Okay… does my job actually suck?
Im fresh out of highschool and working the same job I’ve had for three years-an extremely busy, all-year snowcone stand that also happens to sell convenience food like nachos and chili dogs.
my friends have been telling me for over a year that I need to find a new job, but I never had a bad time there-i was just payed a very small amount. for context, I work in Mississippi, so minimum wage is 7.25. im the assistant manager at this place, so I make 8.25.
I work 15-25 hours a week in the spring, and 20+ in the summer. I’ve kept working here because my boss allows me to take THE ENTIRE FALL off to have time to play sports. she’s also very understanding of family vacations and such, since her family takes about FOUR vacations a year (this upsets me because I’m very lower middle class, and haven’t had a vacation in years)
this place is insane, alright? open 7 hours a day, 6 days a week. and very busy. I’m talking lines out into the road, wrapped around the building, 4-5 workers in this tiny building, 1500+ dollars in sales PER DAY. since I’m assistant manager, I open and close almost every shift I work. that’s 8+ hours a day if I factor in how long it takes to close.
that would be totally okay if I was allowed to take breaks.
dont get me wrong, I’m not lazy. and it’s not legally required in my state to give breaks to employees. but really? no breaks? she claims we “have a break when there’s no customers”-but god forbid she catches us standing there NOT CLEANING when the drive through is empty. “if you can lean, you can clean.” this place is very clean.
ive never been given a hard time by my boss when im leaning on the counter after a rush. she’s never even had a problem with me sitting down in the SINGULAR stool in the back of the building-until recently.
boss told us during our yearly staff meeting in March that we’d been slacking off too much. I figured she meant that we were working too slow, playing on phones, or something like that. I mean, most of the kids I work with are 16-17 years old. it’s expected.
but this week? it’s been insane. she always watched us on the camera from her phone, and I’ve never been bothered. she’d say stuff like “go do the dishes” or “make sure you mop the floor twice before you close.” yesterday she sent us an ESSAY about how lazy we were being. at the time I was assembling five containers of nachos and my coworkers were making seven snowcones-all for the same car. she said we worked too slow.
before she sent out the schedule for the week(which she sends between 7 and 11 pm on Sunday nights, usually with entire days missing because she isn’t finished yet), she sent her snowcone rules out for the third time this month.
she has major dyslexia, so I’m not upset at her spelling problems. but the fact that she has it written TWICE in this list of rules that we‘re taking too many snack breaks is INSANE to me. i eat MAYBE three times a shift, usually twice, and same with all my coworkers. I mean, I’m 18 years old, I’m very physically active (I’m a boxer, drumset player, and a gym rat) and I’m here for 8+ hours a day. why on earth does she have a problem with us eating during a shift?
she also said we shouldn’t eat in the front of the store. I’m fine with that. but shes said in the past she doesn’t want us to eat in the back, because thats where some of our food products go. where am I supposed to eat?
she claims she doesn’t want us to be seen eating or drinking anything by customers. you can literally see the entire store from the front window because of how small the building is. genuinely where am I supposed to eat.
as someone recovering from an ED, who is working out constantly, on my feet at this low paying job 8 hours or more a day, AND has low blood sugar-surely she can’t be serious? because what it seems like she’s saying is that she doesn’t want us to eat at all when we’re on the clock.
last summer she took every stool out of the building (we eventually convinced her to bring ONE back in). this fall she started a phone basket because she didn’t like us taking breaks on our phones(this I actually understand). this summer we’re… not supposed to eat?
im sorry, i think that’s just ridiculous and inhumane. and don’t even get me STARTED on the shark suit. when business is slow, one of us LITERALLY has to get in a blow-up pinkfong baby shark suit and, to quote my boss, “dance around” outside. for like an hour. I got a bonus for doing this exactly once.
I mentioned how this place is clean. it’s clean, alright? I make sure of it. but everything is broken. the mop sink, the broom handle, the doorknobs, the bathroom sink (at least I get a bathroom), the fridge door, the dish washing sink, the drive through window lock, literally everything is broken. she won’t pay us more because she needs money to fix it. yeah-it’s not getting fixed. girl has money, trust me. she owns three businesses.
ive brought this up to some adults, and they’ve told me that every job sucks. my friends at school, however, told me to find a new job. I’m leaving for college in two months-honestly I’m not sure what to do.
i love my coworkers and I used to love my job. it just saddens me that my boss is suddenly so controlling. maybe she’s stressed because of all of her business endeavors? anyway-I’ve applied to other jobs in the area. none of them want me because I’m leaving soon (or because I live in a small town and they don’t like a family member of mine). I really need money for college. I need a car and to have as little loans as possible. reddit-I am at a loss.