Nigeria.

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    • So I should be forced to wear a short skirt at work because Saudia Arabia invaded Yemen? Makes perfect sense. You are so passionate about world affairs, you should get a journalism degree. Do you ever write articles about the geopolitical situation in the Gulf? I would love to read them. Have you ever travelledin that region? Spoken to Yemeni refugees? Read a single piece of literature written by a Yemeni person? How can I assist you in your valiant effort to raise awareness of this situation?

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  19. Dominik Kaczmarczyk, are you familiar with the term ‘mansplaining’? You might want to look it up, it applies to everything you said in your nice little comment.

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    • So Dominik … you’re position is that because greater problems exist … that lesser problems should not be dealt with …. seems rather faulty logic to me. This IS a major working class issue … and because statistically a larger proportion of servers are female .. it is ALSO a w
      omens issue …

      As a long time union activist … I support free speech .. and support your right to express your opinions … as well as MY right to tell you that you are exceeding your excremental storage capacity … have a great day … hope this project reaches all its objectives …

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  20. Great project! Any chance you could add a way to include whether the establishment is friendly to both employees and patrons with disabilities? For example, it is still very common for restaurants to refuse service to those with guide dogs. Also, people with disabilities may be discriminated against when applying for certain service jobs under the guise of bogus “safety/liability concerns.” Thanks!

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    • Yes! This is a great suggestion we really wish we had included in the first place! Thank you. However, we are not really sure what sort of questions we could use to find out this information without requiring individuals to outright ask the employees. It’s tricky. Do you have any suggestions?

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      • Depending on some of the existing questions, it could be possible to reword them to include disability-inclusivity as well, but here are some suggestions:

        Suggestions for the Patron survey:
        -Was the main entrance of the establishment accessible enough that you were able to enter independently? If not, was there signage offering directions to an alternate entrance or contact information for further help?
        -Was the bathroom of the establishment accessible enough that you were able to enter independently?
        -If you use any adaptations such as a wheelchair or guide dog, were you allowed to enter the establishment, or were you told to leave?
        -Were you able to communicate with the staff of establishment without feeling belittled or dismissed?

        Suggestions for the Employee survey:
        -When applying for a job, did the employer mention they were willing to accommodate an employee with a disability?
        -While on the job, did you feel that the work policies and work environment were inclusive of employees with disabilities?
        -If you are an employee with a disability, do you receive the same wages as able-bodied employees?

        Suggestions for the Employer survey:
        -Do you hire persons with disabilities?
        -Do actively promote that you hire and are willing to accommodate persons with disabilities?
        -Do you pay your disabled employees the same wage as your able-bodied employees?

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  21. Great initiative, long overdue in Canada! Finally a refreshingly yet constructive project to curb this kind of rampant sexism that is not discussed. Thanks for doing this!

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  22. As a aboriginal ,So-called” “tqwo spirit…When i read the word “feminism” – i always hear in my head , “white, middle-classed, woman”…. yet i read on in th ehopes that one day i will be proven wrong….- april cherpaw

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