According to the rules, I’m gonna have a few posts.
My first “real job” was at McDonald’s, next to my high school. The manager wasn’t too popular, and it seemed like she wasn’t really a people-person.
I often had some difficulty understanding exactly what she wanted me to do at times, and I was fired for not being a “team player”. I didn’t even make it through probationary period.
The job after that, I was hired as a grocery bagger, moved up to cashier, and then to evening/weekend produce manager. So, I don’t know what that “team player” business was about.
I have quit a fair number of jobs as well. I’ve always been single, and never had kids, so I know I’ve had a lot more leeway to express my opinion of places I’ve worked without letting important people (wife/kids) down. I’ve even had a few managers say they were proud that I walked instead of caving in.
Another time I got fired that really stung was when I shared wage info with a woman who was in my same position and level of experience, but was being paid less.
Of course, I got fired. That rule needs to die a fiery death. It allows too many companies to get away with too much discrimination.
Edit: had to rephrase to “I got fired”, because the deleted sentence seemed like I blame her, not the company. I actually naively agreed she take it up with someone when she said she would.
Sharing wage info isn’t fireable and you have a legit case about that. Except management can just decide they fired you for a different reason ex post facto.
Additionally, I’m of the opinion that everyone’s pay should just be public knowledge within the company. It’d actually give people the opportunity to leverage themselves better at yearly review etc.
“Why am I paid less than everyone else on my team? You do remember firing two team members without backfilling them right? That means you should be paying us their salary until you stop asking us to do two extra people’s work.”
I’ve had more jobs than I have fingers and toes, but only been fired twice.
First time was early nineties working for Kmart. I was running the auto/sporting goods section- “here’s your 10w-40 and your 30-06 sir!” Boss was a racist trashy bitch, but we got along just fine because I’m white and grew up around folks like that so it was easy to tune out. That is until I told her I needed a few days off for Yom Kippur (going home with a few buddies I grew up with); she gave me the stink eye, said “Yam Kipper, huh?” and three days later I was erased from the schedule. Laughed, dropped my keys and never looked back.
Second time hurt. I was working for a chain of pawn shops; started out part time and worked my way to assistant manager. First time in my life I was making money enough to not be scared towards the end of the week. Had the position for less than two weeks when it was discovered the previous assistant had been stealing from the previous manager who hadn’t caught it because they weren’t following policy and procedure. I found this out on my day off,a Friday, when other managers were calling me to find out what was going on at my shop. So like a dumbass I call in and get told to come in. My current manager had also not been following policy and as a result corporate called for ALL heads to be taken.
Prompting everyone I knew to call me and ask “how da hell you gonna get fired on your day off?!”
Fortunately I had good friends in the company that put their necks out for me, Monday I was rehired and a month later made manager. Did really well for a number of years until I just couldn’t stomach the human misery anymore, turned dedicated socialist and walked the fuck away to try and atone for adding to the pain in this world. I’ve never made that much money since and can say it with a smile.
Yeah. Walked into a pawn shop last weekend for the first time since I was a brokeass teenager trying to hawk some tools my dad had (I assumed) “forgotten about”. I saw the aisle full of angle grinders, and Skillsaws, and Sawzalls and drills/screwguns and shit, and I just felt my heart sink into my gut.
Those tools either came from someone who couldn’t afford to do their job anymore, or were stolen and were fucking over someone who couldn’t do their job anymore.
Tools are expensive. My dad always tried to teach me to take good care of whatever tools I have. And seeing the pileup of tools just made me so sad. These things should be in skilled people’s hands, building great things. Not being a currency of economically depressed areas.
Yep. How do you make it when today you’re hocking the tools you need tomorrow? It’s awful.
Sad but kinda funny in a dark, practical way- had a whole group of roofers and framers who would pawn their tools on Friday afternoon and pick them up Monday morning. Kept them from selling their tools for more beer over the weekend.
I know, but still. I’ve been poor before. It sucks a lot. I’m just glad I have a ridiculously good safety net. I was poor but I always had a place to sleep, maybe I didn’t have gas money, but I had friends who’d drive me and so on. I can only imagine how much worse I could have had it.
I get where you’re coming from, I didn’t mean it to be dismissive and apologize if it sounded that way. That was one the guys would laugh about as they were doing it, but the five bucks in fees really kept them from doing something stupid. There is stuff I saw there that 15 years later still bothers me.
Sure! good luck. I’m not much of a coder myself, but whenever I start working on a scripting project or a little code I always get amazing frission. I should’ve done more compsci in college instead of getting a mostly worthless degree in, quite literally Helpdesk Technician.
I follow popehat on twitter, so this past weekend I was treated to the remarkable spectacle of someone pointing out to Curt Shilling that he’s calling for the killing of accused terrorists without trial, while simultaneously demanding the right to vigorously defend himself against charges of fraud. Accusation equals guilt until he’s the one accused.
good luck. I’m not much of a coder myself, but whenever I start working on a scripting project or a little code I always get amazing frission. I should’ve done more compsci in college instead of getting a mostly worthless degree in, quite literally Helpdesk Technician.