u/GrapeTraditional1222

Ifeel like such an idiot I can’t believe I’m even writing this to begin with. Today at work there was a loaf of bread that was cut badly and after being unsure what to do I asked a lady at the bakery and she said I should throw it out.

As I’m on the way to the trash area I thought, you know what, since it’s going to the trash, I might as well bring it home for my parents to have as they love that kind of bread. However when I got home and was unpacking my bag the thought finally occurred to me that maybe employees aren’t allowed to take food waste home.

I just started working at my job and have been there for only 6 weeks. After being unemployed for a while I was elated when I finally got the job, and due to being so eager to start, I skimmed the employee handbook which mentioned that “all waste material and rubbish” should be disposed of daily.

Again I know I am such and idiot and I honestly thought it would’ve been better than for it to go to waste. Although it doesn’t state explicitly I’m pretty sure that it counts as theft from doing my research.

I’m planning on bringing the bread back to work and putting it in the bin, and asking my coworker/ supervisor who I’m good friends with if they take issues like this seriously. To be honest I think the higher ups are a bit laid back when it comes to some of the stuff I’ve seen other employees and my coworker do, such as no buying stuff during work or no eating during work. However I’m shitting bricks bc this is a serious matter it is all on cctv.

Again I know it was a stupid thing to do, my mom is also fed up of me panicking about potentially being fired if they find out.

I just wanted to know if telling my supervisor what happened and what she thinks is an okay step to take, or if I should just go clean to my manager all together. I feel like given the nature I should probably go clean about it but the fact that I could potentially be fired is making me a bit hesitant. (I am also aware there’s a chance my supervisor would tell me to go clean about it or report it herself (unlikely but still) so that’s why I was thinking of just going going clean all together.)

I 19F have started working at my first job for about 6 weeks now. I was originally supposed to be working as a sales assistant but I’ve been working in the online orders department of my store ever since commencing. I thought it was strange at first but having read my contract which stated that I could be assigned to other areas I didn’t think much of it.

I quickly realised that this department is heavily understaffed and even after adding me to help the load, it still isn’t enough. I was working overtime one to two times a week at the beginning and although I thought it was getting better it only got worse as today I had to hold the entire department by myself and worked an hour and a half overtime. I make so many mistakes due to being under pressure and not even being fully trained on the tills due to always being on the go, and tbh I hate how I didn’t voice my concerns earlier. And a lot of the time when I don’t work overtime it’s because I had to skip lunch or not take my full entitled duration in order to get everything done.

I did ask one of my HR managers last week about overtime pay and they said as long as I let them know, which I’ve been doing for the past week now but even with the pay, I still feel like it isn’t worth it. I’m sick of customers getting angry at me due to my mistakes and watching my coworkers in other departments not having to run around like a headless chicken around the store.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m aware that there are some understaffing issues in other areas as well, but I know for a fact my area is the least staffed one and is under pressure the most.

I think due to the nature of it being an online shop job as well is what makes overtime so hard to avoid. You can’t just drop everything and leave when there are schools and hospitals that need food to be delivered.

On top of that I hate how I rejected another job at Penneys for this when I first started working. I was a bit suspicious at the time after working there for about 2 weeks but I didn’t think it’d get this bad.

I will voice my concerns to HR tomorrow but tbh I’m not rlly that hopeful bc my coworker who has been working in the online department for years said it’s only been recently that they started listening (which led to them hiring me in the first place). If they don’t do anything I’m thinking of quitting but then id have to look for another job all over again and it’s already competitive due to students finishing college. I’m not saying it’s impossible, it’s just that I would rather they just get more hands to help out at my department. I also like my coworkers and the environment it’s just my area that I hate so much.

Sorry for the rant but if anyone has any advice on how they’d go about it, please don’t hesitate to reply. I just feel like I should’ve listened to my parents and done part time instead of full time as my first job. I just wanted to earn as much money as possible as I’ll be going to college this year and student accommodation is quite expensive now.

I’m also thinking of asking them to reduce my hours as it is a flexi contract, so that they’d have no choice but to hire someone else/get someone else from another area to help and I wouldn’t have to do a two person job.

I know I have to put myself first and I’m aware I sound like a “pushover” in some parts as I do have a history of being a “people pleaser” but even I have my limits 😭. I seriously regret not saying anything sooner.