I'm coming up on 14 years of experience in my field, and I feel like because I like to have fun at work and joke around while we work, I don't get treated like an adult. I'm 37. I work circles around some people and I feel like I leave it all on the field every day. I help everyone, I do just about anything they ask, I help get new people up to speed, I come in early often, I don't come in high.. you get the picture.
So my manager has like a year of on the job experience and is just about the worst manager I've ever had. Nothing is ever good enough and I'm always "wrong". I've tried standing up for myself, and I've tried letting it roll off my back. Neither approach solves any of my problems.
Today, my manager waylaid my team member on a break and asked her what I do back there. I'm never not doing stuff and everyone but my manager sees it and knows it. I'm the type of worker that you don't have to worry about.
So I text the manager after she left and asked if she had a problem with my work. Of course not! I'm gods gift to bread! Blah blah blah...
She calls my teammate after hours and discusses why I have a problem.. doesn't ask me why I am upset. Instead I'm the asshole for standing up for myself.
There's a guy I work with that is basically checked out and refuses to make decisions or small talk. He's a good worker though. He told me one day that I should just turn off my brain and do what management says no matter how stupid and just let the pieces fall where they may. I'm trying. I really am. But the leftist in me is screaming at me to stand up and try to fix it. It's against my nature to prostrate myself to people like this. My new strategy is to turn my brain off and just be a soulless husk of a man at work who just keeps his head down and isn't friendly toward anyone. I'm only going to talk about work and work related stuff.
It's hard to do and it's so lonely! I have to listen to the same garbage music every day hear the same "working hard or hardly working" jokes every day and eat the same bowl of shit every day because the management doesn't pay any attention to the yahoos they pull off the street to do this job that should realistically have some training. It's a daily shit show and me and a couple of people have to "deep state" fix everything behind managements back while they chortle at the wine bar and take credit for all the fires we put out.
I should just quit, right?
My job is recession proof, it pays pretty well and on a good day, I enjoy it. I'm also hitting that age where I'm slowing down a bit and I don't know how to do anything else. I live at least 25 minutes from towns where jobs are, and they all would be a significant pay cut. I'm scared of the trump economy and rolling the dice on a different job.
I just quit my job, I probably shouldn't have but I couldn't justify working there anymore to myself. I'm not sure if it was the right choice but once I hit my breaking point being there was torturous.
Is that where you're at with this place? It sounds like you enjoy the job, it's just this manager that is making your life hell for really no reason. Do you think there's anyway to get them off your back?
I've quit there twice now. Once only for a couple of months and then again for three years. I just wanted a smaller bakery where I wasn't getting destroyed daily. I don't know if this is true outside of my experience but every bakery I've worked for was ran by a hippie coded middle aged woman who would knife you to save $5.
As for the manager and getting her off my back: we had words over text today and I was at least able to land a few punches. It ended with a bit of face saving on both of our ends because at the end of the day, I can't just up and leave.
I can't really go above her head because there really isn't anyone. There's the owner, but he's a weird mix of a great boss and just completely out of touch. I think he would take the meeting but I'm afraid he would "we hear you, we see you" me and nothing would change. I e often compared my work culture to the DNC but nobody outside of hexbear would pick up what I'm putting down.
I'm not the only one who is in my position. I could probably organize a handful of people to have a sit down with the owner but like I said, I don't really want a target on my back just now, and it would be a whole lot cooler if someone else put their money where their mouth is this time. I've gone to bat a bunch of other times with them over the years and it's mostly made my life harder, hence the checking out and turning myself into a NPC at work
Damn, I'm sorry to hear. I have a friend who works for a smaller bakery and I think she would agree with you.
I guess getting your co-workers together could be your last resort if you're on the edge of quitting already. I feel you about the NPC mode, I could never do it at my job either, even the most mindless of tasks can be enjoyable with just some chatter and camaraderie. I hope the situation improves, and if not, I'm sure you'll find somewhere not so soul crushing.
Thanks. I always land on my feet but I wasn't looking to jump in the first place. I just want to punch in, do a job and go home. No drama, no childish work politics