On June 9, workers and union representatives urged the Kern County Board of Education to protect longtime cafeteria employees, arguing that more than a dozen dining workers at California State University, Bakersfield (CSUB) could lose their jobs as food service operations transition to a new provider.

Members of UNITE HERE! Local 19 and current dining hall employees spoke during public comment, raising concerns that workers with decades of experience serving the campus community are being required to reapply for positions under a new agreement between CSUB and the Kern County Superintendent of Schools (KCSOS).

“We represent 26 workers down there. They’ve been told nine jobs are going to be available for them,” union organizer Michael Tenbrook told the board. “At least fifteen workers are going to be tossed out onto the street.”

The comments come as CSUB transitions dining operations away from Aramark, the university’s longtime food service contractor, and into a new partnership with KCSOS.

According to university officials, the transition began in April 2025 after Aramark notified CSUB that it intended to terminate its food-service contract before its scheduled expiration, citing long-term financial losses and high operating costs.

Jennifer Self, CSUB’s public information officer, said the university was left searching for a new operator after Aramark decided to end the partnership.

“Aramark decided that they wanted to end their contract with us, and that was their decision, and we didn’t have any choice in the matter,” Self said.

To maintain campus dining operations, CSUB entered into a month-to-month agreement with Aramark while searching for a new provider. Self said the arrangement ultimately became financially unsustainable because the university was required to cover Aramark’s operating losses.

“There was a provision that any losses that Aramark incurred would be picked up by CSUB,” Self said. “That’s no way to manage public funds.”

According to university materials provided to Kern Sol News, Aramark proposed either ongoing university subsidies or a new mandatory student fee to support dining operations. CSUB declined both options, citing concerns about increasing student costs.

Instead, the university ultimately selected KCSOS as its new dining partner.

“For a lot of reasons, it just seemed like a more sustainable option for us to go with Kern County Superintendent of Schools,” Self said, noting the agency’s longstanding relationship with the university through initiatives such as the Kern Education Pledge.

In a written statement provided to Kern Sol News, KCSOS said the partnership is intended to strengthen educational collaboration while providing quality dining services and workforce development opportunities in Kern County.

KCSOS officials say the new partnership represents more than a traditional food-service contract.

“The agreement is not simply a food service contract,” said Robert Meszaros, senior director of communications for KCSOS. “It represents a partnership between two public educational institutions that share a commitment to student success, workforce development, and regional collaboration.”

KCSOS officials also emphasized that the dining workers affected by the transition are employees of Aramark, not CSUB or KCSOS. Meszaros said KCSOS is focused on creating a financially sustainable operation while complying with public-sector hiring requirements.

“Our focus has been on conducting a lawful and equitable hiring process while encouraging interested employees to apply for available positions,” he said. “We remain committed to treating all applicants with dignity, respect, and fairness throughout the transition.”

KCSOS also pushed back on suggestions that workers were intentionally excluded from employment opportunities.

“We understand and respect the concerns being raised by employees who have dedicated years of service to the CSUB community,” Meszaros said. “Organizational transitions can create uncertainty, and we recognize the impact these changes may have on workers and their families.”

However, Meszaros said public-sector hiring laws prevent the agency from guaranteeing jobs to former employees of a private contractor.

“As a public agency, unlike Aramark, which is a for-profit corporation, KCSOS is required to follow California Merit System hiring requirements and equal employment opportunity laws,” Meszaros said. “Because of those requirements, KCSOS cannot automatically transfer employees or provide preferential hiring treatment to applicants based on their current employer.”

Meszaros said KCSOS has encouraged existing dining employees to apply for open positions and provided application assistance in both English and Spanish. He added that the agency expects to eventually staff the operation with approximately 18 to 25 classified employees, supplemented by roughly 20 student workers.

But workers and union representatives say the transition has been far more disruptive than officials have described.

Silvia Contreras, who told the board she worked in the CSUB dining hall for 25 years, said she was frustrated by being required to reapply for her job and worried about losing both employment and health insurance.

Other workers shared similar concerns.

Rosemary Sanchez said she spent 36 years working at CSUB before learning her position was not guaranteed under the new arrangement. Christina Chambers, who worked in campus dining services for 11 years, said employees were initially led to believe they would continue working under the new operator.

“We were concerned, but initially KCSOS staff said don’t worry about it, they’re going to need everybody to run this place,” Chambers said.

According to Chambers, workers were later told that not everyone would be retained and that the available positions would pay less than what employees were earning under Aramark.

“I can’t afford to do that,” Chambers said of the positions she saw posted. “To take a part-time position that’s a pay cut, I couldn’t survive off of that.”

Chambers ultimately chose not to apply for one of the positions. The union critiques the current offer to workers that combines previous positions and offers lower wages, “it’s more work and less pay,” Khunkhun said.

The union argues that longtime workers should have been given a clearer pathway to continue working on campus. Union representatives also disputed KCSOS’s explanation that public hiring rules leave little room for flexibility.

“That’s something that they’ve continued to maintain,” Khunkhun said. “If CSUB really did value the workers who have been serving their students, they would  make a contract that ensured that all the workers continue to work.”

Khunkhun said the union’s concern is not about preserving union representation, but ensuring that workers who have spent years serving students can remain employed.

“Our main goal is for all the workers who have been working at CSUB’s dining halls to have the option to continue working there without needing to go through this cumbersome hiring process,” Khunkhun said.

Khunkhun also stated that KCSOS has provided different staffing figures over time.

While KCSOS told Kern Sol News it anticipates employing 18 to 25 classified workers, Khunkhun said union members were initially informed there would be 15 available positions and have not been informed about any new openings they can apply to.

“They held multiple informational meetings at the end of April, and they provided different information. At an April 28 meeting, KCSOS said they had nine open positions, and the next day they said they had 15 positions,” Khunkhun said. “A few weeks later, we had a delegation to CSU Bakersfield, and CSUB Chief-of-Staff Kristen Watson stated that KCSOS had already filled some of the positions, leaving only nine for the people who had been working in the CSUB dining halls.”

Khunkhun said more than 50 workers, including supervisors and management staff, were affected by the transition, while the union represents approximately 26 of those employees. She also questioned whether operating CSU dining services falls within the mission of the county office of education.

During public comment and in a subsequent interview, union representatives raised concerns about KCSOS expanding beyond its traditional role of supporting K-12 school districts and questioned whether the arrangement could create financial risks for the agency.

The union additionally criticized what it described as a lack of transparency in the no-bid process that led to KCSOS being selected as the university’s new dining services partner.

The university also said KCSOS offers a different operating model than traditional food service contractors because, as a public agency, its food and nutrition program operates on a cost-recovery basis rather than seeking to maximize profits.

Board members engaged with several of the concerns raised during public comment, questioning KCSOS officials about staffing levels, employee benefits, financial risks associated with the agreement, and the board’s authority over the matter.

During the discussion, trustees asked about discrepancies between the staffing figures presented by union representatives and those provided by KCSOS. In response, KCSOS officials said 18 positions had been posted and that additional positions could be added as operational needs become clearer.

For workers like Chambers, however, the debate is less about organizational structure and more about the future of employees who spent years serving the campus community.

“I feel like we’re expendable,” Chambers said. “We don’t matter anymore. The people that have been there a long time don’t matter anymore.”

Chambers also questioned why previous dining service transitions reportedly allowed workers to keep their jobs while the current one does not.

“CSUB always stuck up for the food service workers,” she said. “That was just part of the deal. There were no exceptions.”

The transition is expected to continue throughout the summer, with full dining operations under KCSOS scheduled to be in place by the start of the fall semester.

Several trustees also questioned whether the board had any authority to intervene in the dispute. KCSOS administrators responded that while the budget included information about the dining services operation, the contract itself was negotiated between CSUB and KCSOS and falls outside the Board of Education’s jurisdiction.