Your support makes Blue Moon possible (Patreon)For those of you who have the esteemed pleasure of living in the deep south, you cannot turn on the TV without hearing the slogan for the company I work for. "Publix! Where shopping is a pleasure!" I don't know if it's because of our location, which it probably is, our managers, probably some of that too, or if it's the rude customers that we are forced to suck the assholes of every fucking day we're there, but every customer service representative at my store, myself included, HATES THEIR FUCKING JOB. This page will be dedicated to venting my frustrations associated with this shit hole in the hopes that I will not, as a result of pent up aggression, quit my job, take off my apron in the middle of the store, step on it, light it on fire, and then strip butt ass naked running down each aisle to exit the store screaming with my arms in the air, "Free at last, free at last! Thank God almighty, I am free at last!"
Case 1-Management- The first day I began my job, which was about a year ago, I knew that I was going to struggle with the management style. Why? Because the store manager informed me that you don't need anything above a high school education to get where he is today. Well...that's beautiful. Nothing against those of you who have not gone to school, but a business typically doesn't benefit from having their management team made up of people with a minimum level of education. Things go wrong, a lot, customers get pissed off because of what went wrong, a lot, and if they at least had a bachelor's degree they may be capable enough to know that it doesn't behoove you to schedule a mandatory meeting at 5 fucking AM and NOT SHOW UP!!!! Oh yes, 5 AM...in the morning...at Publix...after working the night shift. Ahhhhh. Then, not having food or drinks for your hungry associates is another way to go as you make them sit through an hour of you telling us we are not acting any better than Wal-Mart and that our customers could go there for the same quality customer service. Way to boost the ego. And there was no better way to convey this message...such as a memorandum...a letter addressed to each associate identifying areas of improvement.... or hell a sticky note on the sign in clock to convey the message we got that morning?!
Each department has a manager, customer service has five, each with their own wants, demands, and personal problems that they love to take out on you.
Sub Case 1-Tony- Tony is our team leader and a real ass hat. Our previous team leader, Randy, would remind us of our job when we got off track in very hilarious ways. One time I was leaning my head down against my hand with my elbow on the register because we had no customers and I was talking to a bagger. He came up with a big fat grin and asked, "Can I get you a pillow?" He got his message across being, get to the fucking front of your register, while also bringing a smile to my face. He treated us like equals and, happily, got a promotion. Tony was a front service rep that had worked at our level until Randy left. Since then he has condescended to the rest of us in anyway he can, made it so we can't even talk to our fellow associates, made late nights even later, and has this little black notebook with all of our fuck ups in it that someday I'm gonna shove up his ass. His favorite saying whenever it's eleven thirty and we were supposed to be gone by ten is "Yall should be grateful you have a job in a recession." Finally, someone snapped and told him to shut up. I was grinning from ear to ear. It's not that we aren't grateful for our job Tony, it's that we aren't grateful that you are our team leader.
Sub Case 2-John- This is the store owner, the head honcho, the cheese that is supposed to stand alone. Yet this man changes his mind about how we are to run the store on a weekly basis, making it so confusing for us that we get frustrated and choose how we are going to run it and ignore what he says. Now, what reasons could possibly constitute such regular changes in procedures?
A) The sky is blue
B) A customer gave him a funny look
C) He had to shave his mustache
D) He got bitched at by the District Manager for the third time in one month
E) All of the above.
If you chose E, then you know my manager as well as I do. He also does not handle conflict resolution. The manager who makes the schedules kept putting me into the computer at times I was not available because I have SCHOOL! In order to schedule someone when they are marked unavailable in the computer you have to manually override the system. Is she just hoping that one day I'll be like, "Fuck higher education! Publix is my future!" FUCK NO. So, I went to him after she refused to fix it. The cow. He proceeded to look through the schedule for potential people I COULD CALL to take "MY SHIFT". WTF? It's not my fault, I should not have to make any damn phone calls! In fact, I should have received an "I'm sorry". No. It's my fault, because I wish to better myself with a University education. The last two times it's happened they've asked me to just come in when I can. Both times something prevented me from having to go in those days, but when I get the chance, I swear I'm going in there three minutes before my shift is scheduled to end to just wave at the dumb bitch.
Sub Case 3-J- J's life sucks, simple as that. And as a result, he wants our lives to suck. Why does J's life suck? Because he lost a leg to diabetes, he got rejected for a lease purchase, and as a result his wife left him. However, it's hard to feel bad for him when he won't even let you got to the bathroom because he might have to open his fucking register for a minute! I was standing there for four hours without a break and he still wouldn't let me go to the fucking bathroom! Are you kidding me!? I would have gone right there and left if another manager didn't intervene and told me to do so quickly. Also, this man doesn't work. When he is the closing manager (at night we only get one manager) he stares off into space while we crash and burn with customers breathing down our necks. We need leader at night because not only do we have to make the customers happy but we have to begin cleaning up after the customers to get ready to go home. If things are not done the right way, we will either be there until midnight cleaning up or get bitched out by a customer for not being to our register sooner.
TO BE CONTINUED....
Previews for next post...The benefits that we get to pay for!
Case 1-Management- The first day I began my job, which was about a year ago, I knew that I was going to struggle with the management style. Why? Because the store manager informed me that you don't need anything above a high school education to get where he is today. Well...that's beautiful. Nothing against those of you who have not gone to school, but a business typically doesn't benefit from having their management team made up of people with a minimum level of education. Things go wrong, a lot, customers get pissed off because of what went wrong, a lot, and if they at least had a bachelor's degree they may be capable enough to know that it doesn't behoove you to schedule a mandatory meeting at 5 fucking AM and NOT SHOW UP!!!! Oh yes, 5 AM...in the morning...at Publix...after working the night shift. Ahhhhh. Then, not having food or drinks for your hungry associates is another way to go as you make them sit through an hour of you telling us we are not acting any better than Wal-Mart and that our customers could go there for the same quality customer service. Way to boost the ego. And there was no better way to convey this message...such as a memorandum...a letter addressed to each associate identifying areas of improvement.... or hell a sticky note on the sign in clock to convey the message we got that morning?!
Each department has a manager, customer service has five, each with their own wants, demands, and personal problems that they love to take out on you.
Sub Case 1-Tony- Tony is our team leader and a real ass hat. Our previous team leader, Randy, would remind us of our job when we got off track in very hilarious ways. One time I was leaning my head down against my hand with my elbow on the register because we had no customers and I was talking to a bagger. He came up with a big fat grin and asked, "Can I get you a pillow?" He got his message across being, get to the fucking front of your register, while also bringing a smile to my face. He treated us like equals and, happily, got a promotion. Tony was a front service rep that had worked at our level until Randy left. Since then he has condescended to the rest of us in anyway he can, made it so we can't even talk to our fellow associates, made late nights even later, and has this little black notebook with all of our fuck ups in it that someday I'm gonna shove up his ass. His favorite saying whenever it's eleven thirty and we were supposed to be gone by ten is "Yall should be grateful you have a job in a recession." Finally, someone snapped and told him to shut up. I was grinning from ear to ear. It's not that we aren't grateful for our job Tony, it's that we aren't grateful that you are our team leader.
Sub Case 2-John- This is the store owner, the head honcho, the cheese that is supposed to stand alone. Yet this man changes his mind about how we are to run the store on a weekly basis, making it so confusing for us that we get frustrated and choose how we are going to run it and ignore what he says. Now, what reasons could possibly constitute such regular changes in procedures?
A) The sky is blue
B) A customer gave him a funny look
C) He had to shave his mustache
D) He got bitched at by the District Manager for the third time in one month
E) All of the above.
If you chose E, then you know my manager as well as I do. He also does not handle conflict resolution. The manager who makes the schedules kept putting me into the computer at times I was not available because I have SCHOOL! In order to schedule someone when they are marked unavailable in the computer you have to manually override the system. Is she just hoping that one day I'll be like, "Fuck higher education! Publix is my future!" FUCK NO. So, I went to him after she refused to fix it. The cow. He proceeded to look through the schedule for potential people I COULD CALL to take "MY SHIFT". WTF? It's not my fault, I should not have to make any damn phone calls! In fact, I should have received an "I'm sorry". No. It's my fault, because I wish to better myself with a University education. The last two times it's happened they've asked me to just come in when I can. Both times something prevented me from having to go in those days, but when I get the chance, I swear I'm going in there three minutes before my shift is scheduled to end to just wave at the dumb bitch.
Sub Case 3-J- J's life sucks, simple as that. And as a result, he wants our lives to suck. Why does J's life suck? Because he lost a leg to diabetes, he got rejected for a lease purchase, and as a result his wife left him. However, it's hard to feel bad for him when he won't even let you got to the bathroom because he might have to open his fucking register for a minute! I was standing there for four hours without a break and he still wouldn't let me go to the fucking bathroom! Are you kidding me!? I would have gone right there and left if another manager didn't intervene and told me to do so quickly. Also, this man doesn't work. When he is the closing manager (at night we only get one manager) he stares off into space while we crash and burn with customers breathing down our necks. We need leader at night because not only do we have to make the customers happy but we have to begin cleaning up after the customers to get ready to go home. If things are not done the right way, we will either be there until midnight cleaning up or get bitched out by a customer for not being to our register sooner.
TO BE CONTINUED....
Previews for next post...The benefits that we get to pay for!