Hi Reddit, I mostly just want to rant for a bit.
I work(ed) at one of the largest haunted attractions in the US for the last 5 years. I was promoted every single year I worked, and only ever missed ONE night of work during that time.
I loved it. I loved training actors, loved getting people into the haunt world, loved my little family of weirdos.
My first year, I dated and was SA’d by the person I was closest to at the haunt. I powered through it, I have an extensive SA history, I loved the haunt still, and I worked through it with my abuser still in management.
This season, I decided after hearing multiple stories about similar things happening to my actors (some underage!!) to tell the General Manager about what had happened to me.
A month later, my abuser was asked to step down. I applied for, interviewed for, and got his job. My abuser decided to quit fully.
Since then, I had been hiring, training, doing paperwork, doing everything I can to make the haunt a safer and more inclusive place. I decided to create an anonymous page on Facebook so that myself and the other victims I knew of could tell their stories. I had heard my abuser was trying to go to other haunted attractions, and I wanted to keep as many people safe as I could.
The page blew up past what I anticipated. I had multiple stories from people I didn’t know, some even claiming abuse at age 12. I posted all of them anonymously. I even asked our HR person if this was something the GM and owner would be okay with.
Many people that know me know about my abuse. I’m fairly nonchalant about it, personally. Probably not a great coping mechanism, but it’s the one I have. It was quickly figured out that I was the one running the page, and I didn’t mind.
My abusers girlfriend/FWB/whatever ended up messaging the page, insulting my looks/weight/personality and threatening legal action. It was laughable – she had no legal leg to stand on. I felt bad for her ultimately, my abuser was and still is a master manipulator. She quit, then started messaging anyone who liked the page threatening them with legal action.
There’s another employee, a maintenance man over 50 who’s dating our HR persons 20ish year old daughter, has tried dating me and several others in the past, and is a general creep. He made it clear on Facebook that he didn’t believe any of the 10+ stories, and was on his side. He started messaging actors telling them that I was a liar.
Now, I’m a social worker. I’m an expert in CYA. I screenshotted everything, most of the people these two were messaging were my friends and were happy to send me screenshots. I forwarded everything to our HR person, for records sake.
Well, our GM stepped down (I’ve heard from a reliable source the owner forced him to). The owner made himself the GM this year. There was some management reconstruction, but the owner never gave me a reason to feel that my job was in jeopardy.
I’m good at what I do. I know I am. I got a record number of actors to show up for an unpaid training (I didn’t even have to offer free food). Two days after this training, I was pulled aside by the owner/GM on my way into interviews, and fired. The conversation went as follows (to the best of my recollection):
“Hey I wanted to talk to you briefly. We are asking some people to leave. The culture here is bad, it’s really bad. I appreciate everything you’ve done for us. I don’t know if you’d want to come back next year. I spoke to the lawyers and they agreed this was best. I’ll be letting go some other people, I’m sure you’ll hear about it. Go get whatever justice you need on the internet. Be safe driving.”
I was devastated. This was my passion. I do not regret being a voice for those that need one, not at all. But all I wanted is my job back. There was an immediate wave of actors quitting – including my husband, a manager for the last 4 years – and emails to corporate. At least 15 actors, new and veteran, quit within the first 48 hours.
It’s been less than a week since I was fired. I’m still heartbroken. I’ve talked to a lawyer. I know I have a case. But I’ve got one last ditch effort – a good friend of mine who has worked there far longer than I did is trying to stage a walkout at a rehearsal. We’ve been reaching out to actors that have told us they’re upset but have yet to quit. We have about 15 actors and staff so far that have agreed to stand up with my friend. I hope many more will also stand.
“Why not just go to another haunt?”
The other ones near me are honestly even worse. They either pay you in pizza, or they turn an even bigger blind eye to creeps.
If the owner/GM still refuses to see reason without half of his employees, then protests, media, and legal action come next. They need to be held accountable.
Anyway, just wanted to tell my story and vent. I’ve been crying a lot, my appetite is nonexistent, and I’ve been dancing on the edge of self-harm. I’m taking care of myself best I can though, and I have a pretty great support system.