Back to Work

Nothing's changed there.

I went in and checked the schedule. I was supposed to leave at two.

Remember I was off on Friday and Saturday

And it took me right up until the time I left on Thursday to get my freight out... I hardly had time to straighten. If I hadn't been doing it as I put my freight out, I'd have been late getting home and going to church.

So, I had no time to work on this week's order.

There is a POSTED schedule of the time my company knows it will take me to do the kind of order that they want done. If you order like they want you to, the time taken to DO the order doesn't vary a whole lot because you still have to walk through and check EVERY ITEM. When you're hurrying, you may not finger them but you still have to look at every one.

"They say" it takes 6.3 hours to order my department. Just to order. Not to take down old and put up new ad signs. Not to go to the register as a fill in cashier. Not to be stopped early on to be checked on many items as to whether I've got them all done in our "Welcome to [the store]" testing.

I looked at the schedule and I was supposed to leave at TWO. Giving me six hours to work means I HAVE TO take a lunch, so cut 30 minutes off that from the get-go. It was close to nine before I got my old signs down and my new ones up and had my cart ready with my new book installed into its binder.

I didn't mention that on the first week of every month we have to count overstock, did I? So not only do I have to be looking to see if I don't have enough, I have to be checking to see if there are places I have too much.

In addition, part of my Welcome to [the store] was to be making out a list of handwritten labels to give to the secretary. (That was part of the "Welcome to the store" mandates.  We are to have no handwritten labels.)

After the "testing", my manager told me he wanted everything (from his list) done that wasn't done, before I left. He had gone through all the items and written out a list of things that I needed to complete. (One of them was dusting the TOPS of the metal framework of the endcaps.)

It took me until 2:30 just to finish my order. I didn't say anything to anyone, I just stayed until I finished even though I knew I was scheduled out at two. Then I told the co- "It's 2:30 and I just now finished my order. Do you want me to recover? and finish the list of stuff I was supposed to? I was supposed to leave at two." (I know she makes out the schedule and I was somewhat perturbed that she would even schedule me to leave at two knowing how long it takes to do my department's order.)

She said I'd have to ask the manager. So I did and he told me to stay and get it all done.

I was there until 4:45.

As irritated as I get, and I have grace to deal with the stuff that's going on that helps me out, as irritated as I get sometimes, I realize that the unreasonable stuff that is being asked of us is not originating at the store level and I'm not the one that faces the gun if it doesn't get done.

When Pharoah comes in and checks us out, I'm not the one who has to walk the store and listen to him. (I was given that name for him after I told someone that he reminds me of Pharoah when he took the straw away from the children of Israel and told them they had to make as many bricks as they had been making when the Egpytians supplied the straw. She said, You should call HIM Pharoah.)

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I thought about Pharoah because during the Fellowship Meeting a minister was bringing out what life in Egypt was like for the Israelites-- how hard it was on them before they finally left. But it took that increased hardship for them to finally be willing to leave.

I wondered if maybe I'm missing my signs.

We had a lady who worked with us until she was 84 years old. I used to love my job so much that I'd often say, "I'm going to be like Miss Irene and work until I'm 84."

I've not said that in the last 18 months. And as time has gone on and things have been more and more nit-picking, I first began to notice that I had become one of those people who was looking at her watch to see how much longer it was going to be before I left to go home. (I never used to even think of that before.) And, at home, I found that I didn't look forward to going back to work like I used to.  And  I noticed that I was often not only counting the hours until I could leave, but also counting the months until I could "retire".

It's a shame that it's come to that. 

I worked at this company for ten years and enjoyed being there. 

I do good work. 

I had to "straighten out" every new area they moved me to and I've been commended even by the Regional Manager for the work I do. I was moved to the south store because one of the men in the higher echelon of management had worked with me in set-ups and he REQUESTED that I be moved to the south store to "straighten out" the craft department. (At that point in time crafts and scrapbooking were the same department.)  He knew the work I did in set ups and he was the one who came in regularly on the store level to give our stock tests and knew that I did a good job in my department as well.

My point is, it's not like I've been skating along under poor management not doing a good job and now that the axe has fallen, I'm having to do what I should have been doing all along. 

It's NOT THAT WAY. 

I've always had the attitude when I'm at work, "These people are paying me to work, to do a job. They are not paying me to loaf around, stand around and talk long periods of time to co-workers, etc." Even if one of my kids would call me at work, if they forgot they had called me at work and started going on with other than necessary information, I'd remind them, "I'm on the clock. They aren't paying me to talk to you."   I have been very conscientious in working to do a good job and to do it the way I was asked to do it.

So, it not like I have been slack and now judgment has come. And, I'll have to say, that for many of our departments, that is true as well. There ARE some legitimate changes that NEEDED to be made. We knew that before anyone stepped in to demand that it be done. But it wasn't things like making sure you have all the bases painted and that there's no dust in the tracks that the doors open and close in during the Christmas rush season (just to give examples).

I'm not the only one getting very tired of it. I believe our managers are too. And they have much more reason to be worn out from it because they are the ones that are accountable to see that EVERYONE OF US does all the micro-detail stuff  has been dictated to get done. And they also know that it has to be done without giving extra hours or hiring more people.   (In other words, the same amount of bricks but you gather your own straw.)

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I need to stop now because I have a dentist appointment in 40 minutes. My bite has been off on my new crowns and, consequently, my jaw on the other side has "frozen up" and become quite painful.  I can't open my mouth wide enough to eat anything of any thickness at all.  Hardly wide enough to get a spoon or fork with food on it into my mouth.  

Also, I'm off from work today and I really want to try to make it a productive day at home. I have alot of stuff to catch up on.