If the #MeToo movement has knocked the sexism out of some professional kitchens around the world, the restaurant sector in France has not followed suit, reports FRANCE 24.
Workplace sexism and sexual harassment is not breaking news to anyone working in the French restaurant sector. A facade of glittering Michelin stars and the quest for culinary excellence often hides a daily struggle for women. More than two years after the birth of the #MeToo movement, sex harassment and assaults in French kitchens are still rife.
Gastronomy is considered to be a matter of state by French President Emmanuel Macron. It is such a culturally and politically charged issue that “there is a reluctance to talk about cooking, cooks and outbursts in the world of cuisine", Célia Tunc, secretary general of the Collège Culinaire de France, explained to FRANCE 24. "It's as if we are protecting this world."
French chefs – the male ones – continue to win all the awards. They are the "representatives, the carriers and the heirs of French history", according to Macron.
Acclaim for male chefs is nothing new. In 2013, Time magazine devoted its front page to the "Gods of Cookery", but somehow managed to leave women out of not just the cover image, but the entire "family tree" of the 50 most talented chefs in the world.
For its part, the Michelin Guide claims to give pride of place to women. However, in 2020, it only awarded one French female chef three stars, Anne-Sophie Pic, and just one other received two stars, Stéphanie Le Quellec.
This gender imbalance had already been documented by The New York Times in 2018, which described it as a trend towards fraternity instead of equality in French kitchens.
"Considering all professions, women experience the most harassment in the culinary arena," says Maria Canabal, president of the Parabere Forum, a worldwide organisation that promotes gender equality in the culinary world.
“I am far too regularly presented with testimonies from women or members of the LGBT community who have been raped or harassed in the kitchen. And I encourage them to report this to the courts. Denouncing attackers through social networks or anonymously does succeed to raise awareness of the problem, but it does not solve it. We live under the rule of law and this must be how we end this."
Few victims dare to speak out publicly. Examples of abuse are plentiful, but most victims are determined to remain anonymous and will only report their experiences to online sites. "Fear of being blacklisted." "If I pursue him, it will be the end of my career." "I'm already the only woman in the kitchen, if I complain on top of that!"
Faced with these obstacles, young women – often still teenagers – do not know how to act or who to turn to in this sector dominated by men.
"Being in the kitchen is like being in the army," says Lucie, a chef. Now 29-years-old, she was only 16 when a sous- chef (under-chef) locked her in a cold room because she refused his advances. "We're told so many times to respond to everything 'Yes, chef!' and that 'this is just the way it is', that we don't dare complain."
The French hotel and catering industry is very short-staffed, with nearly 130,000 vacancies each year. But no one is talking about why there are so many unfilled jobs, or, if they are, they are not talking publicly.
But they are talking privately. From the "lapin chaud" (hot rabbit) to the "grand malade" (weirdo), female kitchen staff know whom they should avoid at the end of their shifts. However, the tacit code in French kitchens is to not “balance ton porc”, which translates, roughly, to not "squeal on your pig" – i.e., not identify your harasser.
Alexia Duchêne was a finalist in season 10 of the popular television show “Top Chef". She revealed to entertainment site Melty that she had experienced some unwelcome attention in the kitchen. “In Michelin-starred restaurants, guys will grab your ass, talk trash to you. I got texts when I was 15 years old at 2am from guys saying 'Come to my place’.”
For Canabal, there is only one way that this will change. "You have to stop repeating over and over that this treatment is normal, that 'the world of cooking is simply like that'. No, it's not normal. It's neither 'cultural' nor 'job-related'. It's simply harassment.”