Marcus first joined Unity Works on our accessible apprentice programme at one of our former social enterprise cafes, Flapjacks in Kentish Town. Over the year spent with us Marcus learned new skills in both front and back of house including preparing and serving breakfast and lunches as well as learning how to use the coffee machine.
Following his year on the programme, Marcus successfully applied for a back of house role for a caterer of a large banking group where he stayed until the pandemic. Like many people working across the hospitality industry at the time, Marcus unfortunately lost his job. Nevertheless, he was soon contacted by Unity Works who knew of a vacancy that had opened up in one of their social enterprise cafes. Following a practical assessment interview, Marcus joined the team as a Kitchen Porter at our flagship social enterprise café, a role he still holds to this day.
Reflecting on the importance of the Kitchen Porter role in a busy catering operation, Marcus brings up a saying someone once told him:
There are three hands on the clock. The big hand is Chef, the second hand is Second Chef and little hand that constantly goes around is me, [the Kitchen Porter].
When asked what his favourite things about his job are, Marcus says:
Interacting with my colleagues and watching what the chefs do and helping out [on some things].
Looking to the future, Marcus would love to start taking more of an active role in the kitchen. He’s started getting involved in making paninis for the lunchtime rush as well as other dishes. We look forward to hearing about what Marcus gets up to next.