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Antiwork

A story I thought you all would enjoy

This all happened a few years ago and things have only gotten worse. I got hired to manage a glass shop. I get on site and find the place in complete disarray. I find out we lost money the past 6 quarters. I see a huge stack of windshields that are unspoken for. I’m talking 120 windshields for all makes and models. FYI glass shops operate on appointments. Make appointment, order glass for specific vehicle, it’s installed the next day, or so. So, this stack is out of control. I get my nose to the grindstone trying to negotiate returns and all is going much better then expected. Here comes my inexperienced GM telling me I need to cut hours and send three of four people home for the day. I explain we have 5 appointments in the coming hour and that we need the staff in order to not…


This all happened a few years ago and things have only gotten worse.

I got hired to manage a glass shop. I get on site and find the place in complete disarray. I find out we lost money the past 6 quarters. I see a huge stack of windshields that are unspoken for. I’m talking 120 windshields for all makes and models. FYI glass shops operate on appointments. Make appointment, order glass for specific vehicle, it’s installed the next day, or so. So, this stack is out of control. I get my nose to the grindstone trying to negotiate returns and all is going much better then expected.

Here comes my inexperienced GM telling me I need to cut hours and send three of four people home for the day. I explain we have 5 appointments in the coming hour and that we need the staff in order to not fall behind. He says do it, so I comply and send three out of 4 employees home. Come the next hour and he’s begging me to come help him with all the appointments that are backed up.

Mind you all, I accepted lower pay to be a “non-working” manager, a.k.a. I don’t touch glass or work on vehicles. I remind him of this and let him know I’m not ruining my clothes based on his lack of foresight.

He calls me in the evening after work asking what happened, and I unload on him explaining that I specifically took the job at a lower rate to not work on the vehicles, and that I was wearing Polo head to toe. I asked him about the three people I sent home. I explained that those three hours of additional pay would have paid for itself handling 5 appointments. I let him know that I’m fully capable of managing this shop myself and that he should quit undermining me without thinking things through (always had a problem biting my tongue). We end the call on what I was thinking was a good note.

The next day I show up he says, I don’t think this is working out. I say “no shit. It’s obvious you have no idea what you’re doing. I’ve been doing this for a long time, how long were you a manager before becoming GM?” He says he was never a manager and says he fell in the position. I tell him to just get out of my way and just let me take care of things, and I’ll make him look good and make all of us money (hourly+very good bonuses for performance). He says I think I’m going to let you go. I thank him and say that’s probably best.

Not a month later he was relocated to a local shop returning as an basic installer.

Sucks to suck.

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