i left my last job after five months and it was the best move i could ever have made. i had a manager who was such a raging bitch day and night that almost everyone leaving the job cited her as the reason. i literally never once had a pleasant interaction with her. literally not once. it was no secret, it was no joke, this woman was full of rage and spite and hatred for all staff constantly.
my first interaction with her was a red flag. day one in my interview (for some background, this job was as a cashier for minimum wage) she said, 'well, if i did hire you, you'd definitely be one of the older gals'. i was thirty so, like ya, i guess i should be retired? the very first day on the job, the red flags continued. since the job was part time, she came around to ask me how many hours a week i'd be willing to work max and i was like, 'oh, probably just thirty' she just laughed and said 'why would you only work thirty? that's nothing, you're available for forty. i'm putting you down for forty.'
during my five months there, she also purposely ignored messages i left for her. one morning, i'd phoned in early and left a message i hoped she'd get when she got in. i was asking whether i'd be working outside that day and if i'd need wet weather gear because it was supposed to be raining all day. i came in without getting a reply and figured she just hadn't gotten my message. i asked her when i saw her and she said 'oh, i got your message.' and i was like 'oh… why didn't you call me back?' she literally laughed and said 'i don't call people back just to tell them what to wear.'
applications for time off well in advance always being denied, signing paper promising to do stuff like put all the bills in my cash facing the same direction, there are endless examples of her being a bitch, i could just go on and on. she basically called me stupid on several occasions, and just generally said and did things i don't let anybody do or say to me. it was pretty textbook abuse and she expected me to take it because she was my boss. meanwhile i'm like, bitch, you ain't shit and i'm leaving your ass as soon as i can.
i remember when i left, she basically said 'good luck, nobody would ever hire you.' literally one interview later, i got my current job. do you know how fairly this place treats me? it's nuts. i have to leave early? no problem, they trust i actually have to. working some particularly heavy shifts? once we're over the hump, they get me back with some reduced hours or duties. having worked both jobs for about the same amount of time, being the same kind of worker, where i am now i've already had a raise and been hired full time with benefits. where i was before, i was burning out and working sometimes more than 40 hours a week with no benefits. where i am now, they're building me up, where i was, they were trying to destroy me.
i know you need to pay the bills, i know 'i've already worked here X amount of time, i might as well stay' but DON'T. i know they're all shit jobs, but some are way less shitty than others and you deserve the least shitty.