Schedule Hell! Can SLAVE-agers Get Some Love?

From: Nancy Drew

I've been a retail store manager for 5 years now (at the same store), in a college town, so I manage a staff of an about 4-5 college kids. Working with college kids usually means 2 things:

1. It's hard enough to schedule them to work when they already have a class schedule/other obligations,ie: Greek stuff or whatever pertains to their major, such as a theater major being in plays (don't get me wrong, I'm totally their bitch when it comes to working around THEIR time)

and/or

2. some are from out of town, so they ask to be off for days at a time to "go home." (I've even allowed this during stupid "blackout" periods during Christmas/back to school time, when asking off isn't allowed...ya, I'm WAY too nice)

I used to always feel "comfortable" working for this company for so long & always try to look at the bright side, but lately, this has really been chapping my ass off... this happens a lot, but we'll use this week, as the example:

Every Monday, managers are scheduled to start their 8 hour shift in the mornings to get things ready for the week & all (shift is usually 8:30a-5p before store opens at 10a). I get a call from one of my employees, at a reasonable time, saying she has an over 100 fever & cannot come to work her shift. I sympathize (I've barfed in the store's trash can in front of customers) & ask if she could try to get her shift covered, "any time they can come in works, even if you're scheduled to come in at 3:30 p & they can't come in until 5p because I'm here until then," I say. She said she'll keep me updated on what she finds out, great.

Not too long after, she texts me back: "I tried calling Person A, but can't get a hold of them. Person B can't work because she's babysitting her sister (um...she was scheduled On Call to work at 5:30p that day, just in case something like this happens. I don't believe in On Call shifts myself, I just post them for show, to keep my District Manager (MY boss) happy. I don't even make them "call 1 hour before your scheduled" shit. I've been there, I know it sucks.) and Person C has an exam (my assistant manager)."

I text her back that we'll try to keep contacting Person A & consider "back ups." (ie: employees have the option to "borrow" other stores' employees within the district & 1 person even expressed interest in covering any shift I need because they work at the same store 45 minutes away, but go to college in my town) I call 2 employees from another store that's only a 30 minute drive away from us, no luck. Called the person that went to college here/works 45 minutes away, no answer. I tried Person A again, she answered she had a mid term exam 6:30-8:30p that night (by the way: NONE of my employees talked about midterms before. You would think they'd want guaranteed time off to study or whatever. I really was staying within their "availability" guidelines), but was willing to come in after. Better than nothing, so I said, "Thanks & come in whenever you can!"

Fever Person overly apologizes & is willing to trade a Friday/Saturday shift with me because that'll be the time she gets better. BUZZ! WRONG! My District Manager says "if Store Managers need to cut their shifts & not go over their 40 hour week, to cut on any day(s) except Fridays/Saturdays" because, as we all know, Retail Managers rarely get weekends off like regular 9 to 5's.

7:30p rolled around (2 hours before I was originally scheduled to be off, that's a 10 hour shift for the day) & I wonder if Person A is being held hostage at her mid term (ya, you can stay the whole time to take a test, but I was going nuts). 8:30p, 30 minutes before we're scheduled to close at 9p, & I'm like, "fuck it. I shouldn't ask her to come in for less than an hour just to do the paperwork/closing procedures, even though she was nice enough to volunteer."

I text her at 8:40/8:45ish "don't worry about it." She texts me back that she JUST left her exam & overly apologizes. Whatever, guys. Another unplanned 12-13 hour day, for me!

Tuesday, my day off, Person A (the one that was supposed to relieve me the night before after her midterm) texts me and says, "I'm scheduled tomorrow (Wednesday) 4:30-9:30p, but I have a midterm 5:45-7:45p. I asked Person B, C, & Fever Person and none of them can cover for me, and I really don't want you to have to work a 12 hour (I'm scheduled 9:30a-5:30p that day)..."

REALLY?!?!? The best I've gotten, so far, is getting Person B to come in at least for 7:30-9:30p (she TOLD Person A that's what she could do, but I was obviously told otherwise).

I may be almost 30 & have no life outside of work (really: no kids to take care of, no social life, just my fiancee & 2 dogs), but COME ON! In my 5 years here, do you KNOW how many kids I've had do this shit to me (as "disposable" as retail employees are, let's be real) & not be able to reciprocate for me, no matter how many times they say, "Oh, thankyou thankyou thankyou for being the only person to work an additional 4 hours after working your 8 today or coming in on your day off at the last minute! I tried to get it covered, but nobody can & I don't get that you can't go over your 40 hours a week because the company is so fucking cheap. I'm SO sorry & if you need me to cover for you in the future, let me know so I can tell you that I can't because I have class or whatever excuse I can come up with!"

I also admit that it's what I get for posting said schedule at the last minute because I was WAITING for Theater Major Employee to give me a fucking piece of paper that shows me her new work availability for a show she's rehearsing. Seems like Alanis Morrisette's hidden lyric in her "Ironic" song is: "It's like the manager posting a schedule/then employees see it & say, 'Oooh, I can't work that day, even though I didn't tell you beforehand...'"

I get that not everyone's gonna be sitting around with their thumb up their ass to pick up a shift, but does that mean I should be when I'm already working full time? It's totally my fault that I decided to be the manager that understood that On Call shifts & blackout periods are stupid & because she's worked for the company so long that she could try to make it cool & fair for everyone. It's also my fault that instead of me "toughening up" (like everyone has & will say I should do), I'm just gonna secretly look for ANY other job out there where I'm simply treated fairly & not like this.

Really, anything. I don't HAVE to be the manager. In fact, I'd 110% give the responsibilities to someone else because people above Store Managers can also be a bitch. (right?)

My recurring daydream, now, is how goddamn hilarious it would be to just be like Peter from Office Space & not show up to work. My parting words to my District Manager being: "Good luck finding someone to cover all my shifts because college bitches are in class! They're YOUR problem, now!"

--Nancy Drew

Comments

[Katia]

I respect what you do, and I think it's great that you're trying to give them a chance and work around their schedule. That being said, you sound like one of those moms that want to be friends to their children, instead of mothers. Schedules are set, they can't work, not your problem (but it is because you cover them). Midterms are announced at the beginning of the semester/quarter, so there's no excuse for them not telling you. Request new availability times from them, and just keep scheduling that. If they fail to show, write them up. Yeah, college kids need jobs, but they also need to learn about the real world and that future workplaces won't be lenient of you just decide to not show up.

[LaserSpawn]

what katia said.

if i tried to pull that kind of shit at my job, i would be written up so fast that i would land in next month.

[Copy Center Dude]

There's a fine line between being fair and flexible and being taken advantage of. Things happen in life, but people, especially college students need to learn to plan and prioritize multiple competing priorities. When I was in school that meant getting classwork done ahead because I was working 2-3 jobs and wanted to pick up shifts.

When I have worked as a manager the people who came in when needed were rewarded with extra flexibility, they proved that they would help me when I needed it so I returned the favor. Those who called off regularly and never covered for others got the minimum of extra flexibility.

[James]

I don't feel bad for doormats. Hire some non students

[Cece]

WHAT KATIA SAID. I was going to say fire everyone who routinely pulls stupid stuff. How hard can it be to fill their posts in a college town? And say to the new people, "I understand college, but give me your availability when I need it, otherwise you ARE RESPONSIBLE for what you are scheduled." You know who (more often than not) has a legit problem and who (more often than not) is taking advantage. If you think just telling them not to bother coming in is too harsh, have a staff meeting and explain that those who can't commit to their shifts, which are scheduled according to the availability they gave (when you asked for it, not when they finally got around to it), need to start looking elsewhere.

[Nomnom]

Yeah, my advice would be to hire some people who aren't in college. If you know, you can't bear to toughen up some.

[Mrs. Lovett]

I agree with what everyone else said about establishing negative consequences for those who can't act like responsible employees (such as write-ups and giving them last preference when they ask for time off) and positive consequences for those who go above and beyond (such as commending them and giving them the shifts they ask for). The most important thing is to try to be consistent with consequences so your employees know what to expect from you.

One thing I'd like to add, though: When the girl called in sick, I feel it was your responsibility as a manager to find a replacement, not hers. If she was faking, then she sucks, but if she was legitimately sick, then she should be allowed to sleep and take care of herself, not stay awake and stress over finding someone to cover her shift. It might not seem fair to you, but unfortunately life's not always fair. As a manager, you get paid more and have a position of authority, but you also have greater responsibility. It's just the way it is. Note that this only applies when someone is sick or dealing with an emergency. If they failed to ask for time off for a class or to see a concert or hang out with friends, finding a sub is entirely their own responsibility.

I hope you figure out something that works for you and lets you be happy, whether it's at your current store or at another job. Best of luck!

[NC Tony]

Most managers I know would have been handing out write ups left and right if they were in your position. I gotta go with what everyone else said. You're being far too lenient, and they're taking advantage of you. It's time to put your foot down and let them know that if they can't handle the responsibility of school and a job, you'll find someone who can.

[Queer Geek]

I feel you. I know being a manager (much less a store manager) is a difficult position. I remember back when I was at Big Fancy how all my coworkers worked as a team except for one person. (We were all full timers and non-college students so there's no excuse not to come in.) I had one coworker who would fuck up everyone's schedule with her call-ins and excuses to the point we had to cover her shifts. The worst was when I worked an almost 13 hour day (my manager was on sick leave so we pretty much were responsible for ourselves) because she CONVENIENTLY called in and I had to rush over and work all day to cover the department (and I'm not even a manager).

Anyway, she ended up quitting and things sort of got back to normal. Ironically enough Big Fancy failed to recognize my dedication and work ethic and laid me off anyway. Whatever.

[The Worst]

Another vote for Katia's point here. Also, midterms and usually even the final are on the syllabus on the first day of class. Start telling these kids you need their exam schedules ahead of time, and if they don't give them to you, then you can't be responsible for scheduling them during an exam and they need to find someone to cover or get written up/fired for it.

[WhiteJoker]

Well, I'm not saying you should be too strict, but come on, you're being taken advantage of here. The rule at my old retail company was: schedules are posted two weeks before. Want time off? Make sure you fill in the form beforehand. Does your school schedule change? Let us know otherwise we'll keep planning you according to your old schedule. Want to trade shifts? Sure but you need to find your own substitute.

When someone's sick it's another problem, but my company had a lot of flexible people. I was one of them. I needed the money so I put in the time. That also meant that if I needed some extra time of they we're more flexible with me.

[Pedant]

http://www.edwardtufte.com/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=0002f1

a.m and p.m, please, not a and p. It doesn't mean anything without 'meridiem' after it.

[Nancy Drew]

Thanks, all! I will take everything you guys said into consideration. I just needed to bitch & this seemed like a fun place to do it. It was good to hear from people who have been there/done that, though! :)

[Twinkenschmuck]

As a college student working full time hours, THIS PISSES ME OFF TO NO END. (Not you, but the situation of students pulling this shit!) It gives all students a bad name. If it wasn't for the fact that I had worked at this particular convenience haven prior to starting school, they would have seen I was a student and not hired me because of a lot of bad experiences with students.

I absolutely agree with the comment on availability at the beginning of semesters. I've NEVER had a professor not at least have dates for major tests and exams. Some go as far as breaking down every week of the semester so we know when ALL of the homeworks are due.

I also agree that if someone is genuinely sick, you should be responsible for finding someone, but I'm also a worker who would find my own replacement before I even attempted to call off just to save my manager the stress. I always feel guilty calling off, so try to alleviate that myself.

Finally, the biggest point is trying to find non-college students. In a college town, that's HARD, and I get it. But at least having a handful of non-college students with open availability would probably help your stress problems a lot by having a reliable group who can work any time in case something like a case of Irresponsible-Undergrad pops up again.