5 things: Survey finds Gen Z workers want sustainability, wellness and digital benefits at work

In this edition of 5 Things, Food Management highlights five things you may have missed recently about developments affecting onsite dining.

Here’s your list for today:

 1.    Survey: Gen Z wants digital, wellness and sustainability benefits from workplaces

New research from Compass Group and global market intelligence agency Mintel reveals that Gen Z workers are the most vocal generation calling for enhanced wellbeing, sustainable and digital benefits in the workplace, and are willing to look at alternative employers if their needs aren’t met. Among the findings, 72% of Gen Z say an on-site cafeteria would encourage them to join a prospective employer, 71% globally say employers have a responsibility to proactively promote sustainability and 68% are happy to order food and drinks via apps, compared to 23% for Baby Boomers.

Read more: Food at Work, Sustainability and Digital High on Wishlist for Gen Z Talent

 2.    College drops campus housing cost for fall

Starting this fall, Northeast College of Health Sciences in Seneca Falls, N.Y. will significantly lower the cost of on-campus housing, with the price of single-style on-campus housing reduced to $1,590 per 15-week trimester. When combined with the college’s meal plan, students will pay only $623 per month for both accommodation and on-campus dining.

Related:5 tech things: BYU food delivery robots to be controlled from Africa

Read more: Local college drops price of on-campus housing to entice students

 3.    Harvard student goes viral with Tik Tok videos showing her campus food experiences

Elise Pham, a TikTok user with over 46,900 followers and 2.2 million likes in total, has been documenting her life as a Harvard student since she got accepted as a student in December 2021. In one of her most viral uploads, which has been viewed over two million times since it was posted on April 1, Pham documents some of the meals she’s had at Harvard’s first-year undergraduate dining hall, Annenberg Hall, including an extravagant seafood bar she saw while having dinner, a glimpse at the late-night snack options, clips about weekend lunch, her experience at Harvard’s Korean Night Market and an Easter Brunch.

Read more: 'Seafood bar for dinner': Harvard student has TikTok users salivating over school's dining hall food

 4.    School district serves bison nachos as part of diversity celebration program

Bison nachos were on the menu May 1 across St. Paul Public Schools in Minnesota, and it was a meal that had been months in the making, with special care taken to keep the recipe as pure and simple as possible. Last summer, St. Paul's nutrition services department made it a goal to work with the parent advisory councils to create special menus celebrating the district's diversity.

Related:5 things: Army is looking for a few good restaurants

Read more: What's for lunch? St. Paul schools serve up bison nachos

 5.    Major League ballpark’s foodservice workers to get major pay boost

Unionized food service workers at LoanDepot Park, home of Major League Baseball's Miami Marlins, have reached a tentative deal with Levy Restaurants to lift their hourly pay to $20 minimum by the end of a newly negotiated four-year contract. In a statement, the union said the median hourly wage for workers at the stadium is now $14.30.

Read more: Raising pay: Food workers at Marlins stadium get $20 hourly minimum

Bonus: Meet the 2023 winners of Food Management’s Best Healthcare Recipe Contest: Delicious meals that heal

Contact Mike Buzalka at [email protected]