Students Working in Lunch Lines

Students at Campo have many different types of jobs, including working in the cafeteria here on campus.

Until recently, Campo had trouble finding substitute teachers and people to work in the cafeteria. Many students get free brunch and lunch every day, and the cafeteria staff has had a hard time keeping up with this high demand.

Steve Nelson, the head of the cafeteria, has found a solution to this understaffing problem. He has hired students from Campolindo to help out in the cafeteria during lunch.

The students who work in the cafeteria are let out of their third or fifth period classes, depending on the day, 5 minutes before lunch starts so they get down to the cafeteria before lunch starts. Once at the cafeteria, there are many various jobs to complete.

Sophomore Nolan Henwood works in the cafeteria and said, “[The other workers] have all the food set up already. All I have to do is hand it out to all the students”.

Some students solely hand out food in the lunch lines, and others also help prepare the food. Preparing the food includes getting the frozen food out of the freezer and putting it onto the counter. These foods include the fruit and milk that is served because these foods need to be kept cold. Students also help by setting up hot plates to heat food up. One dish that requires a hot plate is pizza, so students help by heating up the pizza.

Working in the cafeteria is a great job for students. Sophomore Michael Bower, who also works in the cafeteria, said, “It’s a great atmosphere. My coworkers are great”.

Another reason working in the cafeteria is a great job is because students get paid a lot. Nelson said, “We pay minimum wage, and students only work for 15-20 minutes a day. We pay them for an hour when they only work for 15-20 minutes”.

When talking about wages, Henwood said, “We do get paid minimum wage, but it’s actually pretty nice. [Nelson] pays us for an hour of work each day, even though we don’t work a full hour”.

While minimum wage may not seem like a good wage to be making, it adds up to more than it seems like. Students not only get paid to work in the cafeteria, but they also get to leave class a couple minutes early every day and avoid the crowded halls. Students working in the cafeteria is a relatively new thing, and is a great way for students to make money quickly.