On Friday, some employees of the Student Standard Agency under whose jurisdiction the student cafeteria in Zadar falls protested.
The president of the strike committee, Tomislav Kiš, reiterated the demands of the strikers at a press conference, pointing out that they are striking “for principle.” The strikers resented Rector Vican and the Student Standard Agency for hiring students through student services to work in the cafeteria during the strike, as well as for ordering catering to compensate for the cooks’ strike.
“We are fighting here for pay, but not in a way that we strike only for money. We are not asking for a higher salary; we are striking for the principle—we want to negotiate the salary, not have it determined for us,” said Kiš.
After the strike was announced, the University of Zadar the founder of the agency issued a press release stating that the employees were manipulated and pointing out that student meals would be organized regardless of the strike.
“No cafeteria has such good aunts”
Students who eat daily in the Zadar cafeteria decided to support the employees by leaving them a piece of candy during their visit to the restaurant, while also sharing positive experiences they had with the “aunts from the cafeteria.”
“They always gave me the largest portions of food when I needed it. Support the aunts,” commented one student.
Another student agreed, writing in a Facebook group that no cafeteria has such good aunts: “The aunts are not only there to work, but they also cheer us up, especially during exam season. They always give us appropriate advice or a joke and fix those terrible days—not to mention that they are much faster than the students who worked today. Not to mention the lack of order outside the cafeteria and the way they served the students. They literally didn’t even know what was on the menu, so I didn’t even wait for lunch and made myself a sandwich instead.
Isn’t it regrettable that we students—for whom food is vital for learning and development—have to live on sandwiches until you grant those minimal rights our dear cafeteria aunts demand? They sweat and cook in the cafeteria while some sit in their offices. Shame on you, because you were once students too and you know how important nutrition is, especially to us in the student dormitory where there is no kitchen. Support the aunts!!”
Giving double portions to a pregnant student
Double portions in the cafeteria are everyone’s dream, and for one student, thanks to the aunts in the Zadar cafeteria, that dream came true.
“I’ll never forget how they kept the best food for me when I was pregnant. The portions made it feel like I was actually eating for two. A tribute to the team. I miss you most of all. Greetings from Hvar,” said the student.
“These sweets mean a lot to us”
The symbolic candy that students bring to the aunts in the cafeteria means a lot to them.
“It was a sign of our students’ support for us. We are grateful to them for showing that they care about their aunts… We do not see anything wrong in this; on the contrary, they showed their human side,” one of the aunts who works in the cafeteria told our portal.
Original source: The article was originally published on October 19, 2020, on the MojFaks portal: “No restaurant has such great aunts… Students carry candy in support of staff on strike! Aunts delighted: They showed that they care about us.”
