Quit job or risk safety -- super miffed!!

[shmeelady]

I have been dwelling on this all day, and it's actually really been upsetting me...


On weekends I'm a baker at a coffee shop. It is not the best job in the world, I am treated like crap by all the teen workers and even the older ones. When I get there in the mornings I am picking up everyone else's slack along with worrying about my own stuff. My 'supervisor' is the manager's sister and she is the biggest witch I have ever met, she thinks she is the queen bee. She talks about everyone behind their backs, she threatens everyone's jobs, and when she's 'working' she sits on her butt and does NOTHING. Her excuse is because she used to have cancer (she's been clear for over a year now) and can't work too much without suffering from it. My friend who also works there is currently undergoing dialysis 4 times a week and yet no matter how crappy she is feeling she comes into work even after her dialysis, and yet this 'supervisor' still sits on her butt and makes her do everything.

A few weeks ago there was a break in at a different location, so of course my manager placed a bunch of new rules. We aren't allowed to use the back doors for ANY reason, all deliveries must be taken through the front and there must be two evening staff on at a time.

I am scheduled for 5am I open the store ALONE and am ALONE until 8am. Last Saturday morning I noticed that one of the locks was jammed and half popped out, as if someone tried to break into the store so of course that put me off a little bit. But I just swept it under the rug. Until today I got a call from my manager and it totally put me off.

She called me to inform me that another location was broken into, the place was completely ransacked. She told me that she was keeping the tills in a better hidden place and wanted to inform me so I wasn't wondering where they were when I came. I told her I didn't feel safe about being there on my own and that I wanted another person scheduled to be with me. She told me that they could not afford to do that and that if I wanted someone there with me that I should ask DH or someone else to come in with me like the weekday baker does.

WHO IN THE HECK is going to get up and come to work with me at 5am on a saturday and sunday when they aren't being paid.

I have been feeling uneasy ALL DAY about this, I am fed up and seriously debating on quitting (been debating this for a while now though). But this job is my source of extra income, it what makes me feel independent. I hate always asking DH for money to buy this or that!! Because we don't have daycare and DH leaves for work at 7am and doesn't get home until 7pm so there isn't much option for me. But at the same time I have a family and a little one, I need to think of my own safety before anything....


GRRRRRRRRRRRRR.... I do not know what to do.

[Chantel]

Is it a franchised place? If so contact HR. If not, call the labor board and see what they say. You have a right to refuse unsafe work and the threat of being robbed seems pretty unsafe.

How ridiculous to tell a worker that they should bring their HUSBAND in.

[marstec]

It sounds like a horrible place to work and no one should have to deal with that crap treatment. I think you should look for a different employer...don't assume you have little options...where there's a will, there's a way. Good luck to you.

[shmeelady]

How ridiculous to tell a worker that they should bring their HUSBAND in.

That is exactly what I thought!! I think I will actually look up labour board number right now, I had not thought of that.

[vesper]

Quit job! Someone out there will appreciate your contributions and hard work.

[saddlebag]

Quit job! Someone out there will appreciate your contributions and hard work.

Vesper....said it all....you're worth more than how you're being treated....good luck...and stop stressing

[Candini]

I wouldn`t stress too much. Quit your job and look for something else - The holiday season is coming up and companies ALWAYS need extra help

Good luck!

[momgoneawol]

I would certainly be looking for other options, not worth risking you life for a crappy job. When my son was really little I had a hard time finding some kind of employment as hubby works shifts and couldn't afford a sitter. I ended up finding a part time babysitting job for a couple of kids after school that I could bring my son along with me. It didn't pay much but since I could bring my son I still ended up ahead. Maybe look at unconventional type jobs, mayber there is some cleaning, organizing or shopping you could do for some seniors that would work with your schedule. Good luck.

[aashi]

I hear you... When i was in school and had to look after myself as well as pay a student loan i would work crazy hours around my school hours and worked at a fastfood restaurant for evening to closing @11:00 pm and i was feel very unsafe most days when i am alone 9:00 - 11:00 pm.. on top of it the store manager was a crape one just like yours and would hate every minute i worked their... after 8 months or so working their one day i thought that the money i was earning were not worth the mental stress i was getting out of that job so decided to leave the job and i tell you what a relieve i felt.... I actually felt more energized and was more involved in my routine work then before…

I know its hard to decide when you have limited choice but anything on cost of healthy state mind is not worth…. That’s just my few cents..

Hope things get better at your end soon..

[abbasgirl]

I agree with everyone else. I don't think you'll have any problem finding another part time job. Why hang onto one that has been nothing but an aggravation to you?

[Safyre]

I did some quick research and while yes, workers do have the right to refuse unsafe work, the question then becomes whether working alone is considered unsafe. From what I can find for both Manitoba(where OP is), and Ontario (where I am) the answer is no. Working alone is not considered unsafe. In Manitoba there is supposed to be posted procedures for the employee to follow while alone, please see website http://safemanitoba.com/regulation_review_part_9.aspx for more details.

To the OP: Is a part time job worth full time stress? I say no. If you are working for independence, for 'fun money' for yourself, then have FUN doing it. Get out of that bakery and into a place that you will enjoy going to, it will make a world of difference.

[jasperandchar]

I don't know exactly what you do as a baker but how about making birthday cakes, birthday cupcakes and selling them through word of mouth, or advertise on bulletin boards, if this is not what you do I'm quite sure there is a position somewhere else where you would be more appreciated. If $ is tight or as you say it's your indepence $, if you're worried the whole time you're there you might get hurt in another regard not saying from being broken into but you could be so jumpy or nervous that you slip or fall, but the answer my friend can only come from you. Word is out that the other bakery's have gotten broken into so those theives may be now weary, however, if Queen Bee is well on your last nerve that can take a toll as well. So weigh your pros and cons and think really hard before you decide in the end there is no easy choice only the best choice for you and your family.

Good luck!

[Sunshyne1]

Work safe is not where you should be looking. When they are refering to an UNSAFE job they are talking about procedures at work that may cause an accident/injury.

this is where you should be looking. It's Employment Standards that are at fault here.
http://www.gov.mb.ca/labour/standard...heet.html#q151

there is a question there about Can young people work alone, the answer there is this:
Can young people work alone?

People under 18 years old cannot work alone between 11:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m . People under 16 years of age can not work at all between 11:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.

Workplace Safety and Health legislation requires all employers who have employees working alone to have a clear plan that ensures employees' safety. This is needed whenever an employee is asked to work alone, not just at night.
Usually, the employment permit has special instructions about working alone. Anyone with concerns about working alone, or someone they know working alone, should contact both the Employment Standards Branch and the Workplace Safety and Health Branch to discuss the situation.

it's not that the job is Unsafe. YOU feel unsafe...and Employment Standards have to be met.

but, as others have pointed out...is it worth all this stress for a part time job??? I wouldn't quit, but definately look around for something better and if you find something then quit!

[cookoo]

definitely start looking elsewhere, quit when you find another.

[Lucky777s]

If it's any consolation, bad people that do night time break and enters to empty premises are generally not the same bad a$$e$ that do robberies or home invasion type crimes on innocent folks. The bakery bandits, in my guestimation, would run and run fast if they found out you were in there.

I'd be much more worried about telling Queen Bee what I think of her than the hooligans prying the back door.