I would really appreciate your prayers regarding my job. The last two weeks have been extremely difficult.
It started with my boss making uncalled for harsh comments and criticisms, and even though I sought to respond by just going the extra mile to minister, the situation just got worse. I tried to stay out of his way as much as possible, but he would get very angry over very small things that I did that were different from the way he would do something, or if I even suggested a different way of doing it. I talked to his wife, and she agreed that his behavior toward me was uncalled for, and she would talk to him about it.
It was better for a day, but then the next time I went in to work, in front of all the customers, he flew into a rage over the fact that I said that it was very confusing when he allowed the customers to switch between cheeses, repeatedly reminding me that he was the owner of the business, and I was just the employee. The next morning, he again confronted me about the incident yesterday, belligerently asking me if I tried to tell my former employers how to run their businesses, and why I felt like I could tell him what to do. He went on a rant for quite some time, while I just listened, retaining my composure, and agreeing with him and apologizing for offending him. I also told him that I understood that he was under a lot of pressure running the business, and that he was doing very well at it.
After that, I thought we were good to go, but I still took care to stay out of his way. But later on, I made an innocent mistake, and when I tried to correct it, he interfered, telling the customer to ask for him to do it next time, because I didn’t know how and wasn’t good at it. In front of me! I was shocked. He then proceeded to show me how to do it “right,” and I watched without saying a word while he did everything differently from how they taught me originally. As I expected, it didn’t work for him either, and embarrassed by his failure, he proceeded to verbally attack me even more harshly than before, also in front of the customer. He then told me that I would have to come in later in the day and only work when his wife was there, which I totally agreed with, except that it makes for much longer days for me, and one hour less of work per week.
When I went into work today, Frank informed me that I wasn’t allowed to use the cash register anymore. Then I told his wife I wanted to talk to her once she got a chance, and she must have told Frank that because then a little later Frank came and said, “Hey, you can talk to her all you want, but I’m the owner of this business, and I’m the one that hired you, right?” Then he went on to say; “and you know, there’s plenty of other places out there you could work. So if you’re not happy here, there’s plenty of other places you could work. But you won’t make it in the restaurant business! You’re so slow. I have to wait while you make the bagels. You move like molasses!” Which is almost funny, if it weren’t so ridiculous, because it’s not like I can make the toaster toast any faster, you know? “And just so you know, I’m cutting your hours back from 11 to 2.”
So I talked to his wife, and she said that she’ll talk to Frank, again. She said too that she doesn’t want me to have to work in a hostile environment. So she’ll try to come in when I do, and since 11-2 isn’t even close to the 30 hours we’re supposed to get, my hours will be 10-2, which is a little closer, but still not good. I mentioned the possibility of having Frank take a break for a few hours while I’m there, and she said she’d talk to him about it.
That’s the latest on the situation, besides that I’m not working for the rest of this week. I’ll go back on Monday however. So we’ll see how it goes.
I discussed the situation with my discipler, parents, and campus director, and they all agreed that because of the hostile environment, if working with her doesn’t help, I can find a new job. Of course, that opens up a lot of uncertainties and fears for me, since it wasn’t easy to find a job at all, and this late in the summer, the chances are much slimmer. So, please pray! Pray that God will change my employer’s heart, and that I’ll continue to respond in a God honoring way, while choosing the best course of action. Thank you so much!
