I'm a male, and today was my first day of training at Dunkin Donuts, and after about an hour I was informed that I had to leave or something because I guess my hair somehow interfered with the work? I don't see how but yeah.; I tried to part it up and move it away but it was difficult. After about an hour working there I figured I shouldn't even bother because the positions there are extremely demanding. Your obligated to sweep the floors, make coffee for customers, work the cash register, make food,etc. That's overwhelming, and frankly that's not worth $7 an hour at all. I can work at a clothing department as a cashier and make just about the same money wearing the clothes I normally do and having less work as well. My mom called the manager to try and get me reassigned, but I'm not going back simply because I don't have the strength to uphold so many tasks at once. I thought the position only required me to be a cashier, but of course they stick me with four duties at once. When I first received the phone call telling me that I got the job, the manager told me that the training for CASHIER would start the next day so I don't know how I got stuck with all those duties. Anyway, I'm not going to go cut my hair and change my appearance to fit according to their absurd standards. I just don't feel comfortable wearing my hair back. I don't like it. It exposes my forehead and I personally don't have the best skin so I'm kinda insecure about that. I followed all the trainers instructions and listened and I was polite to everyone so I wasn't let off because of my attitude or anything else you guys can come up with lol. Anyway yeah.. It just felt like too much work. There was just SO many different tools you had to operate in order to provide beverages,food,etc for the customers and I was overwhelmed to say the least.. Just sharing this with you guys..
Bosses in the service industry can be pretty awful. The thing is, sometimes these things happen for the best. You can do better than Dunkin Donuts if you set your sights a little bit higher. So many times I've wasted a chunk of my life trying to do well at another Joe Job when I could be doing something better with myself. Better that you had this happen now than that you work months and months at Dunkin Donuts only to discover that you hated it. Have a look around at what else is out there, and maybe you'll find something that interests you a bit more.
Do you have any idea how lucky you are to actually have a job? Where I live, people my age aspire to fast-food places. If you're surprised that you're expected to tie your hair back and mop floors as well as perform for your specific job title, then god help you later in life. Bosses are tightening their wallets, and they're looking to get their money's worth. You'll find that no matter where you work - restaurants, retail, whatever- they're gonna expect you to do skiv work. After reading your post, I can only think that you didn't really give it a chance. My first job was washing peoples' hair at a salon, managing the till, answering the phone, booking appointments, assisting the hairdresser, bringing tea to clients, assisting all the ederly clients (and there were many), dealing with impatient customers AND cleaning the place top to bottom - all at the same time. I was between 13 and 14 when I started that job, and very overwhelmed. However, I did it, and I was proud of myself. If that's your attitude, then I can only hope that the position you were given goes to somebody who is really grateful for the opportunity.
Yeeaahh...this is pretty close to what I was thinking. Sorry if this comes off as super bitchy, but I just don't understand people who get jobs and then go "pfft, you want me to this for only x amount of money? Puh-lease, that's ridiculous, I'm so much better than this." My first job, I got paid like $5 to clean up puke and sh*t and a myriad of other disgusting things. I had to climb into a broken compactor once and smash the trash down manually so we could throw the rest of it away. It was disgusting, I had horrible hours, and I usually went home filthy and stinky. Did I wish I got paid more? Of course I did. But people don't usually start at the top of the totem pole, you have to work your way up.
Do min. wages vary from state to state? Min. is 8 bucks here in California last time I checked. 7 bucks is just abysmal, especially when you were saddled with more than your job description allowed.
I feel I have to chime in and agree with Ashleigh and Hidden. It might not be the perfect job, but it's pretty much what that sort of job is always going to be like. And really, with the way the economy is, you're frankly lucky to have a job at all. I've worked low-paid jobs before, and it's not wonderful, laugh-a-minute stuff, but it is what it is. And as for the hair thing, that's just food hygiene. It's entirely expected, and I don't get why it took you by surprise.
I agree that there may have been some attitude problems based on the post, but I don't think it's at all helpful to tell a man that he should be satisfied with a life of mediocrity. Jobs don't land in your lap from getting lucky. They're a result of hard work and trial and tribulation. Now there are two ways of looking at getting fired from a job -- feeling bad about what you've lost, or deciding that it wasn't for you. What sounds like a more healthy way of looking at it? Given that this is Dunkin' Donuts we're talking about, Matrix, I think it's safe to say you could find just as much happiness working at the Starbuck's or McDonald's across the street. Don't be afraid to aim a little higher, but know that whatever job you get you're going to have to work hard, and if your manager asks you to do something you weren't expecting to have to do, well sometimes that's just par for the course.
Well I was never supposed to work with food period. The position I applied for was merely a cashier. That's what the training was geared towards when she explained it, and then when I arrived they made me wear an apron and start learning how to use the coffee machines, and how to mix the beverages. That's absolutely unnecessary. While I do appreciate the chance to be employed, I do not appreciate the managers attitude nor my placement that was given. I rather work at a comfortable job instead of having to be tied down in uncomfortable clothing doing things I don't even like. Seriously if you're advertising a cashier position then why the **** are you assigning me to everything else? That's the sole reason I even decided to take the job. And also if they're going to discharge me simply because of my hair, then I shouldn't even be bothered to work there. Seriously, I would of been content manning the operator for hours straight. Plus the manager was incredibly rude and I was disgusted with her atittude. Really don't think I would toss my self respect out the window just to make a quick buck working with jackasses..
Thanks for your words of encouragement. I just don't think its a good idea working in a job that makes you feel so uncomfortable. I mean, if they let me wear my own clothing I wouldn't of had a problem with anything but I refuse to be made a fool. I just want a normal cashier job where you can wear your own god damn clothing and not be judged. I know of a few places like that but the age requirement is 18. I turn 18 in a few months so.. Until then maybe I'll just look elsewhere.
I wouldn't put it in those exact words...but I am guilty of being in that frame of mind possibly everyday I've been sitting at this smelly desk. (Seriously, it really smells.)
I totally understand where you're coming from. You need to have some dignity. It's not right to let your boss treat you unfairly, and if there are things you absolutely can't compromise, then good on you for standing up for yourself. It helps to have a bit of humility, though, and understand that in most jobs you will be asked to do a few things that you don't want to do. Make a list of things that you're unwilling to do and ask a career counselor if you could find a position where you wouldn't have to do those things. It's important to make the distinction between something you shouldn't have to do and something you're just going to have to suck it up and do anyway.
No offense, but I'm with Ash and Hidden on this. In today's world, people are desperate for a job. I'm one of the fortunate few who was welcomed to a family business that needed help. Others, like my boyfriend, spend months looking for anything that'll pay. Was it wrong to have not been told you were to also run the coffee, mop, and more in advance? Yes, absolutely. If I came into work expecting to run the register only to end up redoing the back room on da one, I'd feel topsy-turvy, too. But to hold such bitterness? I think you didn't give sufficient effort. For the hair, though, I hate to say it, but most placss will require you to pull it back or make it 'visually appealing'. You don't like it? No loss, someone else will have the job at the end of the day. It's one thing to only aspire to work in a small time environment like DD, but it's another to suck it up, earn money for your time (something you can't do sitting at home) and eventually use that job to see how unhappy some places can be, and springboard yourself to something higher. You can't start at the top.
Let me just say this: Earning money does not ever, ever make you a fool. An honest days work is just that, honest. And admirable. And respectable. Whether you're handing out donuts, mopping floors, or shoveling horse manure, you do what needs to be done and you don't let people look down on you for it. You earn money to get where you need to be, you build your way up. No one starts at the top. This is how you build integrity.
This thing about working your way up the totem pole is BS. The people who make the big bucks are the ones with the ingenuity and talent to leap their way up the totem pole. And it's not luck. It's hard work and perseverance. Sorry but it's true. The guys signing the paychecks usually never bothered to clean the trash compactor. They talked someone else into doing it for them. Trust me -- I've worked enough sh*t jobs to know what you're talking about. I've had 27 jobs in my lifetime (I've been working on a play about this topic for a while). There's nothing wrong with feeling indignant about crappy working conditions and a sh*t wage. It's what motivates us.
I guess we'll have to agree to disagree. I've had a lot of jobs too (not 27, but still a lot...), and I've *gasp* worked my way up the totem pole at all of them. You said yourself, "It's hard work and perseverance." That doesn't always mean leaping your way to the top, sometimes it means starting at the bottom and showing people that you're willing to put the time and effort in that they're looking for. I'm not saying there's something wrong with feeling indignant about crappy working conditions and low wages. However, I think indignation and having a terrible attitude are two different things. I've had to wear embarrassing uniforms, I've had to do things that weren't in my job description, you name it and I've probably done it. But I didn't get mad and throw a fit about how deserving better...I did what I needed to do to get into a better position so I wouldn't have to do that stuff anymore.
Not saying you can't climb up the totem pole -- just saying the ones who are in charge usually didn't take that strategy. Almost never, in fact. And yeah, what you're saying here makes sense. Of course you have to work hard. It's a fine line though, and in a troubled economy I do worry that workers allow their rights to be compromised too much. What happened to the days of the labor movement, when workers stood up for themselves, and took a life of risk over a life of indignity? Now maybe Matrix should have had a better attitude about what to do with his hair and the uniform, but maybe his boss should have had a better attitude about training him on these matters. In my experiences as a manager in the service industry, I learned that when you show your employees respect, they usually respond with some respect back. Correct me if I'm wrong here, Matrix, but it sounds to me like you would feel a lot different about this whole situation if you had been shown a bit of respect from the get go.
Losing your job sucks, especially on the first day. On the other hand, you know from the outset that it will be a drudge job. It's pretty close to minimum wage, with very little required in terms of job prerequisites. But the hair thing is a matter of compliance with the health code. It's not just your job, the entire donut shop could be shut down, or at least fined, because of your free range locks. It would have been great if the manager put a little more time into your training before showing you the door, but it's not an ideal world. And as has been pointed out, jobs ARE in short supply right now, which is another way of saying they will have no trouble finding someone else to fill the position,
Self respect? I have self-respect. In three months I will also have a degree and post-graduate qualification that quite simply blows virtually every other degree and qualification out of the water. I should, therefore, only go for jobs which pay £40,000 p/a or more, right? Because that's the level I should be aiming at, I won't demean myself and act without self respect by applying for anything else. No. I'm not going to sit on my backside and say that I deserve X amount or to not have a crap job. I'll be out there applying left, right and centre for jobs at supermarkets, coffee shops, high-street stores, garages, pubs, etc. Minimum wage work with little job satisfaction, but something that'll bring some money in. Self respect doesn't enter in it in terms of what job I have, just so long as I have a job. So that trip to Leicester to see my best mate is funded my me, and not the dole. That's real self respect. Not 'this job is beneath me, it's beyond my job description' and other things like that. That's arrogance, and you'd do well to get it out of your system. I can sympathise with the whole not my job description thing, because it's natural to complain, but not to the point where you've taken an opportunity and thrown it away because you weren't happy after the first day. (Sorry, that may have been a bit stronger than I intended it to be.)
I have to agree with the others here. Just having a job is a blessing now-a-days. I have been searching cities an hour drive from me just in hopes of getting a job to pay for the NEEDS in life. I am an (currently) engaged college student who lives with his folks, this is because of a lack of a job. You know what I don't mind as much as I used to in this economy a lot of people are moving back in with their folks. This is because of the lack of jobs out there. I have held done some temp work at various places earning a buck anyway I morally can. It doesn't matter if it is not a job I do not particularly care for its a job, it helps out with the overall lack of money. My whole house hold is lucky to have a buck to our name in the last week-week and a half of the month. I am sorry to say Matrix it doesn't matter where you go you will have regulations to follow. Most likely a dress code/uniform of some sort, you hair styled or cut, no visible piercings or tattoo's. (I am not saying you have those I am just saying) You are going to have to do more jobs than just a cash register NO one will hire you just to stand there and take money. Most jobs you can get at your age are will be likely to get any time soon will require you to do more than just one job. You will have to sweep the floor, mob the bathroom, maybe even work with food. I hate to sound harsh but get over it, that is life, and it will almost never go the way you wish or expect it to go. So bottom line be happy that you can get work, other people your age, double it, triple it even will gladly take a job that job to help feed their families. I know so many people that have been laid off after ten or more years on the job who are now on the verge of being homeless. As for all the stuff about pride, don't be so prideful that it comes back and bites you in the @$$. A little personal pride is fine, but it would be better to take pride in the work you do, even if you don't enjoy it. I understand first hand. I am a trained chef, but I would happily work subway, retail, anything to put some money in the bank, and I would take pride in what I did and do it to the best of my ability.
This is a sensitive issue for a lot of people and I understand why. Jobs are hard to come by in many areas. It's certainly not a healthy attitude to say that something is beneath you. However, everyone has their own angle on this issue, and you have to remember to respect the individual's goals. Matrix may have made some mistakes, but what did the manager expect? This is a 17 year old at Dunkin Donuts, ok? He's not gonna get everything perfect on his first shot, and he deserves to have a boss who understands that. You gotta have a little bit of patience in these situations. I agree with Cogito that it's not a perfect world. So Matrix, maybe this is an opportunity to learn a lesson -- that if you want to make some cash, sometimes people are gonna treat you like dirt for it. Anyway, I think the best attitude going forward is to try to find something you'd be happier doing. We all go through a few of these awful situations, and when you look back at them they're kind of funny. You thought they were so important at the time, but then you go on to do bigger and better things, and you just laugh at it. There are going to be compromises in any low wage position, but if you feel indignant about being forced to do something you don't want to do, then no one can take those feelings away from you. The problem when people tell you that you should feel lucky to have a job at Dunkin' Donuts is that's just never gonna happen. No one ever feels lucky to have those jobs. I certainly respect all workers, but I don't judge someone for wanting better or more comfortable working conditions, even if it's his first day. We all have to put up with it, but "you should feel lucky for the crap you have to endure" is just not helpful. More helpful is, "that sucks man. The boss sounds like a prick. I hope you can find something better."
Crappy jobs are pretty much a fact of life, especially your first job, but there are ways of turning them around. I worked in a fish market for minimum wage while I was in high school--it was terrible work that I was completely unsuitable for, I didn't really get along with anyone, I didn't like or know much about the product I was selling and stocking, and there was way, way more cleaning than I'd imagined there would be. So, on my CV, I wrote not about how I had to wash fish blood out of plastic barrels and take abuse from co-workers while being paid far too little, but about how I persevered with a job that I was unsuitable for, working hard despite the many obstacles and developing a good work ethic as a result. Managers at good places read stuff like that, they throw jobs at you; in fact, the reason I got an interview for a position at the art gallery I now work at is because of that paragraph in my CV. So yeah, it sounds like working at Dunkin Donuts was probably a bad fit for you for Health and Safety reasons more than anything else, but employers respect hard work and dedication and all that jazz, so if you get a ****ty job, stick it out and just think about where it's gonna get you in the end. Always be thinking about the next step and what you need to do to take it.
Matrix, you say in your first post that your mom called the manager to try and have you reassigned. Your mom? Really? I can understand how working at a fast-food place can be really frustrating, but when you have problems at work, you handle them yourself, man. Talk to the manager yourself, don't have Mommy do it. Sorry if this sounds blunt but that's how life is.
Dude thats dumb sure a "man" should take carte of him self but only an idiot wont let someone ofer them help when they need it besides jduing form the post he did not want the job his mom took apon her self to get him rehired he did not ask her I use to work at a bolwing ally a pin boy (guy who picks up the pins when there is no machine) my grand father worked in that place, the same equpment the pay sucked the stuff never worked you onlu worked twice a month so you NEVER got use to being sore after words and you had pepole yelling at you anythime anything went wrong and woe to you if you had one of the "wannabe pro" teams never fast enough the job sucked but i did it for two years i also giged there evrey now and then (i play guitar) only reason i stopped was because im 6 foot, i cant get back there any more next job? farm work just replace anything with bowling and add "cows" and there you go hello country guitarist me Now I'm going to try to get a job at a mucus store out of those three the music store pays the least and is the farthest but its what i love to do but the thing is I could not get that job, with out getting the others why? because i had to work my way up and hare a resume most places wont take you if you have no job you need the suckey ones to get better ones
What's a mucus store? Where you buy and sell snot? (I realize it's a typo, I"m kidding dude) This is sooooooo true. And there's a big difference between letting someone help you when you could use a hand, and letting your mother call your boss at work to try and work things out for you. We're not talking about a third grader who struggles with school and needs Mom and Dad to call the teacher; we're talking about, supposedly, a grown adult (or at least older teen) who is expected to handle his workplace issues as such. Imagine if you're hiring someone and you get a phone call from his mom trying to work something out for him. What would you think??
