‘I Hired A Nanny, But Was Paying Her More Than What I Was Making As A Chef’

Cândida Batista is a Brazilian chef, Playboy model, wife and mother. She has worked at Michelin-starred restaurants in Prague and Vienna alongside renowned chefs like Gordon Ramsay. After becoming a mother, Batista found it challenging to meet the demands of a Michelin restaurant while taking care of a young baby. In this Voices in Food story, Batista stresses the urgent need for a cultural shift in the culinary industry to ensure the well-being of working mothers, so they don’t have to choose between promising careers and personal life. After working as a chef in three countries, she realizes that this issue is global, not geography-specific.

What I love about cooking is that I get to share my history and culture, take ingredients and turn them into a unique dish for others to enjoy. The kitchen is an international environment because you can cook no matter what degree or country you come from. It’s interesting to meet people from different backgrounds and listen to their stories, learn about how they work with food. (I went to Universidade Estácio de Sá in Rio De Janeiro and did an internship at a hotel in Copacabana. I also worked alongside a famous French chef and learned about the many different areas of kitchens.) But when I decided to go into culinary arts, I did not know that my career would involve working 100 hours a week.

In Prague, I got the opportunity to work at celebrity chef Gordon Ramsey’s new restaurant that earned a Michelin star. My typical day lasted 16-18 hours — it was madness! I did it because I was young and needed that experience. But once I decided to start a family, working in a Michelin kitchen was no longer an option. After I gave birth, I found it hard to go back to the same lifestyle. So I went to cook at the Brazilian Ambassador’s residence, where we got weekends and holidays off. It paid the bills, but wasn’t necessarily good for my long-term career as a chef. I wanted to cook at globally recognizable restaurants.

When my daughter was in kindergarten, I hired a nanny but I was paying her more per hour than what I was making [as a chef]. At work, I was competing with younger, single guys who were willing to work more for less. But as a mom I wanted fewer hours, more money and a work-life balance, which seemed impossible. And not being able to find that balance caused depression. I felt I was not living my full potential professionally or as a mother. It was impossible to have it all.

If you tell your boss that you can only work 8-10 hours a day, they send you home for good. No one should work like that. I understood from some of the Michelin kitchens I worked at that executive chefs were chasing the stars, so they were there day and night themselves. But the cost was high for everyone involved. Even today, when I dine at such places, I enjoy the beautiful food, but feel sad for those who work there. They work long hours, sacrifice personal lives, and their month’s salary is less than the cost of dinner for four!

Working long hours is tough for new moms, but everyone else, too. A kitchen is a high-pressure environment. The staff is stressed, overworked and cannot complain. We need to present diners the best quality of food in a certain amount of time — it is very stressful to do that.

But there are ways to make the industry less stressful for everyone, especially working mothers. Recently, I consulted for a new restaurant opening in Vienna. I created a plan so that they could organize all kitchen tasks in a way that each staff person had timely shifts and breaks during the day. And the staff was told to step outside the kitchen, breathe fresh air and eat a proper meal. You can’t expect someone to deliver their best when they have not slept, or are exhausted. When you work double shifts, you don’t see your family and your personal relationship gets impacted. You get angry, and start arguments in the kitchen. A smart production plan will help minimize loads.

Toxicity within the restaurant industry affects the mental health of workers. A 2019 survey by U.K.-based Paracelsus Recovery found that 81% of chefs struggle with “debilitating” stress levels. One in five hospitality professionals experiences depression, according to charity The Burnt Chef Project. An Australian study published in 2022 showed chefs were significantly more likely than the general population to commit suicide. I have worked at upscale restaurants in Brazil, Czech Republic and Vienna, and felt we were facing the same problems in all those countries.

Women address stress and depression differently, though. We talk about our feelings and are better communicators. Men are private. They may not even realize that they are depressed until they have a panic attack or get addicted to drugs or alcohol. This is why it is important to seek external help from organizations like Fair Kitchens and The Burnt Chef Project that emphasize the need for a healthy environment and offer support to the community. You will see that you are not alone, and there is no shame in accepting depression and expressing your feelings. Many of the kitchen workers are immigrants who don’t have their families near. We often don’t have time to make friends outside of work, and these kinds of forums allow us the opportunity to talk to experts anonymously online at our convenience, and receive professional help.

Being unappreciated and unaccommodated is what makes most female chefs leave their jobs. Discrimination against female chefs starts with the job interview. Employers are not supposed to, but still ask, “Are you planning to have kids? Who will watch your kids during their school holidays?” Working mothers often need to juggle more at home and at work. We are primary caretakers and when there’s a sick child, we stay home. When we can’t find a sitter, we take our kids to work. In the kitchen, women have to be tougher, have bigger balls and carry their own weight. There is no room for drama. Even when there is a personal crisis, like when my grandfather died, or when my baby had to go to the emergency room, I could not have a meltdown or cry. I had to finish my day, no matter what.

We need to give mothers flexible working schedules and benefits. Mothers should be given single daytime shifts (meaning 8-10 hours a day). In Austria, we get 16 weeks of paid maternity leave. The U.S. does not have a federal paid maternity leave program. Kindergarten is free in Austria. In Brazil, companies offer a benefit for child care. It helps ensure mothers feel their kids are safe and can plan their working schedule around child care. We need to have a support system of family and government like we have here in Austria. The cultural shift has to start with business owners. It may not make economic sense for them immediately, but having a team of happier employees will lead to less turnover and higher efficiency.

I am giving myself a mental break right now. Running my own private cooking business allows me the flexibility to cook when and what I want, and earn a fair wage for my skills. I can diversify my income and spend quality time with my kid. I hope one day, a healthier and more equitable work environment enables me and other working mothers to return to the restaurant kitchens we dream of.