Not for me - Service Deli Clerk Meijer Employee Review

Truly a job and not a career. When I first started I thought that working in the deli would be a fun work experience and a way to pay my bills. It wasn't. We were always short handed, rarely had slow time to restock or clean anything and God forbide someone called in during a busier day like Sunday. Management was more concerned about telling us what to do and not helping us. My manager flat out told me that she couldn't help me slice meat for customers because "it's a union job." I'll never forget being short handed on a Sunday and looking over to see our deli manager standing next to the head of the food department making small talk while we had 17 people with tickets waiting to be helped. The pressure to hurry up and assist the customers knowing we'd get no help from management was just the tip of the iceberg and the final nudge I needed to put in my two weeks. Meijers was also pretty strict with the break policy- and by break I'm referring to the half-hour unpaid lunch. They would crack down and make demands that we took that despite being overwhelmed with work. The 15 minute paid break-of course they were fine if you skipped it. If they pay you for it you might as well work right. The hardest thing for me taking a break was the guilt from leaving my coworker to fend for themselves. I'm not saying my experience is what everyone experienced. I'm sure plenty of people enjoyed being employed there. For me, it took a serious toll on my mental health. I dreaded going in, and I was so exhausted by the time I left. It made me incredibly bitter, and I didn't realize how miserable I had become until one day i noticed all I did was complain to my friends about how much I hated Meijers. I've moved on and am no longer work there, but I think about some of my coworkers who are still there. Some of them put in so many years that they are just counting down until retirement. I hope they are doing okay. There was a quote by Frederick Meijer. I think he was the founder of the company. They had it hanging up by the service desk, and it said something along the lines of "a managers job to help those under them succeed." I agree 1000% but everytime I saw that sign it would make my blood boil. To anyone looking to work at Meijer maybe you will have a great time. Everyone's different, different locations have different managers and maybe you'll have the time of your life. I would just recommend keeping an eye on the door if they start dragging you down and not end up as a lifer. There's more out there, and you deserve better. Thanks.