Antiwork

I come back from lunch to realize that the entire office is in tears. A manager who has committed 15 years to this company was let go with only 4 weeks severance pay after we were bought out by a private equity firm. This man dedicated his life and existence to our company and during lunch, he jumped off of an overpass. No job is worth your mental health. And please do NOT make your identity your job.

My last employer was paying for my Master's Degree, which was one of the reasons I was with them up until that point. The work culture became so toxic, that one day when I just came back from vacation, the general manager and two supervisors crowded me in a small room and tried to literally bully me. I quit right then and there. Multiple calls to HR? Nothing. Multiple calls to my union representatives? s*** out of luck. A week later, HR guy calls me and tells me that I need to pay back 60% of the master's degree that they had paid for. Now this was just the first year of the MBA. I told him that I would have to look at the paperwork that I signed originally, aka the contract, to see where it stated that I owed money back. He emails it to me. The thing…

I, 17M, have worked for four years teaching swim lessons and lifeguarding year round. I accepted a position as a lifeguard and teacher for my second summer at a summer camp. I make about $2,000 for eight weeks, one day off and 6-11 most days. The reason they say the wages are so low is to compensate for room and board, however, we all sleep in tent structures. I am currently being considered for an assistant director position, but they have not mentioned pay. What should I expect in terms of salary increase? They shut down talks of salary increase very quickly, however, I know they are massively underpaying me and I would like a reasonably small increase. My biggest issue is that I am not well-spoken or informed enough to argue for myself or say things in the most clear way. Any advice would be appreciated.