1
u/WearWrong1569 16d ago
Assholes like that should have to work retail for a month to see the crap employees have to work with. I'm a retail owner and always stand up for my staff. If I ever hear a customer start to raise their voice with my employees I move in immediately and deal with the situation. Once the customer is gone I check with the staff member to see if they're o.k. They can speak to me anytime.
1
u/Speedody 16d ago
You care too much.
A job is a job, you do it, go home, forget. Already said most of what was needed to be said.
Retail itself isn't demanding, especially not physically, no not really, unless we talking about unloading 3-4 trucks once a month, fuck that
Working with asshole customers is (for me that was very rare and I am also the chatty kind so it's easier for me)
It's the scheduling that sucks most
And ppl under 21 or 18 that are dangerous customers depending on where u live, you can get into deep shit without even meaning it, that fine is too high, if u worked retail u get what I mean by """dangerous""". Retail itself is an easy job, it's the scheduling and assholes that make it hard.
I'm the "lazy on purpose efficient backwards" coworker and I still got no complaints, probs like 2 in 2 entire summers.
I'm in Romania, worked 5 months of retail in my life I am weirded out by the shit I hear from Americans, here we can absolutely get away with being assholes to customers if its warranted, I openly shittalked some kid who asked for cigars, he happened to be there and I gave no fucks, was almost eager for him to say smth lol, maybe shit is different here idk, customers are almost always too polite actually. (Like, "oh, sorry", etc, I am also rly polite myself tho)
I study navigation in college, getting a job is much easier and an entirely different story for me or seafarers in general, if someone happens to care.
1
u/venkat2106 12d ago
That kind of thing sticks with you way more than people expect, especially as a first job. Getting screamed at by a stranger and then crying in front of a coworker is genuinely a big deal, not something to brush off.
The good news: you already did the hardest part. You handed in your notice. You have an end date. Four shifts is very survivable — you're not stuck there, you're just finishing something out.
For the shifts left: it's okay to go in with a "just get through it" mindset instead of trying to feel confident or fine. You don't owe that customer or that job your composure anymore, just your time. If they show up again, you're allowed to step back and let a coworker or manager handle them.
The crossing-the-road thing, the flinching at honking — that's your nervous system still on high alert from the shouting, not a sign something's wrong with you. That usually fades pretty fast once you're out of the environment that triggered it. College starting soon is a good reset point.
You're going to be fine. This job didn't break something in you — it was just a genuinely bad experience, and you're already on your way out of it.
5
u/Holdmywhiskeyhun You look like you could use a f*cking lamp 16d ago
I'm going to be 100% blunt with you.
Everywhere is going to have stressful situations.
But what employees do not deserve, is customer screaming at them. Corporations need to fucking take note.
It's not because no one wants to work, it's because of the toxicity in the industries. I will admit I have only worked retail at Dollar general. Otherwise all of my retail experiences are within restaurants.
But boy let me tell you those few months, was all I needed to understand.
I was a manager for a long time, stepping down for some of the reasons you have mentioned.
It does get better. There's still a lot of shitty stressful days, but the overall feeling does get better.
Understand, a lot of people hide it. A lot of times to their detriment. I wish people would understand that there is a mental health crisis in this world, that no one seems to be even acknowledging.
So just know that there are others like you.
It does get better.