Australia, we’re in the midst of a crisis.
Forget global warming or the struggling dairy industry. We are experiencing a chef-shortage crisis. And celebrity chef, Colin Fassnidge, has blamed it on the ‘laziness’ of Australia’s youth.
The head chef of Sydney's 4Fourteen restaurant told The Daily Telegraph, "I think it’s a generational thing, myself."
“A lot of young people don’t want to work hard — it’s now all about kids with tweezers wanting to put dots on plates. So when they start out, they’re like ‘oh this is hard’. Being a chef is like being in the army. You have to get stuff done, and it has to be good.”
According to Dublin-born Fassnidge, Australia is in dire need of 38,000 chefs, a claim that riled up members of Gen Y over the weekend.
On Monday, Fassnidge hit back at the backlash on his Facebook page.
Fassnidge said, "I know ur [sic] little Johnny works hard and is a great kid!!!!! But his mate Larry pops 10 pingers on the sat and 4 bongs on the Sunday ... Then he’s at work ... and cooks the the f*cking bejesus [sic] out of the broccoli til it resembles a brown soup."
"Which gets sent back and I have to write a sorry email ... now the 2 little f*ckers want Tuesday off and I’m paying for them. I should have just gone to double bay w [sic] them on sat."
The My Kitchen Rules judge continued, "Thanks to all the johnnys mums for their comments today ... now make sure he’s brushed his teeth and nothing under the bed !!! Oh sh*t tomorrow’s Tuesday, he’s off sick !!! Get well soon Johnny."
Fassnidge's sarcastic post has garnered over 788 likes, with commenters calling the chef a 'grumpy old man'.
We may be in the midst of a chef shortage, Fassnidge, but ridiculing our up-and-coming cooks is not the way to recruit.
You can watch Fassnidge on MKR below...
Top Comments
I wouldnt want to be a chef ever
Long hours crap.pay screw that
Do you think the ongoing debate about penalty rates that continues to drag on might have anything to do with shortages in hospitality?
The wage to cost of living ratio today is far worse than it was for much older generations. For a new school graduate deciding whether to invest in four years of training to become a chef, the payoff for the inhospitable working hours and conditions could possibly become a lot less very soon.
If I was evaluating a choice between an apprenticeship in a kitchen and an apprenticeship in something such as construction, I know which would have more financial appeal. It's not a matter of greed, it's a matter of survival.
As for Mr Fassnidge, respect begets respect. Continue to cry out about an entire generation being lazy if he likes but I can't see that motivating more young people to apply to work for him.