RHUER QUESTION: New Gas Station Owner Creates Coworker Hell, How Do you Make It Better?

First time writer, thou shalt call me Gas-Dealer

I work part time at a local gas station, and until recently it has been a wonderful job despite the low wage and un-convenient hours.

I work with three wonderful female fellow slaves, we are practically a small family by now. Lets name them M,B and H. The custys love us, and we love them. We are blessed with 99% friendly custys.

Now, the previous owner sold the station around new years, and the new boss finally arrived two months ago, now named NB. From there, it has been a true HELL!

You see, NB brought with him a friend who was gonna work with us, we call him "AHH" from the sound we make every time we walk into the store after he is done with his shift. The place looks like the roof fell down, every single time. He comes in up to 3 hours late(he lives 2 hours away for some reason) He messes up almost every single daily task, costing us money and making it a living hell for the one who has to clean up his mess. He refuses to listen when we try to correct (important) mistakes, and tries to blame it on us and goes running to his friend NB every time we forcibly correct his mistakes against his will to avoid the station losing a little thing called money. 
Now NB is polite, listens, and is generally a damn good fellow. Except when it comes to give us information. Every now and then, new equipment is suddenly rolled inside the store, and we have no clue what it is, what to do with it, or why the guy is nervously looking over his shoulder. NB is also extremely lenient with AHH and makes excuses for him every time he messes up(all the time)

NB has also changed the schedule so that me, M, B, and H barely work at all, while he and AHH gets by far the most hours, which cuts our monthly pay down by around 70% He is also making all these new idiotic and senseless new tasks that is, in reality, his job, and not what we are paid to do (or trained for)

Lastly, we are getting the feeling that AHH thinks he is above us long time slaves in rank, and tries to boss us around. To be honest, I don't think he is even close to being able to take shifts alone. Especially considering we have to drop in every day to make sure he is not costing us too much money. The fact that he is getting over 3 times as many shifts as us next month, supports our theory.

All this idiocy and douchyness, is putting an immense stress on me and my slave family, two of which has been on sick leave for a months because of it, and I don't blame them one bit. I can barely take it myself without setting NB and AHH on fire and toss them in a dumpster. M cant even walk into the station at the time without having a breakdown.

I could go on and on, but I don't wanna spend a week writing, and you don't wanna spend a week reading it.

A question, if I may ask one. Simply put, what can we do to make things better? Any suggestion is welcome!

Your fellow screwed over Slave

--Gas-Dealer

 

Comments

[alshara]

I dunno about anyone else, but it sounds like they are trying to launder some cash. I know if I was an owner of a business, I wouldn't want someone to constantly lose me money unless it's to 'lose me money.'

[DrugStore Diva]

It sounds like there's not much you can do. Since this guy is the owner you can't really go over his head. You could try to file a complaint with the brand name corporate (because he's actually giving THEM a bad name as well as his store).

Also, stop saving AHH's butt. If he's the one doing the stuff that's losing money, and other employees are always coming to the rescue, it won't look like he's doing anything. Let him flounder on his own. Do your job and do it well, and let AHH worry about himself.

[Thinzad]

Only thing comes to my mind is to arrange for him to have a full shift - with none of your oversight - on a normally big day, and then let NB draw his own conclusions.

[Lamer]

Apply for unemployment for underemployment. If they suddenly cut your hours for no reason, just apply.

[Lyphsux]

Don't get stressed for a business you do not own. There are a lot of jobs out there. Sounds like this business is going to fail, and only the owner and his bad decisions will be to blame.

[CashierBtch]

Call the department of labor. he's favoring an employee that is also his friend and if it's part of a bigger chain and he just owns the one station, he still has to obey labor laws. find out what they are in your state or contact someone. its not right to favor a horrible employee of the ones that are good.

if you have to, look for a new job. its the only other way to get away from this.

[LadyBelle]

I know this isn't what you might want to hear, but I'd say it might be time to jump ship before it sinks completely. Turning your resume in everywhere while still employed will look better then applying after the gas station has gone bankrupt and they are blaming it on all you long time employees. If the station changes hands again, or NB pulls his cranium from his rectum, then you can go back to your old position.

You might even find a place that needs more then one person and is a better place to work, and pull your small retail family along with you.

[NC Tony]

I have to agree with Drugstore Diva, let him crash and burn. True, it might cost the company money, but it also might make NB see that his friend shouldn't be allowed to tie his shoes unsupervised, let alone run the store. If you're constantly saving him, he's never going to learn, and the boss is never going to see that his friend is costing the store money instead of making money.

[The Last Archimedean]

Look for another job.

And don't help AHH at all. Let him flounder.

[Gas-Dealer]

Thanks for all advices. Right now, decent work is hard to come by in my area (cantrary to popular belief, not every business in Norway are as profitable as our oil industry) But I will do as you say, and suggest to my slave family, that we let AHH and NB crash and burn. I will update as the situation comes to an end or develops in an interesting way if people want to hear about it.

[Hapax Legomenon]

I'd love to hear what happens. Everyone's been spot on: either AHH's and NB's shop-destroying ways have to end, or you three should jump ship. And looking for another job right now is very important, because you can't keep a poorly-run store going when you have no control of the situation.
Alshara's point about deliberately driving the business into the ground may have a point as well, in which case there's no way to save the store and your job. Busing in your friend from two hours away AND foisting boss tasks off on employees smacks of either total inexperience or intentionally running the business into the ground.

[DishesDarling]

It sounds like time to go if you can. I don't know how it'd work in real life, but I at least like the idea of giving NB an ultimatum: you four, or AAH.

[gamestoregirl]

I say don't help the idiot anymore. Let the store lose money - it won't last long until they investigate. That should do him in.