Lets be frank, no one grows up wanting to work in retail, but someone has to do it right? Right. As a child you never really grow up thinking I am going to work in a Toys 'R' Us or lets say a Kmart. However, it gets the bills paid for the meantime. Like, buy food, pay cellphone bills, insurance etc. But allow me to give a run down in the life of a retail worker.
While working in retail , we assist customers and their needs. This does not mean that we are your servant, it does not mean talk to us less than your equal. Working in retail and long shifts are draining. Of course, it is the occupation we chose but we did it to receive an extra buck.
When you go through aisles and you begin to drop things on the floor and leave it understand the worker that was there in that aisle most likely is already drained from other things. Those other things being school, other jobs, or taking care of family members. Yes, it is our job we get paid to clean up after people shop. But we do not get paid above the minimum wage and if we do its not a significant difference.
The majority of the time we are underpaid for the amount of work and hours we put in. Most retail workers can literally run a store on their own by the time they are done training, and even by the end of training retail workers continue to learn for the sake of being called in for more hours.
This even becomes problematic because hours then are then cut because associates are learning to do the job of more than one associate. Therefore, not learning new jobs within the store is not in favor of the associate but of the company.
When holidays kick in, not only must previous workers train the new associates, but during holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas they do not get to spend it with their families. In retail, there is no such thing as requesting those major holidays off because of the demand of the public, customers. Also, some stores do not have the luxury of a union, therefore, it is not as if some associates are able to explain what is occurring.
And something that truthfully bugs all retail workers when handling customers is that the customer is not always right. Yes, you have read correctly. The customer is not always right. Managers normally agree with the customer to not receive a bad store review and to not have a phone call from corporate. Of course, the impression is given that the associate was wrong, but in actuality the manager just made it appear that way.
Retail work is not for everyone, but I do recognize that if the roles were switched most people would not last long. Being a retail worker requires a lot of energy and time, and when looking for other jobs you are most likely over qualified due to the amount of work you have learned.
