Waitress because people are awful to service workers. The number of shitty guys trying to hit on me and the number of deadbeats trying to complain about the food they just ate was so exhausting.
A job with a micromanaging manager with a bad personality. She was new. I didn’t like being micromanaged, but I tolerated it. I didn’t like the micromanaging manager or her behaviour, but I tolerated it. However, all my coworkers quit (employees that were with the company for years). So there I was, the last “oldest” employee at the job (even though I used to be the newest employee. I only worked at the job for 2.5 years total, the micromanaging manager started the job when I was at 2 years), and I was required to train so many new people (I later heard they all quit). I eventually quit, but it took me some time (6 months total). Later, I heard the micromanaging manager got fired. Much later, I heard that the owners sold the business.
Before the micromanager came on, I thought I would stay at the job for many years. But thanks to her micromanaging ways, all my past coworkers and myself eventually obtained better-paying jobs elsewhere.
Got employed as a receptionist. When I started it turned out that was not the job, the job was HR data entry and I was continuously pulled up on entering the wrong postcodes – because handwritten Us and Vs are not always obviously distinguishable. When I was told to concentrate in the back office and wear comfortable clothing to do so I was pulled up on what I was wearing. It was a nightmare.
Cashier at Sears. The PoS system was a clunky mess that must’ve been decades old. And most of the job involved being pressured to pressure customers to sign up for credit cards. Most of our customers were immigrants who barely spoke English, I’m not gonna steamroll people into doing a hard credit pull when it’s obvious they’re politely smiling or nodding because they have no idea what I’m asking of them.
Recreation director at an adult day care center. I was forced to take patients to the bathroom 😐 Getting fired from there ended up being one of the happiest days of my life. It was my first real job after university. In 2009. Fresh in the middle of the recession 😒 Know your worth ya’ll cause some of these employers are abusive especially in healthcare! I said what I said. Hence why I have tons of respect for nurses, CNAs, etc. Even the housekeeping staff. Unsung heroes to me!
Worked for a family owned retail store. She randomly changed my schedule to on call, verbally abused me, cut my pay and actually refused to pay me my final paycheck. I should’ve quit like 2 months sooner than i did
Going door to door trying to sign people up for monthly donations for kids via world vision. Shit model of development, soul crushing work, below minimum wage and straight up dangerous at times. Lasted 6 months.
Retail manager for one of the big mobile carriers. I dealt with all the escalations and was verbally abused daily by customers. Most of my coworkers were a joy and some were a constant headache. My mental health took such a nose dive after the company refused to have my back in a customer escalation that I proved my store wasn’t at fault for. I started having serious suicidal thoughts. Thank god I was able to get out soon after that.
i worked in a billionaire banquet hall for three days before quitting , it was HORRIBLE . The treatment of staff was evil, the lied to me about my salary and actually took wages for scraps of the catered food they offered us (it was not optional, even if you didn’t eat it), it was exhausting and we were treated like scum . Not to mention the actual events were all held by crazy rich people who likely hadn’t worked a day in their lives and acted like we were nothing
my first night i was working the dessert section of a wedding- i was 16 mind you- a drunk man came up to me and took his hands and rubbed them down my breasts, all the way down my torso and smeared white chocolate all down the $130 tuxedo uniform that i had to pay for OUT OF POCKET. Disgusting.
i’m a dancer now and my job has sucky moments some nights , but i love it
Assistant to an accountant. All I had to do was type old, hand-written documents, it was mind-numbingly boring and paid less than minimum wage. I did it for a month and hated every single second of it.
That’s a real toss up between my job at a putt putt style amusement center populated with a bunch of bullies and my first job out of college that managed to combine insurance, taxes, software quality control, and a ridiculously long commute in the most soul sucking way possible.
My first ever job was for a mom&pop pizza place and the owner would tell me not to come in if I didn’t do my makeup. I got dress coded constantly for the exact same outfit that other employees were wearing. They would only give me uniforms that were 2 sizes too big so that it hid my body shape. I dyed my hair pink once and she told me that I needed to wear mascara cuz the pink made my eyelashes seem invisible?
Front desk at a construction company. The men I worked with were so disrespectful and sexually harassed me on a daily basis. Would tell them flatly to stop and they would continue to do it. I was 17-18 when I worked there. Would never do that again.
Also side note, one of the general managers got fired and when he turned in his company phone it has sneaky pictures of me on it! Disgusting!
My current one! I work for a large tech company and I loathe it. My managers are incompetent and our processes are so confusing they’ll make your head spin. I’m only in it for the money until something better comes along.
You would think fast food would be my worst job, but no, my worst job was working at a Beall’s Department Store. Typically worked in the back in taking receiving. The Assistant Managers son came to work at the store. He was a complete F*CK UP. When no one was around, he would say the most vile sexual things to me and another young lady (both under 18 yrs old). The only good thing I learned from that job was how to wrap a package without wasting paper. I loved the bow machine. When the Manager wasn’t around, I made massive bows.
those toilets and pubes will never leave my memories… but it was part of my life and journey and I am not ashamed of that, opposite, I will always be grateful where I am now.
Caregiver in a memory care (dementia) unit. It wasn’t the patients that made it bad, it was the way it was managed. We were severely understaffed and the institution knew it, but didn’t want to hire any more people because money. The result was there was way too few of us to take care of a lot of people, and patients would basically get neglected because of it. Sitting in dirty diapers for too long, wearing unwashed clothes, etc. Institutionalized neglect
A dueling piano bar. I lasted 4 hours LOL. Here’s why
I’m a small female. This place didn’t open til MIDNIGHT. The only parking was about 4 blocks away at a parking garage near the city. I had to walk to the place by myself in the dark, felt unsafe
they didn’t train me. They very quickly showed me their POS system once, made me follow another waitress to see her take a couple orders and then threw me on the floor saying “good luck!” I didn’t know their menu, I had never worked with alcohol before (I was underage myself), I didn’t know what types/brands of alcohol they had, how to garnish, nothing. And it was a place where you had to hand write orders and pass it to the cooks but put drinks into the POS.
it wasn’t a sit down type of place. There were tables, yea, but customers were kind of roaming around and moving about. I tried to take orders but couldn’t remember who went where, whose card I had, etc because I was used to seat numbers. After an hour of the place being open it was PACKED. Very overwhelming
After 4 hours I went to the back and had a panic attack and cried. I told the manager to unlock the office so I can grab my things and he goes “wow are you serious right now” yes I’m very serious. I felt bad after because I gave another server the customers cards i had and just walked tf out, customers prob thought i stole their credit cards for a second lmao. Yall didn’t train me at all. Had no idea wtf was going on. It was a very intense sink or swim situation and I SUNK. Like 1 shift of following another server would have been the bare minimum.
I worked as a maid at a cleaning company for a summer during college. 12 hour shifts, no lunch break, and severely underpaid. Most of the women working there were undocumented, so had no repercussions for the terribly low pay. I gained a new respect for people who come to America looking to care for their families. Those women worked hard 6 days a week, some for 10+ years, and never complained. I made it 2 months.
In between jobs I had to keep working to pay bills and had to work in a factory that imported grapes and packaged them to sell in supermarkets. Downright the worst job and working environment. It was made worse by the rude line managers, but I think they were simply under management pressure. Still, no need to be rude and condescending. A few were really nice.
The only thing that kept me sane standing and cutting grape bunches for 8 hours was the radio they played on the loudspeakers. Some of the songs when I hear them again being back those memories and i fondly recall how the song helped me.
Overnight merchandising for a grocery store. I started work at 8pm and got off at around 4am. It was mind numbing measuring exactly how much space every single item took on the shelf, reading every single sku and expiration date, and having to freeze myself reorganizing stuff in the freezers. Best thing was that I got to listen to music while I worked but I definitely only lasted a couple months trying to do that and school during the day full time.
Really crappy warehouse where the bosses were openly misogynistic and only hired women because they “didn’t come with ideas”. Until they hired one man and loved his horrible ideas that ruined the process we had, and said we weren’t doing a good job when any of us pointed how this would affect us.
Working construction. Sexual harassment, constant homophobic/transphobic/racist jokes, and obviously hard labor. I was having so many GI issues during my time working construction, and two weeks after I left, they vanished. It turns out that my stomach issues were caused by being in fight or flight all the time and being in a constant state of anxiety on the job.
I was a substitute music teacher at an infamous high school, and the kids literally threw tomatoes at me while I was trying to teach. When I had to supervise on the playground, I feared for my life and did breathing exercises on my Fitbit watch to stay calm. One kid threatened to cut the baby out of a pregnant co-worker’s belly, I’m not kidding when I say this school was tough.
Comments
Being a waitress. Was constantly getting flirted by guys who got creepy and was really underpaid for how much I did
Anything customer service is just not fkn worth it.
Waitress because people are awful to service workers. The number of shitty guys trying to hit on me and the number of deadbeats trying to complain about the food they just ate was so exhausting.
I was a waitress in college… I hate the job but the tips were nice. The worst part were the creepy guys that would flirt or hit on me!
idk anything retail specifically service counter
I volunteered to lead a Daisy troop when my daughters were younger. The kids were delightful. The parents were a NIGHTMARE. Never again.
Waitress at a tourist trap seafood restaurant in Seattle. We worked doubles all summer and management treated us like shit. I was miserable.
I didn’t hate waiting tables. I hated THAT restaurant.
Waitress at Denny’s.
A job with a micromanaging manager with a bad personality. She was new. I didn’t like being micromanaged, but I tolerated it. I didn’t like the micromanaging manager or her behaviour, but I tolerated it. However, all my coworkers quit (employees that were with the company for years). So there I was, the last “oldest” employee at the job (even though I used to be the newest employee. I only worked at the job for 2.5 years total, the micromanaging manager started the job when I was at 2 years), and I was required to train so many new people (I later heard they all quit). I eventually quit, but it took me some time (6 months total). Later, I heard the micromanaging manager got fired. Much later, I heard that the owners sold the business.
Before the micromanager came on, I thought I would stay at the job for many years. But thanks to her micromanaging ways, all my past coworkers and myself eventually obtained better-paying jobs elsewhere.
Got employed as a receptionist. When I started it turned out that was not the job, the job was HR data entry and I was continuously pulled up on entering the wrong postcodes – because handwritten Us and Vs are not always obviously distinguishable. When I was told to concentrate in the back office and wear comfortable clothing to do so I was pulled up on what I was wearing. It was a nightmare.
Cashier at Sears. The PoS system was a clunky mess that must’ve been decades old. And most of the job involved being pressured to pressure customers to sign up for credit cards. Most of our customers were immigrants who barely spoke English, I’m not gonna steamroll people into doing a hard credit pull when it’s obvious they’re politely smiling or nodding because they have no idea what I’m asking of them.
Recreation director at an adult day care center. I was forced to take patients to the bathroom 😐 Getting fired from there ended up being one of the happiest days of my life. It was my first real job after university. In 2009. Fresh in the middle of the recession 😒 Know your worth ya’ll cause some of these employers are abusive especially in healthcare! I said what I said. Hence why I have tons of respect for nurses, CNAs, etc. Even the housekeeping staff. Unsung heroes to me!
Working in corporate retail
I worked at a betting shop, so depressing and gave me panic attacks about going into work.
I’m a cosmetologist. I used to love doing hair and nails, but now I absolutely hate it. I stopped working at the salon because It burnt me out.
Worked for a family owned retail store. She randomly changed my schedule to on call, verbally abused me, cut my pay and actually refused to pay me my final paycheck. I should’ve quit like 2 months sooner than i did
Going door to door trying to sign people up for monthly donations for kids via world vision. Shit model of development, soul crushing work, below minimum wage and straight up dangerous at times. Lasted 6 months.
Retail manager for one of the big mobile carriers. I dealt with all the escalations and was verbally abused daily by customers. Most of my coworkers were a joy and some were a constant headache. My mental health took such a nose dive after the company refused to have my back in a customer escalation that I proved my store wasn’t at fault for. I started having serious suicidal thoughts. Thank god I was able to get out soon after that.
i worked in a billionaire banquet hall for three days before quitting , it was HORRIBLE . The treatment of staff was evil, the lied to me about my salary and actually took wages for scraps of the catered food they offered us (it was not optional, even if you didn’t eat it), it was exhausting and we were treated like scum . Not to mention the actual events were all held by crazy rich people who likely hadn’t worked a day in their lives and acted like we were nothing
my first night i was working the dessert section of a wedding- i was 16 mind you- a drunk man came up to me and took his hands and rubbed them down my breasts, all the way down my torso and smeared white chocolate all down the $130 tuxedo uniform that i had to pay for OUT OF POCKET. Disgusting.
i’m a dancer now and my job has sucky moments some nights , but i love it
Assistant to an accountant. All I had to do was type old, hand-written documents, it was mind-numbingly boring and paid less than minimum wage. I did it for a month and hated every single second of it.
That’s a real toss up between my job at a putt putt style amusement center populated with a bunch of bullies and my first job out of college that managed to combine insurance, taxes, software quality control, and a ridiculously long commute in the most soul sucking way possible.
Nurse. Nurses in Germany are treated like shit
My first ever job was for a mom&pop pizza place and the owner would tell me not to come in if I didn’t do my makeup. I got dress coded constantly for the exact same outfit that other employees were wearing. They would only give me uniforms that were 2 sizes too big so that it hid my body shape. I dyed my hair pink once and she told me that I needed to wear mascara cuz the pink made my eyelashes seem invisible?
Front desk at a construction company. The men I worked with were so disrespectful and sexually harassed me on a daily basis. Would tell them flatly to stop and they would continue to do it. I was 17-18 when I worked there. Would never do that again.
Also side note, one of the general managers got fired and when he turned in his company phone it has sneaky pictures of me on it! Disgusting!
Night auditor for a golf course/restaurant/bar.
When I worked at a toddler nursery. The other people that worked there were awful
My current one! I work for a large tech company and I loathe it. My managers are incompetent and our processes are so confusing they’ll make your head spin. I’m only in it for the money until something better comes along.
You would think fast food would be my worst job, but no, my worst job was working at a Beall’s Department Store. Typically worked in the back in taking receiving. The Assistant Managers son came to work at the store. He was a complete F*CK UP. When no one was around, he would say the most vile sexual things to me and another young lady (both under 18 yrs old). The only good thing I learned from that job was how to wrap a package without wasting paper. I loved the bow machine. When the Manager wasn’t around, I made massive bows.
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Street sales harasser. The job was so annoying that the government banned it from a number of places.
Got a dream job and it turned out to be a disaster. Crazy disorganised boss who was racist as hell.
Room attendant… knock knock, housekeepiiiiiiing!!!
those toilets and pubes will never leave my memories… but it was part of my life and journey and I am not ashamed of that, opposite, I will always be grateful where I am now.
AppleBees line cook. the whole 8 hour shift was high stress
Caregiver in a memory care (dementia) unit. It wasn’t the patients that made it bad, it was the way it was managed. We were severely understaffed and the institution knew it, but didn’t want to hire any more people because money. The result was there was way too few of us to take care of a lot of people, and patients would basically get neglected because of it. Sitting in dirty diapers for too long, wearing unwashed clothes, etc. Institutionalized neglect
Front desk at massage envy
A dueling piano bar. I lasted 4 hours LOL. Here’s why
I’m a small female. This place didn’t open til MIDNIGHT. The only parking was about 4 blocks away at a parking garage near the city. I had to walk to the place by myself in the dark, felt unsafe
they didn’t train me. They very quickly showed me their POS system once, made me follow another waitress to see her take a couple orders and then threw me on the floor saying “good luck!” I didn’t know their menu, I had never worked with alcohol before (I was underage myself), I didn’t know what types/brands of alcohol they had, how to garnish, nothing. And it was a place where you had to hand write orders and pass it to the cooks but put drinks into the POS.
it wasn’t a sit down type of place. There were tables, yea, but customers were kind of roaming around and moving about. I tried to take orders but couldn’t remember who went where, whose card I had, etc because I was used to seat numbers. After an hour of the place being open it was PACKED. Very overwhelming
After 4 hours I went to the back and had a panic attack and cried. I told the manager to unlock the office so I can grab my things and he goes “wow are you serious right now” yes I’m very serious. I felt bad after because I gave another server the customers cards i had and just walked tf out, customers prob thought i stole their credit cards for a second lmao. Yall didn’t train me at all. Had no idea wtf was going on. It was a very intense sink or swim situation and I SUNK. Like 1 shift of following another server would have been the bare minimum.
I worked as a maid at a cleaning company for a summer during college. 12 hour shifts, no lunch break, and severely underpaid. Most of the women working there were undocumented, so had no repercussions for the terribly low pay. I gained a new respect for people who come to America looking to care for their families. Those women worked hard 6 days a week, some for 10+ years, and never complained. I made it 2 months.
Au Pair
In between jobs I had to keep working to pay bills and had to work in a factory that imported grapes and packaged them to sell in supermarkets. Downright the worst job and working environment. It was made worse by the rude line managers, but I think they were simply under management pressure. Still, no need to be rude and condescending. A few were really nice.
The only thing that kept me sane standing and cutting grape bunches for 8 hours was the radio they played on the loudspeakers. Some of the songs when I hear them again being back those memories and i fondly recall how the song helped me.
I did this for two months.
Overnight merchandising for a grocery store. I started work at 8pm and got off at around 4am. It was mind numbing measuring exactly how much space every single item took on the shelf, reading every single sku and expiration date, and having to freeze myself reorganizing stuff in the freezers. Best thing was that I got to listen to music while I worked but I definitely only lasted a couple months trying to do that and school during the day full time.
[removed]
Working in a gift shop. Boring.
Really crappy warehouse where the bosses were openly misogynistic and only hired women because they “didn’t come with ideas”. Until they hired one man and loved his horrible ideas that ruined the process we had, and said we weren’t doing a good job when any of us pointed how this would affect us.
Working construction. Sexual harassment, constant homophobic/transphobic/racist jokes, and obviously hard labor. I was having so many GI issues during my time working construction, and two weeks after I left, they vanished. It turns out that my stomach issues were caused by being in fight or flight all the time and being in a constant state of anxiety on the job.
I was a substitute music teacher at an infamous high school, and the kids literally threw tomatoes at me while I was trying to teach. When I had to supervise on the playground, I feared for my life and did breathing exercises on my Fitbit watch to stay calm. One kid threatened to cut the baby out of a pregnant co-worker’s belly, I’m not kidding when I say this school was tough.
hostess in high school. so many creepy male managers
Waitressing during college. I realized I was much too introverted for it.
Being in retail. Specifically clothing stores/ department stores. Some people are so messy, rude, and inconsiderate.