Job problem. Complain or ignore?

Parent Cafe
1

<p>A few weeks ago, I posted about me having my first job at a fast food place. Now, It has been a month now, and it is getting worse. They are not paying me the hours that I work, my co-workers are too bossy and giving me a hard time, and they all want me to act like a robot, doing everything fast, etc. Lastly, they make me work more than on my schedule, and not paying for the 30 minutes extra or sometimes more. </p>

<p>I just ignore how they treat me, and I am more concern on my wage. On friday, I will be getting my next paycheck, if they pay me less again, should I talk to my manager, or just accept the paycheck, and quit when the semester begins? Starting next week, I am going to look for a job on campus or somewhere else.</p>

<p>When I quit, is it okay if I just tell my boss that I will quit that day? Also, should I also go back and get my wage for the weeks that was not included in my paycheck?</p>

2

<p>Do you clock in for work? If so, you have a paper trail of your hours. Go to the store manager and point out the discrepency. Go to the store manager even if you don’t have a paper trail for your hours. Let him/her know how much you actually worked & how many hours you were paid for. </p>

<p>If you were my child, I would urge you to find a new job as soon as possible. As far as quitting goes, that’s up to you - if they have been that bad to you, you don’t owe them anything. And if you weren’t paid for time you worked, by law the store MUST pay you for the hours you worked - you may need to remind the store manager that you haven’t been paid for time worked. Let him/her know the check can be sent to your home address.</p>

3

<p>Legally, they can’t not pay you for the hours you have worked, they could get fined for it. Practically, the way to handle it is to bring it up with the manager when you get your paycheck, very politely point it out to him you should have been paid X hours. It could very well be an honest mistake. </p>

<p>I think you should give two weeks notice if you should decide to leave. I also don’t think you should move from one job to another too quickly. You may be able to get away with it once or twice, but after a few times prospective employers may think you are unstable. If you do leave, always leave on a good term, never bad mouth anyone because you never know if you’ll run into them again at another job.</p>

4

<p>I would also like to point out that many young people think everyone is too bossy at their first few jobs. It is part of growing up. People are often busy at work and don’t have time to cuddle you. If you were my kid, I would tell you to suck it up unless they are being outright abusive.</p>

5

<p>I do agree that often young people feel they are being bossed around when it’s really not the case. What concerns me about the OP’s post is the fact that he/she is not being properly paid and is being expected to work more than scheduled. This is not okay.</p>

<p>As I think about this, though, I have a couple questions:

  1. Are you slower than your co-workers? If so, you will need to work more quickly.
  2. Does your shift include unpaid breaks? If so, that may be why you are “missing” pay.
  3. Are you working at closing time? If so, then you need to understand that you will have to stay extra in order to close up. Find out from your manager whether or not this is supposed to be paid.
  4. Are your co-workers really being bossy? Think carefully about what they are saying. Is it possible that you need some additional training in order to fully understand how to do your job? If so, please discuss this with your store manager.</p>

<p>I am not trying to say that you are not doing your job. I know absolutely nothing about you, your job performance, or your co-workers. At first, I assumed you were being wronged by your co-workers. After some thought, though, I realized that it’s possible you might need to adjust your own work habits. Don’t take it personally — again, I don’t know you! — just think carefully about what is happening.</p>

6

<p>I think it is a good idea for you to track your hours on a calendar you keep at home. Remember that you are paid a specific agreed-upon amount per hour and that taxes need to be deducted from that amount. Sometimes young people think that their check should be for the full amount, and that taxes shouldn’t come out. Sorry – doesn’t work that way.</p>

7

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<p>Pretty normal for a fast food restaurant. My son worked in one for a while and they had to meet all sorts of time rules like getting customers through the drive through in less than a certain amount of time. If you are not working fast your co-workers will give you a hard time because how you work will affect how they can do their job.</p>

<p>As for the pay - if you clock in and out (most fast food employees do) then you should be able to easily figure out what hours you have worked. Once you figure out the hours you have worked it should be easy to check that you are getting paid for the hours you have worked. Don’t forget that the hours you work this week may not be in the pay check you get this week but in the next one (depending on when the cut off date is for each pay check). In all honesty I doubt that you are not getting paid for the hours you work (assuming you are clocking in and out correctly) as it is probably a pretty automated system. if you are not sure how the pay system works then ask your boss to explain it to you - but with an asking because I don’t understand rather than a complaining approach.</p>

<p>If you do decide to quit it is courteous to give some notice. We taught our kids to always leave a job graciously and it has stood them in good stead when it comes to references and also being rehired (my son has an open invitation to return to every job he has had and even gets the occasional ‘we are really short staffed can you come in on Saturday and help out’ call from people he no longer works for.).</p>

8

<p>I worked at a fast food restaurant for two years, and apart from the hours/payment discrepancy, OP’s description sounds fairly par for the course. It’s important to note that if you’re closing you have to stay later, and if it’s extremely busy when you’re scheduled to leave, you’re expected to stay until the rush subsides or at least until it’s manageable.</p>

<p>For the coworkers, I would just offer up the advice that fast food restaurants are sort of unique in that most of them have at least a few employees who have been working within the chain for 10+ years without advancement. While these employees aren’t technically your superiors, they know what needs to be done and the best way to do it. Try not to be offended when they direct you to do stuff…usually they operate with a kind of de facto authority under the manager, since they understand what needs to be done during the shift.</p>

<p>As far as the payment goes, I would check to see if your lunch break is paid or unpaid. I would also make sure you’re clocking in correctly on the computer–when you arrive, when you leave, with the correct badge #, etc. Talk to your boss first, if s/he’s unresponsive, go to the regional boss. There should be a toll-free number you can call for these kinds of problems–it’s probably on display in the break room. Oh, and if you’re just missing your first week or two in wages, sometimes those are held until you’ve been there for a certain amount of time/you quit. And your paycheck won’t usually be for the week you’ve just finished working, usually they’re for a week or two weeks before.</p>

9

<p>

True.

Good idea.</p>

<p>If you are an hourly employee and you are in job that has you working extra time “off the clock” (without pay), your employer is breaking the law, and if you could show this, your employer would face fairly serious sanctions. I think that is it very unlikely for a fast food employer to risk this. Here is a link to the Department of Labor regarding the Fair Labor Standards Act.</p>

<p>[U.S&lt;/a&gt;. Department of Labor - Employment Standards Administration (ESA) - Wage and Hour Division (WHD) - Compliance Assistance-Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)](<a href=“http://www.dol.gov/esa/whd/flsa/]U.S”>http://www.dol.gov/esa/whd/flsa/)</p>

<p>Or could it be a lower level supervisor (who doesn’t understand labor laws) who is doing this? If so the employer needs to know about it.</p>

10

<p>If you quit the job, yes, you go back on the next payday to get the paycheck for the last time period that you worked.</p>

11

<p>I don’t clock in my job since last week, because they are making me work in another location. They say I don’t have to worry about it. They say my manager will clock in for me or something. </p>

<p>Well, I know that there are deductions and that I get paid from Sunday to Saturday—every two weeks. It’s still not right. I think my manager adjusted my hours so that she only pays the hours I work based on my schedule and not actual hours I work. </p>

<p>One time, when I was about to clock out, it even says I am not even schedule to work because she already clock me out half an hour ago. I did not complain because she was complaining about how I should have done my responsibilities by that time. I was still serving the customer by 9pm. I should be out by 9:30pm. I clean the all the trays, the bathroom, take out the trash, wipe the table, and clean and mop the floor, clean the door, and that took me an hour. I don’t’ think I was slow. I look at my co-workers, and they are wiping the counters, and cleaning something, and talking, and they are the ones who are slow. When I was done, I went to the manager and ask if I could leave now, and she got mad because I was supposed to also clean the drainage, and the soda fountain. Is that fair? </p>

<p>I think I work hard. I only take breaks when it is break time, but there is no minute or second that I don’t work, and I think I work more than my co-workers, and they still accuse me of being slow. That is why I want to quit this job because they do not appreciate me. They think my co-workers who don’t leave the counter is more hardworking than me who make sure that the trash can is not overflowing, wipe the tables, and clean the floor when it is not busy. I felt that maybe I should also not leave the counter and just wait for directions. Also, when someone else makes a mistake, I notice they don’t care. But if I did that mistake, I receive a 5 minute lecture, and they show me how to do the work again. Also my hands are really dry now from constant washing. I don’t ever see my coworkers wash their hands. I’m the only one reprimanded about cleanliness. My father said I complain too much, but I really felt like I am being mistreated. Maybe this is normal. Is this normal?</p>

12

<p>In my last paycheck, they pay me for 28.1 hours. I work 6 days in two weeks, and minimum of 5 hours each. If they give me 4 -30 minutes break, then okay, maybe that is 28 hours. But, one day, I work 7 hours, and there are 3 days where I work closing, and I work almost half an hour more than the schedule.</p>

13

<p>Most of my coworkers are only a few weeks longer than me in the job because that restaurant is new, and I don’t have a problem with the old workers because they are all nice to me and they understanding and they even say I should always be careful. I don’t even understand why the new ones are the ones who are too hard on me.</p>

14

<p>Your employer needs to pay you for the hours you work, not the hours you are scheduled to work. Your supervisor may not clock you out while you are still working nor may your supervisor require you to stay and work more after you have clocked out. This is not normal and it is absolutely illegal. Do you work at a fast food chain, like McDonalds or Burger King?</p>

15

<p>Document the actual start and end times, as well as the start and end times for your lunch/meal break.</p>

<p>Keep careful track of your actual hours for the week. Most of the time, breaks are required to be paid, lunch (or dinner) is not required to be paid – but you must not be required to stay on the premises or work during your lunch.</p>

<p>If you’re paid for fewer hours than you actually worked (regardless of the number of hours you were scheduled to work) start by talking to your manager. If you don’t get either a clear explanation (perhaps the payroll cutoff day is mid-week, and you thought it was at the end of the week) or a retroactive payment, then call your regional or corporate human resources office and file a written complaint. </p>

<p>If that fails, file a complaint with your state department of labor. Those laws are taken very, very seriously. Wal-Mart just settled a huge claim related to off-the-clock hours.</p>

<p>Good luck.</p>

16

<p>I worked at McDonald’s for a year and I can tell you that, while some of this stuff is illegal, it happens all the time, at least where I was. I can’t say I didn’t get paid what I worked, but I was also never full-time. Of the full-time workers I knew, especially lower-level management, our restaurant did not pay overtime for the week. If you worked more than 40 hours one week, those extra hours magically “disappeared” once your paycheck came out. This never caused me to do anything because it didn’t affect me but it happened.</p>

<p>I worked for federal minimum wage ($5.85 as of the period I was working) and I was there for a year, and I never received a raise. I didn’t think anything of it until about a week before I had to leave for college anyway (of course) when co-workers who had been there much less time than I had told me they were making more than me, about $6-$6.15 an hour! They couldn’t believe I still made starting wage. At that point it was too late to do anything, but I was by far one of their best, most reliable workers, and the managers all told me that, yet I was somehow skipped over for a raise.</p>

<p>We got one half-hour break per every work day over 5 hours I believe? (I was usually there for 8 so not sure). I worked pretty steady 7am-3pm on weekends, and the morning manager would always put me on break as soon as I got there, like 7:30-8:30, leaving me starving by 1:00 and going 7 hours without eating before I could leave. I found out this isn’t actually illegal, but it was awful. There was nothing I could do though, because she was a manager and if you fought her on it she’d be petty and not let you go on break almost at all.</p>

<p>Fast food jobs will screw you, I know this. One thing that was always difficult for me was the lack of incentives. I am naturally motivated to do my best, even when it comes to making/serving fast food, so I always did my best work. But this comes to be taken for granted. I showed up on time, only called off once the whole time I worked there (for a day I requested off anyway), never caused trouble and did an excellent job, but the nature of the business (minimum wage) didn’t allow for much rewards. I made the same and was treated the same (by some rather jerky managers) as people who came in late, didn’t show up, called off, and did a terrible job when they did come in.</p>

<p>All in all it stinks, and you should be reminded why you’re in college and not planning to be there for the rest of your life, haha!</p>

<p>In all seriousness, keep track of things and complain if you really feel strongly about this, but it is difficult to take on a fast food chain, even if it’s just management in a local franchise. They have ways of silencing you or covering their butts and it just happens that way sometimes.</p>

<p>If you’re going to quit, I would recommend giving some notice just so you don’t give a reason for your bosses to be negative if anyone ever contacts them when you’re trying to get a future job. Absolutely you must get your last paycheck if you quit. Usually they will do it contingent on returning your uniform. You may be able to have them mail it to you if you prefer.</p>

17

<p>Have you spoken to the manager about the discrepancy between your pay and the hours you actually are working? That is what you really should do. The manager will be able to tell you the policy of paying folks for partial hours, and working late to complete work that was supposed to be done during the work day. That is the place to start. Get your answers from the management and if they are not satisfactory to you…find another job.</p>

<p>BUT keep in mind that some of what you are complaining about may also happen at a new job.</p>

18

<p>I already resolve my conflict with my manager. The reason why I only got 28 hours is because one of the day, I did not know I was working that day, so they called me, and I showed up at 7pm instead of 4:30pm…</p>

19

<p>Also, regarding my co-workers, I think this job is really about TEAM WORK.
It’s hard, so many responsibilities, and my manager said I lack ENERGY in the job.
I need to improve, and never frown in front of the customer, always smile.</p>

20

<p>Welcome to the world of work. Things are not always fair. You can work really hard and still not meet job expectations or receive any signs of appreciation. Working in a low paid, unskilled job does not somehow diminish the negative aspects of work. In fact the negative aspects are almost always more severe. </p>

<p>In addition to getting your paycheck, you might learn some things from your employment. Even though you know you are working hard, your manager and coworkers have decided that you are slow, lack energy, and make too many mistakes. They are probably right. In addition to working hard, for most jobs, you need to learn how to work smart and get the job done the quick and easy ways. If your manager and coworkers are wrong and you really are doing a great job, then you have an even bigger problem. If you cannot get along with your manager and coworkers, you situation will always be unpleasant. Some of the skills that you learn on even this entry level food service job will be important throughout your work life. Hopefully your experience will also help motivate you towards improving your education and finding a career that brings you happiness and success. Best of luck.</p>