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Work vs Ethics

1K views 15 replies 13 participants last post by  mollycakes 
#1 ·
I work in a small 12 room hotel, mainly housekeeping but 1 night per week I do waiting on to cover someones night off. It's the kind of place that doesnt even have a vegetarian option on the menu - and it rarely gets asked for. I've learned to grit my teeth and smile and say 'Enjoy your meal' when I actually want to say 'Enjoy your needlessly murdered cow/sheep/fish, I hope it chokes you!'
I need to work to pay my bills, and in this economy I'm grateful just to have a job, but I also can't help feeling like I'm supporting the meat & dairy industry by working here. Does anyone else have a work vs ethics dilemma?
 
#2 ·
Every job I've ever had there were some ethical issues. If it wasn't veganism it was something else, like bosses who were cheating on their wives or co-workers who stole from the company. It's always something. Just do what you have to until you have better options.
 
#3 ·
I work in a kitchen, and I make my beliefs known to my executive chef. She has added a few vegetarian options to the menu, and since the business probably couldn't survive without selling meat, I've decided my best option is to try to help her find cost-effective free-range meats so that hopefully the animals were treated with more respect. I know it's not perfect, but I figure it's a step in the right direction. If I can find a veggie/vegan-friendly workplace, I will definitely take it, but until then, I'm trying to make the best of the situation I'm in.
 
#4 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by moonface88 View Post

I work in a small 12 room hotel, mainly housekeeping but 1 night per week I do waiting on to cover someones night off. It's the kind of place that doesnt even have a vegetarian option on the menu - and it rarely gets asked for. I've learned to grit my teeth and smile and say 'Enjoy your meal' when I actually want to say 'Enjoy your needlessly murdered cow/sheep/fish, I hope it chokes you!'
I need to work to pay my bills, and in this economy I'm grateful just to have a job, but I also can't help feeling like I'm supporting the meat & dairy industry by working here. Does anyone else have a work vs ethics dilemma?
You live in and participate in the world and even if you went off to a mountain some place and supported yourself in every way, if you paid taxes, you could assert (correctly) that your money was being used to undertake some fairly horrible events. It's not about finding the perfect job, it's about doing the best that you can with the resources that you have.

That being said, you work in a hotel that serves meals though doesn't have a vegetarian option? That seems rather absurd - perhaps you could educate them how they are missing a small though loyal segment of the population and see what results.
 
#5 ·
I work at a Health Department where people bring in live bats, who are "put to sleep" and then killed/tested for rabies. Probably doesn't fall into the same category, but it breaks my heart to see so many bats needlessly destroyed. The other side of the coin is, I was joking two weeks ago about setting one of the bats free (it was in a container on the desk) because it is so rare that any of them come back as rabid. That particular bat ended up having rabies.
 
#6 ·
I work at a dental office and some of the resins, polishes, chemicals, materials, stone mixes have animal by-products or were tested on animals. I was playing around with a phone app one day in the supply room. Its troubling to me to use these things on my patients and not feel awful. I can only suggest to the dentist (my boss) to change products- but its highly unlikely. I am currently researching products that are cruelty free and less expensive- but that is hard to find. I would like to put together a proposal for him someday soon.
 
#7 ·
i'm a waitress. bringing the food out to them is bad enough but sometimes i have to help the cooks out and toss wings or make other food containing meat. it's a big ethical dilemma. we do have some vegetarian and some made-to-order vegan options but we def sell enough meat and dairy to make up for that...... i'm doing this job to put me through school though and there's not many more options where i live. will you be doing this forever or is it just a temporary thing? i know it helps me to think that i only have a year left. do any vegetarians come in at all? when they do maybe you could make your boss aware that there was a request for a vegetarian option. sometimes (depending on the vibe i'm getting from the table) when they as for suggestions i'll say something like "well, i'm a vegan so i don't eat any of those things but i know our spaghetti with mushrooms is really good" make sure you're extremely polite and non-judgemental if you do that... but it has lead to some nice conversations with my customers about veganism.
 
#11 ·
will you be doing this forever or is it just a temporary thing? i know it helps me to think that i only have a year left. do any vegetarians come in at all? [=QUOTE]

We had two veggies in yesterday, as I put the food down I beamed and said they were people after my own heart! We ended up having a conversation and they were pretty cool. The chef who I work with is actually an awesome guy, and unbelievably he's the kind of guy that doesnt even kill bugs that fly into the kitchen, he catches them in a glass and puts them outside! Yet he spends every night cooking steaks!

I definitely wont be waiting on forever, I've applied for a job at the environment agency & if I dont get that will be applying for other things, but I know eventually the economy will pick up and there'll be more options available to me. Just great to know I'm not the only one!
 
#10 ·
Every job that you could ever have will have either direct or indirect relationships to animal cruelty, suffering, and death. It's a fact of reality. Even if you were to get a job at an animal shelter, you will find, if no direct relationships to animal suffering, then indirect ones.

This is why I believe the best and most sensible thing to do is to practice personal responsibility (by being vegan) and by reaching others by being a living example.
 
#13 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by AeryFairy View Post

I once had a job where my boss told me to lie to veg*ns about the meat juices the otherwise-vegetarian food was cooked in.

I kept the job, but told him there was no way in hell I was doing that, because I didn't want either of us to be sued.
that is ridiculous..........
 
#14 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by AeryFairy View Post

I once had a job where my boss told me to lie to veg*ns about the meat juices the otherwise-vegetarian food was cooked in.

I kept the job, but told him there was no way in hell I was doing that, because I didn't want either of us to be sued.
Quote:
Originally Posted by weirdo vegan chick View Post

that is ridiculous..........
and infuriating!! What a lying *******!!!
There used to be a member here a few years ago who was also told to do this by her bosses...but her bosses happened to be her parents! She worked at her parent's restaurant.
I hate hearing stories about employees being told by their bosses to lie to customers about the food they are being served and consuming! Good for you for sticking up to him!!
 
#16 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Phoenix Days View Post

What's even the point of people making vegetarian food, then adding non vegetarian ingredients to it?
It seems like it defeats the purpose.
I remember a few months ago someone said a strawberry soy milk they saw had carmine in it
yeah- wouldn't that be more expensive too?!
 
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