u/HistoricalStandard15

long paragraphs, apologies!

i’ve worked as a server for a family owned restaurant for about 2 months. every single day i clock in i feel like something is always happening, and not in a good way. i’m the newest employee there and i’ve already been frequently tasked with opening the restaurant entirely by myself. i either have no customers or 5+ parties at a time. i’m usually given my hours for the next day at 11pm the day before, i’m not automatically given 30 minute breaks for 7+ hour shifts, and when i do i feel rushed/have to end it early because a bunch of people come in. i’ve been chastised for sitting down when i need to. i worked an 8 hour shift yesterday entirely on my feet with no breaks because i was the only one working in the place aside from the cooks; and had more than 8 tables at the same time.

the boss of the restaurant has insinuated that i’ve done sketch things. more recently, a coworker and i had separate shifts and one of us miscounted the register. the boss pulled us both aside and called us out in front of customers, and said we both would have to take a cut from our paychecks to make up the loss. just today, i came into work and the boss took up one of the blenders, insinuated that i broke it due to the fact she saw me make several drinks and warned me about the blender breaking, and said i would need to pay for it. in general, she does not communicate with me; she does not reply to my messages or calls, and always comes to talk to me in-person when she’s upset, right before i’m about to leave to catch the bus (well after i clock out), or when i come to collect my paycheck, which is often because she never remembers to pay it on time.

while sending out the schedule the day before is legal in my state; the rare breaks, late paychecks, and taking out money from my check for register error/equipment are all illegal. on top of that, i’m fortunate enough to be from a state that requires employers to compensate the difference for service workers if the hourly wage + tips does not meet the state minimum wage requirement. however, she does not do that and i end up coming home well below what i need to pay the bills. i want to report this to someone, but feel hesitant because 1.) she NEVER puts anything in writing and holds me accountable for remembering things, even meetings and different consequences, and 2.) i know this is probably dumb, but i’m unsure of the legal status of some of my coworkers. the majority of the establishment is latino, including myself; but due to the political climate, i don’t want to cause a governmental issue of this caliber, especially knowing that it has a decent chance to escalate and that i have no written proof of anything.

i like my coworkers, i like the family that runs it; the food is good; but i can’t keep living like this. i don’t know what to do and would appreciate some advice about how to go forward if there is any besides just finding a new job.

TLDR: i’m a server not allotted proper breaks and get chastised for a lot of various things. my boss does not communicate and has accused me of breaking equipment and takes money out of my paychecks to compensate them; and does not give paychecks on time. i want to report but i don’t know if i even should due to having no written documentation and the fact that i don’t know the legal status of some of my coworkers. seeking advice on how to proceed.

server woe. my boss has been wanting a general meeting with all of her staff for the last 3 weeks. i’m not really sure what about, but i’m assuming it’s to review workplace regulations or something. she kept saying she is going to set time aside for it (“remember, next week we’re having a meeting!”), but never really did (the time would pass and no announcement would be made).

today on the schedule this week she gave me the day off so i made plans out of town, but she sent me a message a few minutes ago saying “remember the meeting today at 6pm please”. this is the first time this week i have been given written notice of an official meeting. i sent her a message saying unless this is compensated i cannot make it; especially since this is the first time i am hearing of it. if she could send me a recap i will go from there, but this is way too late of a notice for me to come in. in the future i would appreciate if a meeting or extra event is being held, if this could be written down in advance with the schedule.

now im doubting myself; am i setting myself up to be fired 😵‍💫? it’s 11 in my timezone and i guess if i really could i can try my best to make it back by then, but i dont even know what it’s about and i highly doubt this will be compensated. this feels a little disrespectful considering how much time in advance she needs to hear from me regarding my schedule, but i dont know if im being too dramatic considering this is a family owned business.
please let me know!

with the recent discourse involving OpenAI using someone’s codex to train the AI the solution to the Navier-Stokes: i have to wonder, how do you even prove you solved a Millennium Problem correctly, let alone any unsolved complex mathematic equation? especially when it comes to physics or quantum formulas. is it more based on theory, or does it need to be executed by a board of mathematicians? very curious

before i begin the specifics of my dilemma, i should probably say some context. my current problem is that i am latino; but my family never taught me how to speak it and i therefore unfortunately became a no sabo. through a fusion of school, duolingo, bad bunny, and a strong motive to speak to my grandmother i quickly learned how to get by decently enough in terms of basic comprehension in reading, writing and understanding when spoken to; but not speaking to someone directly.

fast forward to today; i recently got hired at a small family-owned hispanic restaurant as a server and bartender. the owner and her family are super nice and understood my situation, even saying it would be nice to have an english-speaking worker so some of the staff can learn as well and it can be a mutual exchange. it’s been a few days though and i already notice i feel like i am falling short. a lot of the customers that come in primarily speak spanish; and while i can understand what they’re saying; i find it very hard to respond back, especially with proper “usted” connotation. i can’t even speak on the phone for a pickup properly and it makes me feel very ashamed. even for the workers it’s hard to show my appreciation or make proper small talk and it does make me feel embarrassed because normally i’m a very chatty person as well.

does anyone have any tips on how to quickly adapt for this environment? i already know like “¿que te gustaría pedir?” and “¿cualquier sustitución?” but i want to sound more natural, and even get to a point where i can make quippy jokes while serving (like you know when a server comes with the free waters and says “drinks on me ahaha”? that sort of thing). anything helps :,)!!

i made a post yesterday about going to a devilcorp orientation despite my doubts. i did orientation and y’all will be happy to know that i am not showing up going forward. EVERYTHING you guys said in the comments, including the 3 week schedule, the weird acronyms, and the Jonestown-esque vibe was REALLY there. definitely not gonna show up tomorrow, but i’m contemplating whether or not i should at least a polite formality or just completely ghost them, especially since now they have my personal information.

thanks for your subreddit and for your help, everyone! please wish me luck in finding a job ASAP; imma need it haha

so i recently accepted a job offer at a company in my city as a Marketing & Event Assistant. after going on a rabbit hole, there’s a post on this very subreddit with a response from another user around 20 hours ago with very specific information that lines up to what they told me during the interview process. i’m supposed to start tomorrow, and i’m not gonna lie; i am financially desperate right now and need Some form of income and cannot quit. i already submitted my 2 weeks at my current place of employment (a shitty target) but after taking a gander through here and the offer letter they sent, i think i need to jump ship as soon as possible.

would love for people to share their experiences on how they got out quick; especially in this current economy. if not, general tips on how to navigate through a work culture like this? anything helps!

for context i got hired during the holidays last year as a temp and then the asked me to come in for a full position. i was in university, and my store would not only ignore my request to be an “as needed” team member, but constantly schedule me on days i communicated i would not be available on in advance. in suit i would post these shifts as early as they came out and be in active contact with HR/ETLs, but often to no avail as no one could take them. i constantly had to call out of shifts due to university events, homework/studying, professional events, and the like. obviously they gave me a CA as a result.

after graduating, i’ve recently moved to a new city that’s about 30 minutes out. i unfortunately do not have a car; and the bus routes in my area are very weird and inefficient. i tried having a conversation with HR and see what options were available considering it was a highly circumstantial case, but since CA penalties are a year long (also it obviously doesn’t work like that lol) there wasn’t really anything they could do.

there’s another target much closer—5-10 minutes away from me with a direct bus route and i really want to try applying there traditionally. i know it’s unorthodox, but i don’t know how much longer i can keep making this commute with no independent transport. is this something that is a viable option for now, or does this CA block my shot? even resubmitting an availability request at my current store to counteract this has failed; it’s gotten denied repeatedly and put me at unhinged hours when bus routes aren’t running (close-open shift pairs especially), leaving me no other option except to get ubers that start at $35+ per ride. :/

sorry for a long read and potentially unnecessary context; i just really don’t want to make a mistake and end up losing my job, especially in such a bad market post-grad. also i objectively don’t mind the work im doing whatsoever and do like what i do

for reference, I have two BFAs in Illustration and Graphic Design. however, i did several internships during my college career and i think i have a knack for marketing and would like to take that forward; especially because I think that would pair well with my graphic design degree/concentration. however, i’m unsure how this will look to potential employers especially since it’s 2 years and rather minor; and i feel like i’ve gotten the experience from my postgrad jobs and internships I did while in university. insight is appreciated!

hey everyone, i (21F) just graduated college a couple days ago. my parents and i have been fighting and arguing pretty badly this year to the point where i feel my best course of action is to leave and move out; especially if i want to rebuild a relationship with them. i signed a lease in-state pretty recently without letting my parents know until i signed it. i think it’s adequate, but we all had a conversation about it and they’re pretty upset. despite being kicked out a few times and taken back in, being told to find other arrangements if i get home past midnight, and even being confronted by my father on graduation where he said “you need to come back home so we can talk about you getting out of here”; they were hurt and upset by this decision. they claimed that they intended for me to stay with them and build up some finances, pay off debts, and leave with better assets in order. they kept constantly saying “this is not what we had planned for you, but we wish you the best.”

the conversation that followed gave me a lot of doubt and i feel i made a terrible decision. they kept saying how i messed up my finances and future, and how they can guarantee i’m not prepared and that there will be times where i can’t pay the bills adequately. emphasized how I’ll be living paycheck to paycheck and i will save nothing for myself. on top of that they gave me till the end of June before they kick me off the family phone plan “since i want to act like an adult”, so that’s another bill im worried about.

i say all this to say, i would really appreciate some advice/perspective on how to navigate this. i feel i can no longer depend on my parents for support and help regarding this; and i don’t know if what i did is the right thing. this has made me pretty scared moving forward and if anyone has any similar stories/circumstances and how they got through it, i would greatly appreciate it. especially with budgeting and saving.

further context to help maybe: the bright side is i still have a job above national US minimum wage, have about 4.5K saved, an awesome roommate, and a decent support system otherwise. i’m worried this isn’t enough, especially since i have credit card debt + student loans, and one of my goals was to start saving and investing.

EDITS: spelling, grammar