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Antiwork

“It’s MY job, or YOURS!”

Up until today, I had a fairly tolerable job (at least, as far as a retail job can be). My bosses loved to talk about how hard I worked, all the sales and quotas I made, how I managed to impress one of the higher ups of the company with my work. Was I a perfect worker? Of course not, but I was always honest and willing to work out situations. Against my better judgement, I continued to stay even after I kept getting called into work on my days off. Even after my training got largely abandoned during the holidays, and I was patient enough to try and wait until they get back to me (this will be important later). Even after my boss not-so-subtly asked me to choose my minimum-wage job over my just-hospitalized father. Even after everyone else who got hired alongside me quit because of issues…


Up until today, I had a fairly tolerable job (at least, as far as a retail job can be). My bosses loved to talk about how hard I worked, all the sales and quotas I made, how I managed to impress one of the higher ups of the company with my work. Was I a perfect worker? Of course not, but I was always honest and willing to work out situations.

Against my better judgement, I continued to stay even after I kept getting called into work on my days off. Even after my training got largely abandoned during the holidays, and I was patient enough to try and wait until they get back to me (this will be important later). Even after my boss not-so-subtly asked me to choose my minimum-wage job over my just-hospitalized father. Even after everyone else who got hired alongside me quit because of issues with this one boss.

One day, some higher ups came up to me and pressured me into doing some procedures that I was only barely (and in some cases, never) trained for. I try to explain my lack of experience, only for it to fall on deaf ears. Okay, frustrating, but nothing too bad. Then came in my boss, who was sick the other day (and tried to drag me into work on my birthday despite going out of his way to give me time off that I didn't even ask for, btw).

Told my boss what happened, gently explained for the umpteenth time about the training I should be getting. He told me that I been here a year and should know all this. Yes. A year. Kept mostly in the dark. Then he asked me why I didn't have the “foresight” to go off the clock and practice with someone else who was working (which I'm pretty sure is a bit illegal?) He would go on to blow up at me about how I've done nothing on this job but lazily stand around “collecting paychecks”, and act like I was the one actively threatening his own job. “It's my job or yours, and I like my job. I'm not losing my job.”

I was obviously disillusioned and that affected the rest of my work day. That unfortunately didn't stop him from continuing to verbally harass me throughout that day, constantly asking if this job was “too much pressure/responsibility for me” “are you even working?” “I can't cover for you forever”

Pretty sure I did the right thing in leaving his ass (and that job), right?

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