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REDFARM HASN'T PAID US ON TIME FOR WEEKS, AND THERE'S NO RESOLUTION IN SIGHT!
My name is Aisha, and I'm a bartender at RedFarm's Broadway (UWS) location. For the month of July, RedFarm has failed to pay its NYC workers on time. What's worse, management ignores our valid questions and concerns, misses its own deadline extensions without explanation or warning, and has no apparent plan to resolve the issue.
Meanwhile, the dedicated team of ~110 hourly wage workers has continued reporting to work at the Company's Broadway and Hudson locations, committed to delivering the excellent customer service and dining experience our loyal guests have grown to expect, even as the workers' personal lives are in tumult.
What might that look like, you may wonder . . .?? (the hypotheticals that follow are drawn from real-life events):
- a Prep Cook expertly makes hundreds of homemade dumplings from scratch for hours while their belly rumbles because they skipped or stretched meals for themselves and their family;
- a Server stands at the computer to enter in the extra-generous tip left by happy guests; they're proud of the recognition, but that feeling is quickly replaced with worry and resentment because they don't know when they will have access to the actual money;
- a Dish Washer struggles to regulate their body temperature in the cramped and steamy dish pit because they spent many hours side-hustling before their shift, making food deliveries in the summer sun, so they can pay their share of the ConEd bill to keep the AC running at home for the brief few hours they get to be there each night before the vicious cycle resumes anew;
- a recent graduate who saved up their Food Runner earnings and PTO throughout the year to take an international trip with friends, ends up staying behind on day three in a foreign land because they were relying on their paycheck to cover that day's activities. Instead, they sit in the hotel lobby and alternate between frantically refreshing their banking app to see when their paycheck hits and scrolling through social media to see their very same travel friends making lifelong memories without them;
- A long-tenured Line Cook with serious health conditions rations their critical and life-saving medications because they don't know when they'll have the money to get refills;
- A Packer declines an invitation to attend a friend's barbecue on their day off because it means they would need to refill their MetroCard a day earlier than absolutely necessary, throwing off their proven system to ensure they will always be able to commute to work, even if their bank accounts are overdrawn;
- A Food Expeditor's night is even more stressful than usual because they know that two significant bills are set to autopay that evening, but their paycheck is already five days late;
- A Bartender whose lease ends soon has a hard time competing in the market for a new room or apartment because the money they had hoped to save up for moving costs and a deposit was used to cover late fees and basic living expenses;
- A Porter who cannot attend an important family event back in their native country instead commits to covering the floral expenses, but when the balance is due, their checking account is overdrawn, and they risk losing their deposit and disappointing their loved ones.
- A Host is losing hope because they have not been able to pay back personal loans extended to them over the last month. They swallowed their pride to ask to borrow money in the first place, thinking the payroll snafu was a temporary glitch. But now, with no end in sight and several of their owed loved ones having their own big expenses due, the Host feels guilty and ashamed and isolates themselves from the very same communities they count on for moral support.
The struggle is very real.
For the past several weeks, the workers have asserted their rights internally, including using the Company's Open Door Policy, presenting management with a signed Group Wage Demand Letter, and calling out in direct protest. Yet, management does not respond, even through its own formal channels.
This leaves many RedFarm workers trapped in a vicious cycle:
- Living in NYC is expensive. The summer months are typically slower for restaurants throughout the City, making now a particularly hard time to find new jobs with adequate hours and also extra-risky to call out of scheduled shifts at RedFarm.
- Many workers have enrolled themselves and/or their dependents in RedFarm's employer-provided health insurance plans. Coverage will end if the worker quits or doesn't meet the hours requirement. Moreover, it can take ~90 days after starting at a new job for the worker to secure replacement coverage, presuming (a) the new employer even offers insurance, and (b) the worker is scheduled sufficient hours to qualify. A lapse in coverage or the realities of having to reestablish treatment with new providers is understandably stressful.
- After several consecutive weeks of late pay, many workers' budgets are in complete disarray, with bills overdue, accounts overdrawn, and savings depleted. This is psychologically and physically exhausting, leaving many rightfully focused on short-term survival and essentials than on long-term planning and exit strategies.
So, I am launching this GoFundMe campaign as an external appeal to support affected RedFarm workers. In full disclosure, I count myself as one of those affected and in need. It is my hope that by publicizing the workers' plight, we can (1) secure funds to provide struggling workers with some temporary material relief as they navigate this situation; and (2) inform the public of RedFarm's unfair pay practices so that they can make fully informed decisions about whether they wish to patronize the restaurant.
Administrating Funds:
I opened a separate bank account for the specific purpose of managing donations to support affected RedFarm workers.
I also created a streamlined questionnaire (with Chinese and Spanish translations to accommodate those for whom English may not be a preferred written language) to identify current hourly-wage earning NYC RedFarm employees who would like financial assistance from the fundraiser. Qualified recipients can receive funds via Zelle, Venmo, or Cash App.
Once the funds are approved for transfer from GoFundMe, I will make a first distribution of equal shares to those eligible employees who have opted in for support. Given the wide range of downstream consequences from several weeks of late paychecks, the first distribution will go to any eligible RedFarm NYC hourly wage worker who opts in, without proof of need. Subsequent distributions (if any, and depending on the the amount of donations available) may be allotted by need as demonstrated by proof of hardship (e.g., utility bill, bank statement, eviction notice, etc.).
The GoFundMe records and bank records will be available for inspection, upon request, by any eligible RedFarm NYC hourly wage worker.
Times are tough for so many right now. If you are compelled to donate and are able to do so comfortably without compromising your own material safety, it would be so incredibly and sincerely appreciated. If you are not in a position to give financially right now, however, please know that by reading, sharing, and connecting with this story , you, too, are providing invaluable relief with your compassion and empathy.
With gratitude and in solidarity,
Aisha