I work for a composite decking company. The facility is terrible, it’s reminds me of one of those pop up carnivals. Everything is barley put together, half working, and all full of tweakers and felons. When I first started there was a ton of overtime. Like maybe getting two days off a week because of the mandatory overtime. 12 hour shifts too which means you have to say goodbye to whatever plans you had that day. Whatever tho, it’s a factory and that what comes with the gig I suppose. Around a year in, I get promoted to leadership. Fuck yeah no more overtime for me, more pay and I have to do a fraction of the work (funny how leadership works right?). It was alright expect seeing first hand that all our “leadership” does is sit up in the tower and watch football and circle jerk themselves. That drove me insane that while people are working out in this factory they are up there eating Taco Bell calling the people below them peasants. Don’t get me started on the work conditions. Micro plastics, dust, fires, explosions, and who knows what else’s is floating around. People having to work in fumes of smoke coming from melting plastics. It took me three whole shifts to get a face shield. Can’t get a new pair of Kevlar sleeves or gloves because “they spent a lot of money of Ppe” I don’t give a fuck they should be providing me with it no matter what.
A few months ago they fired over 100 people from our factory. No warning. People who have been working there for over 5 years just show up to work like always and suddenly they don’t have a job anymore. I get demoted, and my pay cut over three dollars and hour. I get told I’m lucky to still have my job. Here’s the thing, they gave my old job to someone else (he’s in leadership duh) who had zero training for it. AND HE GOT A RAISE FOR IT. so he’s getting paid more than I was for a job I had for close to a year. Now I’m working in shredded plastic, melting plastics, trash with no one helping me or training me to do anything. And I can’t get any ppe. One guy in leadership tried to get me a face shield and he tried his card on the vending machine thing, didn’t work, he just shrugged his shoulders and walked away. Fuck this place and fuck working. I’m tired of never being able to get ahead. Even if I bust my ass and get promoted it means nothing because if I’m not in the favorite club it will just be given to someone else who does not deserve it.
I’m going to quit. It’s not worth my self respect anymore. I’d rather hardly get by than work for another scum bag company like this.