Gendered rules and rituals in the restaurant industry: how they are created, upheld, and perpetuated

Gendered rules and rituals are upheld and perpetuated in the workplace, which transcend into other realms of society where individuals take on gendered roles that they feel are expected of them, inevitably helping to maintain the gender hierarchy in society. This article seeks to understand the ways that individuals abide by gendered rules and rituals within the workplace, and more specifically, the restaurant setting, which influences the larger society. Phone and in person interviews were conducted with sixteen males and females, half who worked in low-end restaurants and half that worked in high-end restaurants, to understand the rules and rituals within the workplace that they encounter, and how gender influences their experiences. It was found that gender-based themes surfaced throughout the interviews, often with little to no questions about how gender related to the experiences. Themes that surfaced during the interviews included trends of in-groups/out-groups, power/authority, teamwork, and presentation of self, all of which reflected gendered expectations. This study found that gender plays a prominent role in defining, structuring, and performing in the workplace.