Bad bosses...

[CynicalGuitarist]

Does anybody else work a job that sucks donkey because of an abusive/apathetic/unempathetic boss? I've been working my job for a few months, and after just one month, I've been hearing how slow, stupid, and worthless I am. It used to be tolerable, but now I'm absolutely tired of it. I'm as tired of it as a broken record. I'd find a new job, or permanently transfer to another place (that's at least a 50 mile drive roundtrip) but the only reason I'm stuck at this job is because I can't get hired anywhere else. However, I'm physically, psychologically, and spiritually exhausted from all my boss's BS. You could put him in a room where there's nothing stressful at all, and he's find something to gripe about.

 

It's gotten a lot worse lately; the VP of the company I work for and the regional director has totally torn apart the restaurant that I work for, as well as the low sales (because business is kinda slow around the mall) thus, he blames his employees (me, usually as a scapegoat) for being slow, rude, stupid, lazy, whatever instead of the fact that he never tries any positive reinforcement or to even look at his own behavior. When I last worked (Saturday), I heard over and over how he's "light years ahead of us" how "We (me and another co-worker) are no good" and "Every item I sell is a Combo meal, you don't know how to talk to people!" and he's even blamed me if a particular item isn't selling. What the crap am I supposed to do; force or coerce someone into buying something? Screw that! I wish he would just piss off and go sit in his angry chair and leave me the crap alone! I'm sick of his senility and making me "guilty until proven innocent" if something goes wrong. At this point, I don't care if he fires me; even though I am not in the mood for going on another unsuccessful job search. I don't know how much more of this I can take, though; the co-worker I previously mentioned is usually cheery and all, but on Saturday, he was in the pits after being lambasted and chastised incessantly. My boss has called me "stupid boy" under his breath, just barely audible to my ear, and has talked to another one of my co-workers behind my back that me and the usually-cheery co-worker are "no good employees". I wish he would stop being a bloody coward and tell me that to my face already! It's not like I haven't had negative reinforcement before.

 

I really dream of having an "Office Space"-esque 'take this job and shove it!' trance, but I need the money. However, I am not sure if my emotions and spirit can tolerate the abuse much longer. The reason I receive so much abuse must be because I'm an easy target; an artistic poster-boy for ADHD and a living antithesis of "perfection". Oh, the things I do to earn that almighty dollar!

 

On a more positive note; I went Hiking at the local wildlife preserve. Despite a couple of small blisters, I had quite a good time. I really like escaping from civilization sometimes.

[rocio]

Go with at least one other coworker and discuss the matter with his superior. You shouldn't have to let anyone talk to you that way, but I know how it is when you need to pay the bills and options are slim.

[CynicalGuitarist]

Go with at least one other coworker and discuss the matter with his superior. You shouldn't have to let anyone talk to you that way, but I know how it is when you need to pay the bills and options are slim.

 

Kinda hard to do in a world where you aren't taken seriously unless you're over 24 and make a large enough salary to pay your own bills. Since my boss is nice to everyone else, it's hard to find a right place and time to catch him in the act of calling me "stupid" or whatever. I'd complain, but then everyone'd see me as a "whiner" or "slacker" and I'd just dig my hole deeper.

[jengh]

my boss is Satan...seriously.

 

She doesn't care that we're all full-time college students. She makes us skip class. I had to DROP 2 classes because I missed so much. I can't find another job because the economy is so horrible and I'm lucky to even have this job...sigh...the ranting could go on forever

[CynicalGuitarist]

my boss is Satan...seriously.

 

She doesn't care that we're all full-time college students. She makes us skip class. I had to DROP 2 classes because I missed so much. I can't find another job because the economy is so horrible and I'm lucky to even have this job...sigh...the ranting could go on forever

 

That's pretty draconian. The ranting could go on forever with me, as well. My next shift is on tuesday evening, and I'm absolutely horrified to go. I got this job after over 12 interviews and a countless number of applications. I'm not even taking any college courses, and probably won't get an open chance to until I quit. Heck, sometimes I've been called in on days that I wasn't supposed to work.

 

I quoth Dante from Clerks "I'm not even supposed to be here today!"

[Leonhart]

Oh yes. I've had real bricks for posses (you know what I meant. lol) It makes quitting oh so much sweeter! ecstasy cannot even begin to articulate how wonderful it was to tell them off and quit without leaving 5 minutes notice on a hectic day!!

 

Serves them right.

[Lucy_lou]

Well my sympathies are with you. I've been there. But I had the luxury of quitting, and being able to get a new job. I took a crappier job, but it was worth the step down, to not be abused any longer. I too found myself heading to the hills to hike (and recover). but that's a total rip off if your work requires you to spend extra time just recovering from abuse!

urgh!

If you really must stay, I think it can be helpful to write down in detail each and every scenario in which he bullies you. write down what you did/said and what he did/said. that way you'll have a cool, calm, rational explanation of what's been going on. you won't doubt your perceptions. you'll have proof. it will build up until you have quite a nice collection of examples. All the while, act with integrity towards him, (remember, you're being recorded now), do the right thing, and soon you'll have a strong case with which to either confront him or complain, or even if you don't choose to confront, at least you'll know that you know.

 

I am years beyond those days of abuse in hospitality. But the memory drives me forward to never be so underqualified that I have to endure such working conditions. College, boy college.

[vinnee]

Go with at least one other coworker and discuss the matter with his superior. You shouldn't have to let anyone talk to you that way, but I know how it is when you need to pay the bills and options are slim.

 

I worked for four years in an entry level position under a boss that was so bad that, to this day, if I saw her walking down the street while I was driving I'm not sure I could keep myself from mowing her down.

The company had a write up policy. You had to be 6 months without a write up to transfer departments. Your first transfer had to be lateral too before you could move up. She knew this and, like clockwork, every six months we would be written up.

When I first started people would ask me at lunch who my supervisor was and snicker and tell me "good luck" when I would tell them. In the first week, one of my coworkers warned me not to get on her bad side after I witnessed a confrontation between them. The girl was diabetic AND pregnant, so she really needed her job and insurance. It was still bad enough that after the confrontation, she disappeared never to be seen again; just walked out of the building.

The first year I was fine, I didn't try to transfer out at six months because we were developing a new computer program. It was part of preparing for the new HIPPA laws for medical info disclosure with Worker's Comp. I stayed because I got on okay with my boss and knew we needed well trained people on the project. When it was done and I started applying for a transfer, she began to pick fights with me. Our department was high security because we housed all the medical records. Anyone outside our department needing to come into our office (the only department with doors) was required to make an appointment. So her behavior would go unchecked; she was always nice as pie in front of the people from other departments. What they never saw was how she would berate us in front of the entire staff, write us up over exagerated and staged situations. She kept changing our daily work load goals till more than half of the original staff was fired for not keeping up or quit out of desperation. I started taking it to HR and she had to change some of the ways she did things like private reprimands and being reqired to have someone else present during reviews. This made me a bigger target. Not that I was her only target over the years, but the HR heads where constantly leaving for other companies. Everytime someone had it with the situation, they would have to deal with a new HR head who didn't know what was going on. Most of the time when a person went up there to rant, we never saw them again.

My co workers...she had two stoolies that reported everything to her, but the rest were on anti anxiety meds, frequently needed to go to the bathroom to throw up due to nerves, some would cry quietly at their desk, and one even went into cardiac arrest while dealing with her. When they were wheeling her out to the ambulance past my supervisor and HER supervisor, the woman asked "will I be written up for missing work?"

I decided to use this opportunity to go to HR, I told them that what I was about to do had been done before and the people where never seen again.

It started an investigation that resulted in improved conditions for my coworkers, but I never recovered from the set up my boss and her two stoolies started working on me. I ended up fired.

[CaptainPlanet]

If I were you I'd just put my head down and work extra hard.

 

Boss politics are impossible. They're usually all mates.

[CynicalGuitarist]

College, boy college.

 

I am absolutely terrible at school. I've failed every semester of college I've attended except my first. Granted, I'm absolutely terrible at work, too... but not nearly as bad as I am at school. At least at work, I'm getting paid instead of putting myself and my mother in a financial pit.

[Lucy_lou]

I am absolutely terrible at school. I've failed every semester of college I've attended except my first. Granted, I'm absolutely terrible at work, too... but not nearly as bad as I am at school. At least at work, I'm getting paid instead of putting myself and my mother in a financial pit.

 

I guess it was a bit presumptive, I don't know how else you can get out of this situations. If you have the luxury of being able to move to another town where the employment is higher, then bosses will have to suck up to YOU instead of the other way around (if you want to that is). The hospitality industry and some of the abusive people who manage in it make me absolutely ill.

 

I think of all the low skill work, hospitality is one of the worst. Have you considered other blue collar work? people tend to play a lot less games in that area of the working class. Maybe you could get a trade. A trade that's in high demand. An apprenticeship or something. Whether you're brilliant and pick things up quickly, or if you gain skills and knowledge slowly, if you persist, you will increase your skill levels and you will have an edge on others who haven't bothered. still, I know all this takes time... just trying to help.

 

Also, just having a positive attitude, and knowing that you're doing your best and thereforeeee deserve to be treated like a human being means that any person who sees this and still gives you a hard time is obviously being a bully and harming the company. You might not work as well as someone else, but they can always fire you if they want. so there is no reason for them to abuse you. demand respect.