Published: January 3, 2010
As a cafeteria worker in the Princeton School District, Emilia Blackwell is responsible for students’ well-being. She serves hundreds of meals a day and provides many students with their only daily serving of hot, healthy food. She protects New Jersey’s children from food-borne illnesses — a duty she takes seriously.
Despite her hard work and dedication, the mother of two is unable to make ends meet on her low wages. She can’t pay for the prescription medicine she desperately needs, and can barely afford to feed her own kids.
Students in the Lumberton School District often refer to Delores Jakob as an “awesome lunch lady.” She goes the extra mile to ensure that the children are well fed, and is known for her ability to draw shy students out of their shells.
What students don’t know is that Delores, who makes $8 an hour, cannot afford to go to the doctor. Health care is too expensive, and even with generic drugs, she pays $200 a month — nearly one week’s pay — to fill her prescriptions.
Emilia and Delores’ stories are all too common. The average pay for school cafeteria workers in New Jersey is $8.15 an hour with no, or few, benefits. These workers, who often work for private subcontractors,may not not be paid for school holidays, summer breaks or snow days. The work is hard and conditions can be hazardous.
New Jersey’s “lunch ladies” risk burns and cuts while preparing and serving meals. When they get sick or hurt, many can’t afford basic medical care and have to rely on taxpayer-funded programs such as hospital charity care.
These workers endure low pay and harsh conditions because they are committed to New Jersey’s children. They know that students can’t learn with rumbling stomachs, and often take extra care to make sure everyone gets enough to eat. One worker expressed her devotion to the students by saying, “I love the kids. If wasn’t for them, I wouldn’t be working.”
It’s a sentiment you hear over and over when talking to school cafeteria workers and, considering what they do for New Jersey’s children, it’s a sentiment that shows why these workers deserve more than a poverty wage and no health care coverage.
Fortunately, Emilia, Delores and the more than 7,000 school cafeteria workers in New Jersey could soon get a little help from a bill in the Legislature that would raise standards for this mostly female work force. This legislation (S2850 and A4151), which has already passed the Assembly budget committee and is waiting to be heard by the Senate, would ensure that school cafeteria workers are able to earn a decent wage and have employer-provided, quality health care.
This legislation would not only benefit cafeteria workers, it would help taxpayers as well. Because of low pay and lack of insurance, cafeteria workers may be forced to rely on public programs for health care, food and housing. Food service workers, including many school cafeteria workers and their families, use $7.3 million a year in FamilyCare services alone. The cost to taxpayers of these workers’ food stamps, subsidized housing and use of other publicly-funded programs is unknown. With good wages and better benefits, these workers would be less dependent on public assistance and able to support themselves.
As the Legislature wades through its lame duck session, there are few bills more important to New Jersey’s working families than S2850. It is rare for legislation to cost so little and provide such great reward. For Emilia, Delores, their families and thousands of others in similar situations, let’s hope lawmakers seize the opportunity.
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Kevin Brown is New Jersey area director for Service Employees International Union 32BJ, which represents about 9,000 workers.
S2850 would require that certain school district and public authority food service contracts be covered by federal prevailing wage rules, which a legislative estimate says would raise wages to an average of $12.15 an hour, plus benefits. The bill’s main sponsors include Sens. Stephen Sweeney, D-3, and Fred Madden, D-4
