Work For Free...

[Wave Runner]

would i be bad/weird if i ask a pizza shop owner if i could work for free just to learn everything about how to run a pizza shop?  only for a few weeks.  I'm in San Diego, Ca and i want to open a NY style pizzeria, but want to know the ups and DOwns about it..

[Pete-zza]

Wave Runner,

I am not a pizza operator but if I were I wouldn't be interested in your proposition. It might even cost me money, especially if I had to insure you for such common chores like delivering pizza. I also wouldn't be happy if you did not tell me that you would be leaving in a few weeks. It's also highly doubtful that you would learn much in a few weeks. This is a subject that was discussed before on the forum, as you will see at this thread: http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,3365.msg28457.html#msg28457. You might get lucky and find someone who is willing to take you on for only a few weeks, but a pizza operator would have to be in rough shape to do this and would perhaps assign you to the worst chores. You would be free, grunt labor.

Peter

[November]

Wave Runner,

Despite your good intentions, you would not legally be allowed to work for free.  You would have to commit yourself to filling out all the paperwork as a normal employee, receive some form of monetary compensation, and at the employer's discretion, work for longer than just a few weeks.  As Peter said, it would cost them too much money to take you on for such a short time.  It's usually several months before a business recoups the cost of training an employee.

- red.november

[TONY]

That's not such a bad idea........if i were thinking about opening my own place I would do the same thing..........the key is being up front with the owner............hey, he might welcome some free labor in exchange for information.........I would love to have access to a comercial pizza oven for a few weeks to play with!!.....I think you would learn quite a bit in a few weeks just being there......you won't know unless you try...........

Tony

[bodegahwy]

I own two pizza restaurants.  I would have no problem with the "work for free" idea as long as:

1.  The person was up front about the plan.
2.  Was willing to work long enough to be useful.
3.  It was a time when I needed the help.

For example, someone who would work 30+ hours a week for a month starting December 20th would be very welcome in this ski town!  i would go out of my way to make sure they learned a lot.

The way I would get around the wage thing would be to have them pay me a consulting fee for training and return the fee as wages at minimum wage.

Sure, there is a training expense to any new hire but it is not as severe as these other posts would have you believe.  There is plenty a newbie can do in a restaurant to make themselves usefull.