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Can't Take It Back...
10 years ago
General
A brief summary of some ongoing events at work: This coming Monday is my store's inventory. For those not familiar with the concept, it's simply when a third party company comes into a retail store and spends a super early morning or a night counting the entirety of the store's stock. In my current role, a great deal of the preparation for this event is rested squarely on me.
I've been on overnight shifts since Sunday trying to get all of our back stock organized and labeled in preparation for Inventory. Before that [like 2 months prior to now], I have tried several times to initiate and tinker away at this preparation, so that when we got down to the wire [aka NOW] there wouldn't be any reason to stress. However, corporate visits, weekly trucks, and massive rearrangement projects kept me tied up and I haven't been able to devote any real time to prep until just last week.
To add to the fuckery, my GM essentially took away one of my overnight shifts. I still worked it...but, rather than getting to move ahead on inventory prep, it was asked of me that I count ALL of the dated goods. That's a huge category of product in my store! It's an entire aisle + several promo locations + 2 back stock spots. I protested this request mightily because it would eat up the better part of a whole night, but, he's the boss...so I fucking did it. In fact, I put my head down and worked through several more requests that were made of me before immediately returning to what really needed to get done. Now it's almost the end of the week though and I am really running out of time. To make matters worse, tomorrow we're to receive a massive truck. Thirteen pallets of freight that will need to be broken down and put out onto the shelves or labeled before 3AM on Monday.
Since I got up earlier this afternoon, I've been mulling over ideas on how to deal with that. I've already worked 3 shifts this week and technically I need my last 2 shifts purely for inventory prep. However, I also play a crucial role in the breaking down/putting away of the trucks each week and it is expected of me that I make this one disappear as quickly as possible AND get done with everything else too. So, while going round and round in my head on how to make all that happen [given that I really don't want to have to go in on Saturday and Sunday too...especially because that will mean working 13 days in a row with no day off], I happened upon an idea!
And now, here's a snippet of a text conversation that went down between me and my GM this evening [any text in brackets is my commentary and not part of the conversation]:
That's right. Tonight, I gave the very first indication to my GM that I'm not happy-as-could-be at work and that I'm thinking of quitting. Sure, I've talked about it with coworkers and other managers and even told them about some of the places I applied to that I was most hopeful about. Through all of it though, I never did bring it up with my GM. Honestly, I really wanted to wait until I had a new job lined up before just plopping my 2 weeks notice in his hands like a goddamn bomb.
I meant what I said though. The severe sense of panic and dread that sank into my chest when he shot down my idea about the truck AND dropped a 2 hour project in my lap, taking even more time away from what I desperately need to finish, and almost guaranteeing at this point that I will have to work through the weekend... I've never felt so claustrophobic and trapped while sitting in my own house. I've been tired for a very VERY long time and even gone to some pretty dark places in my thoughts. Please don't read that and worry... I've got way too many people who care about me to do anything stupid. But this pressure is very real and eventually you have to react before something gives and crushes you altogether.
So...all this to say...I don't really know what's going to happen over the next couple weeks. My manager immediately responded to that text asking if he could call me. I don't want to beat around the bush any further with lame promises that things will get better. I don't want to hear that inventory is a stressful time [like I haven't been dealing with it for over 10 goddamn years], but that we'll get through this and then things will be great. No. So, I didn't respond. Can't take back what I said though...and I have some decisions to make about what the future is going to be here...
I've been on overnight shifts since Sunday trying to get all of our back stock organized and labeled in preparation for Inventory. Before that [like 2 months prior to now], I have tried several times to initiate and tinker away at this preparation, so that when we got down to the wire [aka NOW] there wouldn't be any reason to stress. However, corporate visits, weekly trucks, and massive rearrangement projects kept me tied up and I haven't been able to devote any real time to prep until just last week.
To add to the fuckery, my GM essentially took away one of my overnight shifts. I still worked it...but, rather than getting to move ahead on inventory prep, it was asked of me that I count ALL of the dated goods. That's a huge category of product in my store! It's an entire aisle + several promo locations + 2 back stock spots. I protested this request mightily because it would eat up the better part of a whole night, but, he's the boss...so I fucking did it. In fact, I put my head down and worked through several more requests that were made of me before immediately returning to what really needed to get done. Now it's almost the end of the week though and I am really running out of time. To make matters worse, tomorrow we're to receive a massive truck. Thirteen pallets of freight that will need to be broken down and put out onto the shelves or labeled before 3AM on Monday.
Since I got up earlier this afternoon, I've been mulling over ideas on how to deal with that. I've already worked 3 shifts this week and technically I need my last 2 shifts purely for inventory prep. However, I also play a crucial role in the breaking down/putting away of the trucks each week and it is expected of me that I make this one disappear as quickly as possible AND get done with everything else too. So, while going round and round in my head on how to make all that happen [given that I really don't want to have to go in on Saturday and Sunday too...especially because that will mean working 13 days in a row with no day off], I happened upon an idea!
And now, here's a snippet of a text conversation that went down between me and my GM this evening [any text in brackets is my commentary and not part of the conversation]:
Me: So, if the truck is truly gigantic tomorrow and it's going to pose this huge, stressful threat all weekend as to whether we're going to be ready for inventory...is it even remotely an option to leave it untouched/unreceived until after they finish on Monday? I would be willing to stay till 1-2PM to be sure the totes were broken down and that the closing people have stuff to work on. [My shift is to start at 3 AM on Monday...which is going to mean I will be up 1:30AM to get ready for work. Going to be a long looooooong ass day, and I just offered to make it even longer.]
GM: We can't do that. We have 4 days and we should be able to get a good chunk of it done. [He's talking like all we have to worry with now is the truck...forgetting entirely that I still have all this other shit to do to get ready for inventory.] Worst case scenario, I'll have to have you come in a little earlier on Monday and label flatbeds if there's still product on them.
Me: ...
GM: Oh, and also, my boss was barking today about getting the returns done. I did 5 out of the 6 for you. [I'm sure he didn't do the damn paperwork right... Also, good product returns aren't due until Friday. Why the fuck was he demanding they be done on a Wed???] The last one is huge though and I didn't want to waste a bunch of time tracking down the product. You're going to need to do that first thing in the morning so he'll stop bitching.
Me: Ok
... [like 15 minutes after my initial response]
Me: I really can't do this for much longer...That's right. Tonight, I gave the very first indication to my GM that I'm not happy-as-could-be at work and that I'm thinking of quitting. Sure, I've talked about it with coworkers and other managers and even told them about some of the places I applied to that I was most hopeful about. Through all of it though, I never did bring it up with my GM. Honestly, I really wanted to wait until I had a new job lined up before just plopping my 2 weeks notice in his hands like a goddamn bomb.
I meant what I said though. The severe sense of panic and dread that sank into my chest when he shot down my idea about the truck AND dropped a 2 hour project in my lap, taking even more time away from what I desperately need to finish, and almost guaranteeing at this point that I will have to work through the weekend... I've never felt so claustrophobic and trapped while sitting in my own house. I've been tired for a very VERY long time and even gone to some pretty dark places in my thoughts. Please don't read that and worry... I've got way too many people who care about me to do anything stupid. But this pressure is very real and eventually you have to react before something gives and crushes you altogether.
So...all this to say...I don't really know what's going to happen over the next couple weeks. My manager immediately responded to that text asking if he could call me. I don't want to beat around the bush any further with lame promises that things will get better. I don't want to hear that inventory is a stressful time [like I haven't been dealing with it for over 10 goddamn years], but that we'll get through this and then things will be great. No. So, I didn't respond. Can't take back what I said though...and I have some decisions to make about what the future is going to be here...
To be honest, it sounds like your opinions aren't respected and that you're basically being treated like a doormat/their plan B which means they know you'll be there to bail them out.
This is one of the many reasons why I decided to leave my last job. I always wondered why they were having trouble filling a particular part of the department (being a manager and all) now I know why.