Night shift at a coffee shop

[rheasilvia]

Setting:My character is working a late night shift at a coffee shop open around the clock, in an urban fantasy setting most comparable to present-day central Europe (though US or Canada info would also be extremely helpful). The coffee shop is not downtown, but is located in a fairly central location close to the university, and many students live

Comments

[rheasilvia]

There have been cases where people were fired because they did that.

Yes, I've heard of several cases like that... I've never never been certain whether the "theft" was really the problem or whether the manager in question was just looking for a convenient excuse, but either way it's really sad.

Thank you for the info! I wasn't aware there had been tax issues with Tafel donations. Good to know that's no longer the case.

[tamtrible]

The concern could be that employees might, for example, deliberately drop something so that it will be something to throw away, if they want to eat it. Or something like that.

Still kinda stupid, but not *entirely* irrational.

[thekumquat]

In London, outside the centre (we dont use downtown), if you want to be anywhere sociable late at night you look for a late-opening pub, nightclub, or in the last couple years in areas with large Asian populations, an ice cream parlour. The latter would have coffee. Many pubs do now serve coffee, though you may get funny looks ordering it late at night. If there are none of those, ie a really residential area, the only things open at night are petrol stations, which will generally be staffed by one person and you pay through the window, but you could still get a machine coffee. Some areas will have corner shops open all night, again with often one member of staff, but no-where to sit and drink/eat.

I think most of central Europe is similar - cafes shut by 11pm or midnight, then go somewhere where alcohol is served.

[rheasilvia]

Yep, looks like I'm going to have to reach beyond Europe for examples of coffee shops open 24 hours. Fortunately, that isn't really a problem in my urban fantasy setting. :-)

[sushidog]

Londoners can also search out the greasy spoons that cater largely to cabbies, but they can be surprisingly well hidden. And while they do serve coffee, they don't necessarily fit what the OP means by a coffee shop.

[angelinw8ing13]

I can only offer from the standpoint of a coffee shop/diner. This is actually where I go to write. The waitstaff comes in, in shifts. Graveyard is from 9pm till sometimes after 2 am (i'm never there later than 2 to find out to be honest) But i know the morning shift if there before 6 am. Because it's a diner there is always more than one person there. But I would say for safely reasons the owner wouldn't want there to be a person by themselves. When convenience stores down here have to people on shift at night. I think your dead time would depend on where you were located. I know for a fact (having been a college student who was addicted to coffee) during finals week that is where we all went to study, free wifi, no one would bother you as long as you bought a single cup of coffee. At the diner there seems to be steady traffic up till after 2, maybe not as busy but because they offer food people roll in from when the locals bars close down. I'm can't help with the fresh baked goods because most of the ones in the case at the diner I

[rheasilvia]

Thank you, this is very helpful! I think I have the "dead time" pretty much hammered down now, as well as the othre crucial details. :-)

most places are so "concerned" about being sued due to someone getting food poising from "expired" food they toss it

Ack, you know I hadn't even thought of that. :-/ Definitely good info to have!

[kgrier]

I worked many a year as a supervising barista at an American shop that opened early and closed late. We were actually forbidden to run a shift with less than two people, and weren't even allowed to open the store unless a second employee was present. It was primarily a safety issue (even if the area is safe, you never know who is walking through the door), but there was the added benefit of accountability-employees are less likely to steal (whether it's money from the till or handing out free or discounted product to their friends), and more likely to turn out regulation quality product consistently if there is a coworker present. If you want trust to play a role, you could hand-wave these concerns in your story, but if you want a legitimate reason your MC doesn't work alone, well...there you go

[rheasilvia]

We were actually forbidden to run a shift with less than two people, and weren't even allowed to open the store unless a second employee was present.

Oooh, this is very good to know, and is an excellent legitimate reason for my second character to be there. The coffee shop is in a safe area, but it's true that doesn't even have to be taken into consideration; I will just have it be a general store policy that there should never be only one employee, regardless of how much work there is.

Thank you for this and the other info, it's very helpful!

[tersa]

This comment also triggered something else I didn't see mentioned in other posts which might influence having more than one person working at a time: breaks.

I don't know what kind of labor laws the OP's fictonal setting has, but at least in the U.S., shift-length dictates the amount of time an employee must legally be granted for breaks and lunch. For a part time employee, they have to be granted at least one 15-minute break during their shift; full-time, it's two 15-minute breaks plus "lunch".

If only a single person was working during the graveyard shift, they'd have to close-up to get those breaks.

[rheasilvia]

You are aqbsolutely right - this is indeed a very important consideration that hadn't even occurred to me. Of course!

Thank you for this, it's yet another excellent reason for my coffee shop to have a general policy of never having just one employee working a shift.

[clocketpatch]

I don't work there myself, but googling Tim Horton's night shift might yield some stories to answer your questions. They're often open 24/7 in Canada, even in rural areas (in my little town, it's pretty much the only thing other than 7/11 open past midnight)

My friend who used to work night shifts at one always had at least one other person on shift with them for safety and security reasons. If your employee is female this might be even more important, even in a safe area.

[xcarex]

Adding that in my experience as a Canadian, many 24/7 places like Tim's or McDonalds are drive-through only after midnight or so.

[rheasilvia]

Thanks for the tip, I will definitely do that! And while my character is male, I will be instituting a general store policy that two employees must always be present. :-)

Thank you!