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[I will leave the company name and location unknown for confidentiality.]
-I been working for this supermarket (Bakery) for ~3 years. I had an advantage (Physically and mentally) from just getting out of the military (U.S. Army). I worked my ass off and quickly got promoted to "full-time".
-To put it in perspective, part-time vs full-time is a huge difference. I went from 8.65$/hr to 11.00$/hr but what really makes it great are the benefits.
-I didn't want to stop. So I expressed interest in moving up further to assistant manager in the department I work in. The supermarket offers a training program which you get a pay raise to go through.
-Eventually I was approached to go to a "temporary" assistant manager position which had nothing to do with the training program. I had no information on what to expect, no interview, no documentation, no information on pay raise, in fact, they told me absolutely nothing. In fact, when I showed up to the job, it was pretty much like "Surprise, you are the assistant manager.". I had no knowledge about any paperwork, didn't know how to use a dolphin (supermarket inventory/ordering gun), in fact, I barely knew what to expect outside of my own knowledge.
--My knowledge by the way is pretty much making all of the products with a high quality. Being able to train others to make those products and being available 24/7.
-The first "temporary" position lasted about a month and a half. The entire time I was there, the department was up ~30% every week consistently. I don't take credit, it was a group effort from the teammates and the new manager. I felt I did a good job, but again, I was completely left in the dark with what my expectations were and what exactly I should be doing.
-They sent me to a second store, still as a "temporary" (Where I am now). This is where the nightmare begins. The department in the new store is run a completely different way than what I am used to. The products are made differently (Not even using corporate quality standards), the department is filthy (I am talking mold everywhere, cockroaches (Just a few here and there), and mice... Not a single soul seeming to give a ****.) But the nightmare isn't just that... The nightmare is the workload they have me do in a so called "8 hour shift"... I am normally the guy who works straight through, doesn't take 15-min breaks, I only take my required lunch break. From all the departments I have seen previously, the workloads make no sense in this new store. They expect the work of 2-3 people done in "8 hours" by one person.
-The thing is, I don't care about the workload. I will work 24/7 if that is what they want me to do and they pay me for it. But it doesn't work like that. Sometimes I work 12 hours then the next shift I will be asked to leave early so I hit 40 hours in the week and don't go into overtime. Then, I finally asked the manager if he realized the workload is too much for 8 hours. He said that "You will learn to do it faster". That is a load of crap because I have been doing these tasks for three years and in all these years I have never seen someone asked to as much this. Its not humanly possible to get all of it done in 8 hours. Even if you skipped all breaks and lunch. (I have started to skip lunch and I just write the lunch in the book to keep working)
-Meanwhile, not a single task I am asked to do involves cleaning. The department is hazardous to employees health and the consumer. Occasionally, the store manager will ask us to sweep a little bit, mainly in customer viewing distance. The department would need a task force with a full days work to get the place clean. I get the vibe that they might know about how filthy it is but our current workloads are so ridiculous, there is no way to get time to clean unless we hire a cleaner, which I see no effort in doing so.
-I am stressed out but not because of this job. Its clear to me these people don't know what they are doing. I am stressed for my future. I put three years banking on this place to be a career and if things are this grim, how is the company gonna be long term? And I am still left in the dark in terms of what my expectations are.
What should I do?
What shouldn't I do?
I come to this forum in hopes of enlightenment, motivation, advice, knowledge, and whatever else you have to say. I appreciate your time reading this.
It looks like you got stuck in a bad store. Is there anyway you can transfer to a new store or get back to your old store?
Can you confide in the manager of the old store?
Do you want to drop a dime to the health department?
Our health department? or The department of health?
We have these people we hire that is within the company to inspect us. They do tell us certain things but they completely overlook others. Such as mold growing on every single tray we use to make bagels. I'm talking literal, every tray, saturated in mold. They overlook the floors because they aren't there week after week and see how often they go months without being cleaned. It almost feels corrupt, or maybe just the world getting stupider. <shrug>
And let me fill you in a bit about myself. I am no coward to hard work. In my original store, if we had something that needed attention and no one wanted to do it, I would do it and I have done it. One time, our refrigerator was disgusting. Walls moldy, floors crusted with random junk from years of not being cleaned, mold growing on a bunch of racks we use to bake goods on. Yadda yadda... I took 3 hours with my bare hands to take everything out, swiftly clean the floors (Which I scraped by hand with a small metal piece), degreased/sanitized the entire fridge (floor/walls)... Cleaned all of the wall shelves and literally everything else in the fridge. It looked brand new after a few hours of work. No one told me to do that, I one day just did it because it needed to be done. I do not have that option in my new store. The workload is literally work until you go home.
Is there anyway you can transfer to a new store or get back to your old store?
They tell me nothing. If I go back to my original store, they didn't tell me if I would go back as full-time (Like I originated) or they would demote me to part-time. They don't tell me anything. And by "they", I mean the people who don't work in the stores, they work in a "zone" of stores. So you see them maybe once a month and they don't talk to you, they talk to your manager and store manager.
As for a different store, its a gamble. I could be sent to a store that is a 1 hour and 15 minute commute. They pay for some of the gas but that is a huge quality of life change. Or they can send me to a store closer to home. My current store is a ~35-minute drive to a nightmare and they don't pay for gas.
Start taking you breaks, especially lunch. Skipping them is not going to fix the problem you are faced with.
You can file an anonymous complaint with corporate, but your store GM will probably be able to figure it out, unless there are a bunch if disgruntled people. Nothing is going to change at the store unless a new GM comes in or corporate makes the current GM change.
Is there another chain or large bakery near you that you can go to?
Hmm... Maybe I'm putting to much value in this job. I feel like if I lose this job, I start over. My resume isn't the greatest because this job has been the most serious. I have never been full-time before. The benefits, the consistent hours, etc... Its not easy finding full-time work.
I think I get the picture though from your response. I think what I will do is wait it out until they tell me what is going on with this temporary position. I'm interested in seeing what they do with me next.
Either way, I will look into contacting corporate. I feel it's the right thing to do.
Your store has a bad manager and you are not going to be able to change that and further the bad management has caused the other workers to be disengaged and demoralized. It is no different than in the army getting stuck with an incompetent CO. It is simply a no win scenario for you and anything you do other than leave is going to wind up biting you in the @ss.
Instead of making a new post, I will continue in this thread since it continues on what is happening at my job and I need more advice on what to do moving forward.
The original post was made a few months ago. A week or two after that post, they started to move me around to many different stores. Some weeks I would work in 2 or 3 different stores helping out.
I haven't said a word to anyone and no one has said a word to me about my performance or what exactly they are expecting... But then this happens.....
My last paycheck says 11.00$/hour moved back down to just a full-time employee instead of temporary assistant manager at 16.00$/hour. Not only that, I am no longer in my original store which was very close to home. I am now 35 miles (70 round trip) away from home making pretty much minimum wage. And they didn't even tell me and I still haven't heard whats going on... So I finally contacted human resources and they are going to get back to me next week.
Don't you guys think its bullcrap that they are paying someone who has a lot of experience minimum wage (And I'm a hard worker) ? I can train new hires on how to make fresh bagels, breads, artisan breads, donuts, muffins, cakes, etc... But when they are hired, they make the same amount of money than me with no experience. (Minimum wage in massachusetts is going up to 11.00$ in January 2017).... This is driving me crazy...... Sure, its a full-time job... Minor benefits... (Most of which you won't see until you are 65 and retired)... But I make ~330$ a week without Sunday and around ~375$ with Sunday...... Barely enough to live. I am stuck living at my parents house over the age of 30.
What would you do? Find a new career? Complain to HR/New manager for a raise? I have no idea and my brain is so stressed I can't think.
Find a new job, if you like the food services job, you can apply to the canteen at the local VA if there is one near you.
Local bakeries here seem to hire recently, summer and all, people are out more than in winter.
Large hospitality chains might be good if you like the work. Large hotels chains I mean. Business school here partners with them so their hospitality / management students spend a year "running" their area of hotel, under supervision
Not sure there is a career in grocery, moving up they want a degree, wasn't sure if you have one or not
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