An Exacting Workplace
I was 36, and in the middle of a divorce. I loved my job, but needed 9-5 hours, so I took a job at a marketing/inspirational products company. I was to answer phones, ship all incoming orders, take care of office supplies, and I had a $200 per week budget to purchase snacks for the office. In addition, I was to keep the kitchens (there were two) stocked with supplies.
My first clue that something wasn’t right should have been when three people that I met the first day described the boss as “intense.” My first week there he called me in to his office to tell me that he went to the kitchen and there were no spoons in the drawer. He said that he knew they were right in the cabinet, but that would have taken him 2-3 seconds out if his work day. Then he told me that if all 20 people that worked at the company had to get a spoon out of the cabinet, that was potentially a full minute out of the work day that they would not be productive. Intense indeed.
Working hours were 8-5, but most everyone was there by 7 a.m. and worked until at least 7 p.m. at night, because that was expected. Leaving on time was cause for an “uncomfortable conversation” about your attitude. I had a review after six months, and my boss told me several things to work on, but said that overall, she was happy with my performance. Two days later, she noticed that I had placed the label on a shipment a little crooked, and she told me to start looking for another job. I worked there for another month, and then they fired half of the company, including me, ten days before Christmas. The kicker was that they asked me to work the whole day, because we were so busy, and then completely screamed at me for leaving at 5 p.m.
5 stars for the outrage at the end over leaving at 5pm after they had already fired you! I would’ve walked out long before than!
Ahh, what a nice sight to see. A story that makes me cringe, makes me relate to the OP, makes me feel sorry for the OP.
You stayed?! What assholes. I would have flushed towels down all the toilets…
psycho!
I’m with tronner. I was cringing the entire story. So uncomfortable & awkward. That lady sounds……well, yeah. Intense is a good word.
Wait… was your boss a man or a woman?
The owner (who had the spoon thing) was a man – my direct boss was a woman. And they were both completely crazy.
OP – merely trying to get an idea of how crazy your direct boss was – how “crooked” was the shipping label? I don’t’ think I’ve ever gotten one on completely straight!
Funny how ‘intense’ is often a signal for ‘psycho’….intensity can be a good quality to have but since most people are so bland, they use it as way to describe nutjobs. These people are not only total shits, but psycho as well. Obviously, they use fear to manipulate people. They sort of remind me of one place I worked, where people were always being fired for nothing and then they laid off tons of people
I can’t believe you stayed! I would have been out of there as soon as they told me I was fired.
They wouldn’t give me anything detailing severance until the afternoon. The thing is, I had a phone interview during lunch on my last day, and my manager actually called my cell phone and wanted to know where I was because I had been gone too long. When I told her I was leaving at 5, she just kept saying “But we have so much to do!” Ummm, then maybe you shouldn’t have just fired half the company?
Wow. That’s just… janky.
if someone is described as ‘intense’ i generally take it to mean a creep who makes other people feel uncomfortable.
@rawr: I don’t know what janky means but I like how it sounds.