From the article:
At McDonald’s, I asked the manager who wrote me up for losing my temper at Mustard Lady if anyone had ever thrown food at her, and, if so, how she’d kept it together.
Was there ... a trick to it?
My manager looked at me as if I were oblivious, and responded that of course people had thrown food at her. “You have a family to support. You think about your family, and you walk away.”
Exactly this ^^^ or even if you are single and know this is your only chance to make rent and you can't afford just to throw in the towel - just yet.
A lot depends on where you live - maybe McD is your only option.
To me, this was actually shocking to read - who the hell throws food at people? Maybe people who live in their own kind of hell? with no power over their own situation? Lord forgive them because they know not what they do?:) or maybe their mama just didn't teach them any manners.
Understaffing
Deliberate understaffing to the point that your employees get hurt and injured on the job is despicable and akin to a criminal act.
Employees
A clueless teenager with all the energy of youth and full monetary and family support will experience a job at McD completely different. They'll stash some away for their first car or gas money, video games or save up for college. They know this will not be forever, they are not stuck.
McD has perks
McD has a paid education program for young people something the author blithely ignored.
Digital time clocks - I disagree with the author
Well, yeah - any employer has the right to expect and insist that you show up on time. Who knows it might even say so in your employment contract:) If that means you have to take a train that gets you there 20 min early that is clearly your problem.
Good managers are what makes a company run smooth and keep both the employees and upper management happy. The ones who have both an eye for profit but also know to accommodate the needs of their worker's situations to retain the best and mentor those who have the potential to benefit the company.
The summer I worked at a restaurant was sheer misery for me. It taught me that this was one job I never wanted to have to do for a living.
The place itself was OK to work at - not the best and not the worst, just overall not my cup of tea.
I totally agree with startingsmall - people don't always see the big picture and cannot understand that
all low wage workers in corporate or non-corporate America have similar issues dependent on the idiosyncrasies of their particular job.
They fail to notice that they are in the same boat because they feel superior to food service workers or simply cannot connect the dots. I do agree that nostalgic waxing about your first FF job when conditions have obviously changed for the worse is not helpful to the current workers who are forced to labor under totally different conditions.Out of all the grim realities listed, the constant changing of shifts is the most troublesome to me.
Not just because it makes your life more difficult, but it wreaks havoc on your finances when you can't reliably count on X for income.