TLDR: found better opportunities so I no longer starve because of low paychecks. Boss cut my hours after receiving my two weeks as he felt I disrespected him by mentioning better pay and benefits. Sorry for the rant. Going through it.
Let me start by saying that I have job hopped frequently since COVID started due to necessity, homelessness, medical bills, etc. I've worked in fast food, retail, pharmacy, counseling, etc. I usually follow the best pay and hours in order to survive since I am still a college student. Absolutely none of my jobs have ever questioned, disrespected, or doubted my two weeks. They all thanked me for the formal letters I've written and some have even offered me promotions to keep me from leaving, told me to come back if I ever needed a job there, etc. I don't like burning bridges.
I've won awards from a lot of my jobs for great work ethic, best numbers, best customer service, etc. I dedicate way more to these shitty paying jobs than is necessary, but I'm anxious and eager to please unfortunately. Ass kissing pays the bills.
I found a job that semi related to my anticipated field a few months back and got hired at a striking $14 an hour. This particular job deals a lot with sexual health and wellness, so I didn't mind the low pay if it meant I got to help people.
Well boy was I wrong. I soon found myself in positions of constant sexual harassment from customers. I had vibrators thrown at me, customers who followed me around or stalked me on social media, etc. My boss didn't give a shit and pretended to do something but he couldn't even get us REAL security camera to protect us. Typical. To make things worse, I was constantly falling behind on bills and couldn't even afford groceries with my paycheck. I was doing all of this and my boss refused to increase my hours or give me benefits since I was still in college, even though I am pursuing an online asynchronous degree.
After a while I got sick of it and started keeping an eye out for other jobs. I was nearing the end of my senior year in college and was nearing the end of my internship with a huge (international) healthcare company. A few weeks before I was done the semester, I was stopped by an old colleague of mine in the center and was told to apply for a position within the company that fit my exact anticipated career. The job would pay significantly better and offer benefits after only 20 hours a week. In addition, it was completely remote and any travel would be compensated for both time AND mileage. I applied, interviewed, and was offered the job practically instantly as I had already been interning with the company for months. My position services half of my state and the service is growing in popularity, so I instantly have much needed job security.
I wrote up a very polite, formal, and carefully written two weeks notice and sent it to my boss. I came in this week to find my hours slashed (down from 37 to only 20) and my coworkers all tell me how he wanted me fired for making mention of “better compensation and benefits” in my resignation. It took a screaming match between my manager and my boss to keep me on as an employee but I'm still missing two entire shifts because my boss didn't appreciate my notice. I'm being let go four days before my notice states, too. I won't be able to pay my rent because of some petty games my boss wants to play. I can only hope my fiancee's increased hours can float us until I get settled into the new job. I didn't even have to give notice, let alone a formal written letter, but either way I was fucked over for the courtesy I gave.
I'm tired of being a replaceable cog in some fucked up machine. I'm praying this new job is better for me mentally as it's exactly my passion in life. It'll be nice having my nights and weekends back, too.