5.2 Scenario for Discussion
Winifred Athembo; Nikhil Garg; Richa Kabaria; Sarah Kulewksa; Celine Wai Shan Li; Deirdre Maultsaid; Simrenprit Parmar; and Lesli Sangha
Setting
A family-owned, family-friendly restaurant called “Roman’s Grill” offers the following:
- Burgers “grilled to perfection”
- Party arrangements and a customized menu for children’s birthdays
- An annual Mother’s Day brunch
- Parking in the strip mall outside
Characters
- Employee: Sonia, a young woman of Middle Eastern heritage (self-identifies as a “Brown” person), is a permanent resident in Canada. Sonia is a college student in addition to working at Roman’s. She usually keeps her head down and works hard, but she lacks confidence and is anxious about making mistakes at work. She was never properly trained on many of her tasks.
- Chef/Manager: Maxwell, a White man and second-generation Canadian citizen of Western European heritage, has worked in more prestigious restaurants than Roman’s Grill but came on a few years ago because he was promised creative freedom with the menu. He manages the restaurant day to day. Maxwell is someone who talks fast, is domineering and yells at staff to try to motivate them to accomplish tasks. Maxwell spends time in his office doing administrative work (and drinking wine).
- Owner: Roman, a White man and third-generation Canadian citizen with Western European heritage, inherited the business from his parents and grew up in the lower middle-class neighbourhood where the restaurant is located. Roman, the owner, is proud of the restaurant but has a hands-off, casual attitude.