I work at a large corporation as an underpaid, overworked supervisor. It's like being in a cult. I can't leave because the people I care about will have to pick up the slack and none of us can do it alone anymore. One of my fellow supervisors was HOSPITALIZED due to physical complications that arose from us being worked like dogs, and when she ASKED if she could have the day off because she was, you know, IN THE HOSPITAL, she was told absolutely not, as she was the only supervisor scheduled the next day. I feel immense guilt over that because she could have called me to cover but she knew I was bedridden too.
I tried to get my entire management team to go on strike earlier this year when our boss, one of the only administrative members with a soul that works here, was put on a three day suspension that lasted TWO WEEKS. He cut his hand on the job and instead of our first aid team sending him to urgent care to get stitches (he was bleeding profusely, everywhere), they held him back for almost an hour to drug test him in order to cover corporate asses and avoid having to pay workers' comp. Don't even get me started on how we had to do EVERYTHING for those two weeks, without ANY guidance. Nor would anyone tell us what was happening- the only reason I knew the situation was because I bumped into him at the store. They did this to his boss too when she slipped on ice in the middle of the winter. She wasn't allowed to leave the premises to seek medical attention before being drug tested. Mind you, these folks are OFFICE WORKERS. My team and I are the ones with our feet on the ground busting our asses all day every day. I bet you if we fell through the floor in our upstairs storage room they'd test us before sending us to the hospital for our many broken bones, even though instead of paying to fix the floor they just marked the weak spots with tape and told us to avoid stepping on them. Yeah. I've been injured many times on the job but I just suck it up because reporting it is a process that takes me away from my responsibilities and screws over everyone else.
I have had covid, two kidney infections and numerous mental health crises that I should have gotten professional help for but was unable to due to the fact all I can do these days is wake up, go to work, come home and crash again. I don't have time to see doctors or therapists or even my dentist. I don't have the energy to clean my house or take care of myself. I haven't been eating and when I do it's fast food because I no longer have the time or energy for anything else. My partner has to shoulder taking care of our animals. I had to go to work immediately after a suicide attempt at least once. On the one break I get during my 9-12 hour shifts I sleep.
I don't even have the drive to look for another job because I know no matter where I go I'm going to be overworked and mistreated because I'm a useless pushover- employers always pick up on my work ethic, and dangle that carrot in front of me until I'm stuck in this position again. I want to burn down this horrible place. I can't do this anymore.