I suppose this really hit home for me the other night when I happened across an article about minimum wage being raised and was curious (hopeful) that in my state of NC there would be an increase as well seeing it's currently 7.25 and hasn't been raised in over a decade. To my disgust I find not only isn't it being raised here, but there are seemingly no real great effort to raise it in the future either. What's worst is that Virginia which is a mere stone throw away from me is going to see their minimum wage raised to 11.25 and hour this coming January!
Senses discovering this other night I just felt this rage and sickness boiling over inside of me that frankly makes me want to go mad. HOW THE FUCK ARE PEOPLE SUPPOSED TO LIVE ON THIS!!! My current job is an Assistant manager at a Piggly Wiggly that only pays 12 dollars and hour which is a full time job. I gained this position earlier this year and only saw a dollar raise a few moths after I asked for 2 dollars more an hour explaining that due to inflation and my added responsibilities that that my current pay just wasn't enough. I only received the 1 dollar raise.
You hear the stories about how retail absolutely sucks and I assure you it's absolutely true, between the high turn over rate and running a grocery store on a skeleton crew is a nightmare to say the least. How does one even keep their sanity? The 2 measly days I get off from work feel more like just a break and recovery period and a time to run errands and other need to be done thing. Hardly time to just spend the day relaxing or doing anything really.
Last month I caught Covid from I suspect a cashier who had not a week before, but the strange things was it actually game me over a week to myself. Yes I was sick as a dog, but at least I had time to myself and not have to worry about work and nonsense that entails. Isn't that just tragic? The only way I could get any meaningful time off was becoming infected with a virus that could potentially kill you!!
I've applied to other job during my time at this store, but nothing pans out or we'll call you crap. It's fucking depressing as hell and each day I feel like I have to fight all the harder to even justify even going into for the sake of my own mental health, but there isn't even a damn choice. It's either work or you can't pay the damn bills which get higher every year while the pay is garbage.
I'm a slave to a system that I have 0 control over and there isn't a damn thing I can do about it, but wither away until I can no longer even do it anymore. What kind of future or life is that to look forward to for me or anyone else in a similar situation? What happen when you car break, welp there goes any money I've barely saved up to fix a damn car that is a money pit, but I can't even afford to get something better cause I'm buried by bills repair and what other nonsense happen to occur.
All this anger and frustration is just tiring and wears me down…
Apologies for the rant