Always a busy line at the Chick-Fil-A drive through, and lots of online grocery shopping as winter is upon us. People don’t want to leave the warmth of their houses and cars. How do all the workers outside manage the cold weather?
Logan Wilhem, a senior, is currently employed at Walmart in Greensburg. He works in the Online Grocery Pickup department. This entails picking out groceries for customers that ordered online, sorting, but mainly in his case, running the groceries outside and loading them into customers’ cars. Logan said, “It’s harder to work outside because the elements can get to you and the dress code.” Logan talked about how sometimes he is not allowed to wear everything he wants to in order to remain warm. His average winter work apparel consists of pants with leggings and a hoodie. He said he would like to wear a big coat outside, but sometimes it is not ideal when inside of Walmart. Talking about his attitude towards facing the cold winter, he said, “We’ll get through it.” Logan tries to remain positive and persevere through the cold winter working outside.
Senior Kyliegh Krisfalusi completes work study at Chick-Fil-A, Eastgate, Greensburg. She works in the front of the house which consists of taking orders, making drinks, greeting customers, and working the drive through (outside). Kyleigh said, “Working outside in the cold, it’s harder to stay happy, but it helps a lot that we have booths and heaters outside.” She says the owner (Todd Murgi) makes a strong effort to make it easier for the workers. Kyleigh’s winter outfit for working outside at Chick-Fil-A is: Pants with leggings, a coat, and a fleece zip up. Kyleigh says Chick-Fil-A also offers heated vests in addition to coats and are looking into heated blankets for the workers outside. Chick-FIl-A also keeps extra heaters outside of the booths and are looking into some extra insulation for the booths. They also offer hand and feet warmers and allow the workers to wear whatever shoes they want in order to keep warm and comfortable outside. Kyleigh looks forward to getting through this winter working outside by taking advantage of the many tools Chick-Fil-A provides in order to keep warm as well as dressing in accordance with the weather itself.
Although facing the frigid winter temperatures while working outside can be a daunting task, the Latrobe Wildcat student-workers are making the most of it and moving forward past this winter.
