The fast-paced, blunt-talking style of some professional kitchens is familiar thanks to reality television cookery shows and dramas, such as Boiling Point and The Bear.
Now an employment tribunal ruling has concluded that failing to say “please” to a colleague in a busy kitchen need not be considered rude. Instead, it said, “direct and efficient” communication without additional pleasantries may be “a matter of practicality” in a fast-paced working environment, such as a high-end kitchen.
The ruling came in the case of a chef who claimed she was treated badly in the kitchen of a London restaurant because colleagues didn’t say please to her, and that she was wrongly dismissed.
Bridgette Peters took the restaurant L’Eto to tribunal after losing her job as a chef de partie at the end of her first week.
The London central employment tribunal heard that Peters was dismissed from her job at the Notting Hill restaurant amid concerns about her ability to fit into the team because she “ignored” requests to do tasks until colleagues said please, and complained about their “rudeness”.
On her first day – 23 August 2022 – Peters asked the sous chef Peter Bartczak several times to say “please” when he asked her for things or set her tasks. Each time he explained to her that he was speaking in a normal, professional way for a kitchen.
The tribunal summary said: “It is clear that the claimant is someone who likes to be asked politely and she likes people to use the word ‘please’.
“However, in the respondent’s kitchens a more efficient, direct, and intense communication style is used. It is not seen as rudeness if individuals do not use the word ‘please’ and we accept the respondent’s evidence that this is not specific to L’Eto and is common across the premium hospitality industry.”
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During the week, Peters grew frustrated with another chef, Nishma Gurung, who she said “commanded [her] about rudely”.
The tribunal was told Peters refused to put bread on a grill after Gurung had told her to do this. When asked why she hadn’t done as asked, Peters replied that it was because Gurung hadn’t said “please” and was “the rudest person”.
Employment Judge Woodhead said the tribunal accepted that failing to say please was not bad manners. “We accept that in that work environment that was not rudeness, it was a matter of practicality,” he said.
Peters, who is black, tried to sue for direct racial discrimination, claiming she had been treated differently because of her race. However, the tribunal dismissed her case, saying her treatment and dismissal had nothing to do with race.
