September 18th, 2017

Dear Student Employment Services,

It is with great urgency and fervor that members of the Barnard Bartending Agency
collectively present this letter addressing our various concerns and grievances regarding the
transition under the auspices of Student Employment Services. We believe that the new policy
changes threaten the financial well-being of hundreds of students who heavily rely on bartending
as a source of income during their academic career. The Bartending Agencys presence on
campus, which assists financially insecure students and helps to fill the gaps that financial aid
and work-study frequently leave, is threatened by the recent unsustainable changes to its
structure.
To illustrate the concern and stress these changes are inflicting upon current Bartenders,
its important to understand the significance of the Barnard Bartending Agency for many
students on campus. As Student Employment is well aware, studying at Barnard and living in
New York City is a financial burden that many students are not equipped to handle without
alternative sources of income. Although financial aid attempts to accommodate for this through
work study allocations and grants, their proposed budget plans and work study limits are
unrealistic and insufficient for many. Current bartenders have expressed concern that they have
previously maxed out their work study allocation, and then relied solely on the Barnard
Bartending Agency as a source of income.
Furthermore, there is an often ignored subset of students at Barnard who do not receive
work study packages or alternate funding and cannot afford to sustain themselves without
outside jobs (which are notoriously difficult to get and inflexible for academic schedules). These
students often turn to the Bartending agency as an empowering and secure way to make up for
their unrecognized financial need while also putting their education first.
Lastly, the challenge for many students to generate savings while under the burden of
educational and lifestyle costs is significant and difficult to manage. Seniors intending to enter
into apartment leases after graduation, students with expected contributions in their financial aid
packages, and those who hope to one day study abroad despite the financial burden it might pose
are just a few of many students who rely on the Agency as not only short term income but long
term savings as well. For many, the high wages and flexible hours of the BBA enabled them to
begin saving when they might otherwise live paycheck to paycheck.
In fact, a huge selling point for students coming to Barnard is the feasibility of being a
working student within the Bartending Agency. BBA provides distinct advantages over work
study and off-campus jobs. Firstly, students are able to determine their own hours based on their
schedule and workload, and can sign up for many jobs during those free times with the
understanding that the managers will assign them to an available spot without being double-
booked. Further, they will always have secure employment within the city, regardless of season
or holiday break. Finally, unlike many openings available to students, BBA offers safe passage
home late at night, compassionate student managers willing to defend bartenders against
inappropriate or accusatory clients, and the chance to utilize a unique, employable skill, usable
even after graduation.
The benefit of being able to seamlessly determine ones own schedule, plan for ones
own income, and do so without the burden of an application or other planning logistics should
not be underestimated. Students are able to be students, without worrying about being scheduled
during a class time or needing to work all weekend instead of studying. The Barnard Bartending
Agency allowed for flexible commitment, life-changing profits, and a non-competitive job
marketplace.
We always felt secure with a financial backup plan, and we felt safe in the company of
the community BBA fostered. However, the majority of the policies the agency and its students
relied on have been eliminated as of this semester. Our jobs no longer feel safe with the recent
changes to the agency, for the following reasons:

Currently, we have no student managers to advocate for us as individuals or to assign jobs

equitably.
The student managers, who were required to have experience bartending within BBA, put
incredible effort into assigning bartenders to jobs in a way that was fair and help new bartenders
acclimate to the agency. There was a policy in place that new members must work multiple jobs
with returning members so they can get accustomed to working and can ask questions that arise.
With the new job assignment through JobX, there is no way to ensure that every new bartender
has that opportunity, which could lead to less professional service for clients and potentially
uncomfortable situations for new bartenders. Furthermore, the notion that Bartenders should
compete for jobs using their resumes or professional experience denies freshman and students
unable to work unpaid internships an equal chance at available jobs, and cultivates a community
of competition rather than camaraderie. Lastly, the managers knew most of the bartenders
personally, and would assign the right bartender to a certain job based on their specific skill set;
however, without the managers, this same level of concern and thoughtfulness for each job is
absent. Most important, though, is the role of managers in the cancellation of jobs. Inevitably,
there will be instances where bartenders assigned to jobs will be unable to work, and no other
bartender can fill in. In cases like this, the managers, bartenders themselves, fill in on an
emergency basis, thus maintaining the high level of service and accountability clients expect.
Without managers, emergencies like this will be left unsolved.
Additionally, a large concern that arises when clients are left to choose their own
bartenders is name bias. Name bias, an instance in which individuals with non-white or religious
appearing names are denied opportunities, is a reality; managers assigning jobs ensure that this
does not happen. There absolutely must be standards in place that prohibit the unfair distribution
of jobs based on anything other than job performance.
Another concern raised when the agency is without a manager is the safety of and
advocacy for students. In the past, if clients acted inappropriately, most bartenders felt
comfortable reporting instances of misconduct to the managers, who would act swiftly and
professionally, blacklisting certain clients if the misconduct warranted it. Without a student
liaison who at one point was a bartender and who sympathizes with our position, many students
wont feel comfortable reporting misconduct. Additionally, client complaints were vetted by the
managers who were dedicated to understanding the situation from both sides so as not to
accidentally bar a scapegoated bartender from future jobs.
In essence, the only way to control these factors and stabilize and equitize job fulfillment
is for the agency to regain control of job assignment.

Oversight of the public image of the bartending agency is critical to keeping our client base
growing and returning, so that students can rely on the longer-term availability of jobs.
The critical role of interacting with clients to ensure that they hire the right amount of
bartenders for the right amount of time, must be filled. In the past, the managers helped first-time
party planners decide the appropriate amount of alcohol and party-helpers needed for an event.
They also assisted older clients who did not understand how to use the website and answered
their many questions. We believe the confusing layout of JobX will prohibit many long-time
clients from requesting bartenders, especially older individuals who may have difficulty
understanding the website.
Additionally, if the new system means that bartenders have to contact clients rather than
be assigned jobs, many clients will be inundated with bartenders trying to get the job, an
unprofessional situation that reflects poorly on Barnard. This set-up also assumes that most
bartenders will be constantly checking the site for job updates, when many students are too busy
academically to operate on a first-come, first-serve basis.
The clients who have used the BBA for years do so because of the professionalism,
quality of service, and personal help that the managers and bartenders work together to provide,
and totally restructuring the agency in this way will severely hinder the longevity of the agency
in years to come.

The bartending course is no longer structured in a way that is beneficial for incoming and
current bartenders.
The new class for students interested in joining BBA has a lower entry cost of $25 and is
taught by a professional bartender rather than a student manager. Although these facts may seem
like positive changes - lowered fees make it more financially accessible to students and a
professional bartender may better prepare students for real bartending jobs outside the agency -
they actually create multiple concerns.
While the previous class fee of $120 was difficult for many students to pay, it also
ensured that those enrolling in the course were making a thoughtful investment. Students
attended class and studied hard for the exam with the understanding that it would pay off. And it
did, for the average bartender that fee would be regained within 1-2 jobs. Making the class more
accessible is important, but we believe there are other ways of doing that rather than overfilling
the class only for the majority of those students to skip the exam or to join the agency without
skillful knowledge.
Secondly, in accordance with our other concerns about the lack of student managers, the
effectiveness of the Barnard Bartending course stemmed from its instruction by student
managers, who fully understood the expectations Bartenders would face. Barnard Bartending is
not the same as real bartending. In fact, many of our jobs are incredibly unique and the only
proper method of preparation was to have that knowledge passed down through veteran
Bartenders. Although it may seem to be a good idea to have a professional mixologist come in, it
will actually only generate an underprepared class of incoming bartenders who will potentially
struggle acclimating in real work situations, and will have inaccurate expectations for their jobs.
Along with our desire for student managers to run the agency, we believe they (or other
veteran Bartenders) should be tasked with teaching the class as well. In addition, we would
prefer to see SES either require statements of interest with the payment of a lower cost for the
course, or offer payment programs/subsidies for the class, rather than simply offering a low fee.
Asking students to seriously consider their decision to enter the course would ensure the agency
does not become oversaturated, and the class is fully functional. If, for example, SES required all
students entering the course to write a brief statement of interest, those willing to put in the extra
thought to do so would enter while those intending to audit or tour the class and put a strain on a
crucial resource might wait until they have a stronger desire to participate.

We deserve to make fair and equal wages for our work.

When competition for jobs is high, and new bartenders have to compete with seniors with
three years of bartending experience, the new rules regarding individually determined wages will
create situations of inequality. Less experienced students are more likely to undercut their wages
(cheating other students out of available work and fair wages unnecessarily) and not request cab
fare home--a potentially dangerous situation. When bartenders charge different amounts, there
will certainly be instances where multiple bartenders working the same job request different
hourly wages, an unprofessional, confusing, and unfair situation for both the bartenders and the
clients.
As stated before, many students rely on the set wages that the agency offers (including
wage increases during the month of December and on holidays) to survive during the school
year. For many of us, this isnt just pocket money; allowing students to set their own rates will
potentially drive rates down for everyone, creating a worse situation for students already
struggling with income security. The bartending test was expensive and challenging enough to
pass as it was--the last thing many of us want is to be forced to compete with each other for jobs.
When competition enters into a space, it breaks down the community of trust and equitability
that has been established.
Ultimately, the changes being made to the Barnard Bartending Agency make it
unsustainable, and therefore threatening to the financial security and independence of many
students. If Barnard cannot offer more work study positions or sources of income, then to
eliminate one of the most financially empowering organizations available is to exclude a large
group of students from existing on this campus. The Barnard Bartending Agency is not all about
pocket money; its a source of money for food, educational fees, household necessities, rent,
transportation costs, and social activities.
The investment of both time and money we made when we paid for the class, attended it
after full days of classes, and studied drink recipes during midterms should not be taken lightly.
We are committed to maintaining the reliability and sustainability of this organization, because it
means we can sustain our spot at this university.

Sincerely,

Mia Ciallella 19, mc4004

Raisa Alam 18, ra2755
Jade Levine 19, jcl2211
Arella Trustman 18, ast2154
Daisy Homolka 18, dch2142
Maya Hartleben 19, meh2232
Molly Ganley 19, mjg2246
Tracy Walker 19, tw2580
Ali Pontious 19, ap3353
Atrianne Dolom 19, and2130
Shannon Peters 18, sp3297
Hannah Welles, 20, hbw2116
Sarah Kliment, 20, sk4241
Kristen Akey, 20, kka2120
Lily Habenstreit, 20, leh2168
Isabella Haywood 18 imh2118
Nora Mathison 18 ntm2114
Rose Ryan 20, rr3050
Lily Taylor 18, lct2124
Margaux Barclay 18, mb3914
Rachel Andres 19, rca2140
Jewel Britton 20, jb3975
Megan Cerbin 18, mkc2144
Zo Ryan 18, zmr2104
Jessica Tschida, 18, jet2172
Elena Fineberg, 18, epf2111
Hannah Hungerford, 19, heh2124
Katie Russell, 18, kar2207
Karen Reppy, 19, kir2110
Izzi Sibbers, 19, iss2114
Virginia Gresham, 18 vwg2101
Hanna Graybill, 19 hg2415
Sara Mael, 19 sm4008
Eleanor Stern, 19 ems2273
Krishana Raghubeer, 18, klr2152
Haley Kane, 19, hk2780
Sara Hassan 18, sh3361
Elana Rebitzer 20, er2793
Veronica Yang 19 vyy2101
Kate Dellis 18, kad2182
Simisola Olagundoye 18, sfo2102
Hanna Wentz 19, hcw2119
Nikki Shaner-Bradford 19, nqs2000
Yeleen Isabelle Lee 19, yl3415
Sophie Kossakowski 19, skk2164
Jeanne Locker 20, jpl217
Josephine Heston 18, jvh2121
Yvette Kleinbock, 19, ymk2112
Katherine Surko, 18, ks3319
Taryn Gates, 20, tng2113
Talia Mamann, 19, tlm2134
Abigail Eberts, 18, aje2127
Victoria Martinez 18 vim2107
Jeanette Pala 19, jp3555
Miriam Philipson, 18, mp3359
Angela Montero 20, amm2472
Madeline Comer 20, mrc2212
Ella Koscher 19, eyk2121
Liza Bukingolts 20, eb3058
Jane Reel 20, jer2206
Gabija Kertenyte 18, gk2425
Aimee Li 19, al3498