FULL RANT
27M
I was a full time customer service manager at a grocery store, I was there for 4 years and was one of the 3 only people who has gotten a promotion from just a part time cashier to customer service and was the only one who then got promoted to Full time CSM & for a time part time assistant Curbside Pickup manager. After having to deal with the pandemic and being an essential worker (we all had to sue the company through the union to even get hazard pay; which in its own was only a flat $150). After working 6 nights a week, skipping meals, 59-61avg hour work weeks, not seeing my friends or family, I only made under ~$400 a week.
I physically and mentally broke down knowing that at the end of the year I basically made under 30k a year. Full time. I put in a request to go down to part time again so I could go to college, I found a good online school for accounting and/or data analytics. I even offered to train whoever they saw fit to replace me, knowing alot of managers have flat out quit over the course of 2 years, being mentally and sometimes physically berated by customers. And my bosses flat out said “no”. I was told they can't afford to lose my time here and no one else could learn everything. I was also told that my vacation request (which was put in 3 months ago and approved because I needed a minor surgery) was now denied 2 days prior due to short staffing. And then was told the other CSM had a wedding that fell in my vacation week. When I called the union about it they said “well it's a wedding so maybe you can postpone your vacation and surgery”
Absofuckinglutely not.
So I put in a 3 weeks notice. I gave them the extra week solely out of respect for all my remaining cashier's under me, who I wanted to properly and thoroughly train on self checkout and customer service desk so that they weren't thrown to the wolves like me and so they wouldn't panic during busy shifts.
The next day I was told how rude I was for “blindsiding then with this news” and “think about the company” manipulation and gaslighting bs
“Nobody wants to work” no, nobody wants to be exploited. There's no incentive to go up in this company, I only did it to guarantee consistent hours so I could maybe afford food at the grocery store I run the floor of. I told them I won't be staying late due to class after work and to “not worry about a thing with me leaving, I'm sure you'll bounce back!”
It's been a week since my last day and sales plummeted. None of the other managers bothered to realize I was the one who did sales reports and ordered plastic/paper bags and lottery tickets for the machines. They called other stores to find a replacement for me, and was told all the other stores don't even have enough workers for themselves, and all my cashier's were offered promotions and have ALL said no due to there being only a 75¢ raise for all that responsibility
The only good thing about this job was that it was in walking distance and the morning hours
$13.75/hr as a full time manager is a joke.
Fuck Stop & Shop and Fuck UFCW Local 1262 union, the most watered down pro corp union I've ever seen.