I was at lunch the other day with a younger girlfriend (mid twenties) and she was telling me how upset she was at her job because one of the managers is always yelling at the employees, including repeatedly using the “F” word, and that the morale at work was very low. She added that the district and regional manager knew of the store manager’s anger issues but because she was the top-selling store every month(retail), they overlooked it. Apparently several employees had already gone to them and they said, “She just has an artistic personality” but they would “talk to her.” And some of the complaints that had been verbally told to them included employees being called an “‘f’ing’ bitch”, a “lard ass”, and having a scarf thrown at them.
Now I know there are two sides to every story and I asked, “Well, are you all goofing off? Not doing your job?” Of course no matter what they are doing, I personally don’t think using the “F” word is appropriate, or yelling at employees in front of other employees either. Or being yelled at at all.
She didn’t know what to do because she needs her job and actually enjoys it except for the aggression, not knowing from one moment to the next when she’ll be called an idiot or be cussed out, in front of her coworkers. (She’s not the only one who gets yelled at.) Last week a fellow employee was late to work by 15 minutes. She came in, apologized, said the babysitter was late and as she started to put her purse away, the manager grabbed her upper arm, jerked her, and said, “Next time you’re fired.” There were apparently 3 other employees who all witnessed this. I asked what they did and she said nothing, because no one wants to get fired.
Now I haven’t worked outside the home in over 15 years and the last time I did, I lived in a different state. It’s been a long time since I paid attention to labor laws, workplace harassment, what constituted harassment, and how to handle it. I asked if she could report it to their HR office and she said no because the head of HR was friends with their manager and they again, were afraid of getting fired, and several of her coworkers are single mothers.
Again, I know there are two sides but my friend is not one to exaggerate and she wasn’t relating her tale for drama, but for advice. She said her manager was great when she was in a good mood but that could change from day-to-day, hour to hour. She actually didn’t want her boss to get fired, she just wanted her to stop being so aggressive and hostile. She then turned to me and asked, “What should I do?” Well, let me tell you, I’m usually not at a loss for words but this time I was. I really didn’t know what to tell her.
Now just because I didn’t know what to tell her, doesn’t mean I didn’t have some opinions! First of all, the person I think is most at blame for the situation is the general and regional managers. Their job is to manage and keep their stores running smoothly and they knew there were problems with this store manager but they chose to overlook it. By overlooking her behavior they can keep an employee who’s keeping the store profitable and winning awards and they don’t have to go through the “hassle” of finding a new manager that they’d have to train. I find THEIR behavior inexcusable. And let’s say all of these employees are lazy, uncooperative, disrespectful and not willing to learn. Regardless of their behavior as an employee, does that give their boss the right to physically and verbally abuse them? Seems to me if they challenge the boss so much where she has to repeatedly yell at them, she’d find more productive employees.
My girlfriend mentioned that a few of them thought about getting an attorney but again, they were afraid of the repercussions with the company and most of them only make $10-$12 an hour. I did go online but I certainly couldn’t find an answer (I admit I’m not the most savvy person on the internet) that easily answered her dilemma.
So, my question is; what do you think about this situation? Have you run across anything similar and how did you handle it? And do you think the type of place you work at makes a difference? For example; is there a different rule of conduct for a corporate office versus a retail store? Is there a different expectation if you work in a bank versus a restaurant? Since it’s been so long for me, I honestly can’t say what any type of workplace environment is like these days.
What do you think?
I have been a part of a situation like this. I was being verbally abused by a supervisor (and I was not the only one). Incidentally he was friends with the boss. We had a similar problem of the higher-ups ‘overlooking’ the poor management of the place, and I agree with Tammy – they held most of the blame. I also had an unscrupulous HR manager to say the least, and she was known to gossip with the rest of the employees that were her friends. All I could do was make a formal complaint with HR and make my greivances known in our official meeting with HR, my supervisor, and the GM. The good news is when you do this the person you made an official complaint against is FORBIDDEN to retaliate, and if they do it is grounds for being fired. I wish I could offer more comfort than this… but all you can do is be honest, stay true to yourself, and if nothing changes GET OUT of a bad situation. You deserve more respect than that. I lasted a year there, and fortunately had another job to go to when I finally quit. The only thing I wish I would’ve done is named the people who created the hostile work environment in my exit form.
Thanks for your input Zoe! And I know these comments are helping others know they aren’t the only ones this happens to. Hearing from others who have actually experienced it can shed more insight than just what I “think”. Thanks.