Fired
Well, I guess I was technically "let go." Seems you've gotta do something really bad to warrant a full-on "firing." Why was I let go? Well, the official notice reads: "Your employment is terminated effective today, October 10, 2006 due to your failure to arrive on time for your shift as outlined in the Last and Final Warning reviewed with you on September 29, 2006."
Allow me to explain. Now, don't get me wrong -- I'm not trying to excuse myself, I'm just trying to explain my reasons for doing what I've done. I believe I was "right" (I use the term loosely) on a fundamental level, but I'm not so haughty as to believe that everyone (or anyone) will agree with me and think I'm not just lazy.
Really, the reason I lost this job isn't so much different from the reason I got booted from college. Despite all the dumb shit I've done, I still think I'm smarter than everyone else. I still think I'm above the rules. The bottom line with Tribune is that whether I arrived for my shift at 1pm, 1:15pm or 2:00pm, it didn't make an ounce of difference to quickness or quality with which my work was completed. Working at Tribune wasn't like most jobs - each person has their own workload that they are responsible for. If I arrive early or late (within a reasonable timeframe, of course, I don't mean like 4 hours late), no one else's workload is affected. It's a pure policy issue. You have to be on time because, "They said so."
The first time they really warned me about being late, they tried to convince me that it somehow affected my relationship with my co-workers. Since I already worked the late shift (1-9:30pm), and everyone else left at around 3:30, arriving late meant I had less time to bond with my co-workers. Please. Forgiving the fact that I have nothing in common with my co-workers -- most them being women in their late 30s, showing up at 1:30 vs. 1pm meant I maybe said another word to them.
This is one of those times when I wonder if something is wrong with me. If a rule is stupid, I won't follow it. Please, don't treat me like a child. Don't bullshit me. Just give me a real reason. At the same time, I know that these things will only end up hurting me in the end. It's not like you can beat the establishment. I'm essentially fighting for a principle that means nothing to anyone but me.
So, I'm not really bitter. Not entirely anyway. I knew I could've put in the effort to save my job. Honestly, I didn't want to. I know everyone has their days, maybe every day, that they just don't want to go to work. I'm not convinced that financial security is worth being miserable. But here's the shady thing, and the part that leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Right on the other side of the cubicle wall from me, one of my co-workers literally made his own schedule. He worked 40 hours a week, but pretty much any damn time he wanted from week to week. Similarly, a guy from another department who shared my schedule, and who I drove to work every day was never spoken to for being late. Hell, I got away with being late for damn near a year with barely a word. Not sure why, but something shifted in my department. That bit of bitterness in me hopes that my department -- which was already understaffed -- is hurting without me. My workload was at least 30% larger than it was when I moved to a full-time position. Not to mention my extra training, etc. that most of the new folks don't have. I don't really blame them for getting rid of me, but it seemed like a really bad time to do it, on their part.
Now obviously, I should've been looking for another job when this one got tiresome. Vicki and I are still in the process of making plans to return to western New York, so I was sorta hoping to just ride this one out until the end of the year. Now, I'm not so sure. Vicki seems undecided still, as her job still ties her to this place.
Unbelievably, I make about as much from Unemployment as I did at my job. Well, thanks for the paid vacation, Tribune. More time to chill, more time to hang out with Vicki. More time to write, hopefully. All in all, not a bad turn of events.
Allow me to explain. Now, don't get me wrong -- I'm not trying to excuse myself, I'm just trying to explain my reasons for doing what I've done. I believe I was "right" (I use the term loosely) on a fundamental level, but I'm not so haughty as to believe that everyone (or anyone) will agree with me and think I'm not just lazy.
Really, the reason I lost this job isn't so much different from the reason I got booted from college. Despite all the dumb shit I've done, I still think I'm smarter than everyone else. I still think I'm above the rules. The bottom line with Tribune is that whether I arrived for my shift at 1pm, 1:15pm or 2:00pm, it didn't make an ounce of difference to quickness or quality with which my work was completed. Working at Tribune wasn't like most jobs - each person has their own workload that they are responsible for. If I arrive early or late (within a reasonable timeframe, of course, I don't mean like 4 hours late), no one else's workload is affected. It's a pure policy issue. You have to be on time because, "They said so."
The first time they really warned me about being late, they tried to convince me that it somehow affected my relationship with my co-workers. Since I already worked the late shift (1-9:30pm), and everyone else left at around 3:30, arriving late meant I had less time to bond with my co-workers. Please. Forgiving the fact that I have nothing in common with my co-workers -- most them being women in their late 30s, showing up at 1:30 vs. 1pm meant I maybe said another word to them.
This is one of those times when I wonder if something is wrong with me. If a rule is stupid, I won't follow it. Please, don't treat me like a child. Don't bullshit me. Just give me a real reason. At the same time, I know that these things will only end up hurting me in the end. It's not like you can beat the establishment. I'm essentially fighting for a principle that means nothing to anyone but me.
So, I'm not really bitter. Not entirely anyway. I knew I could've put in the effort to save my job. Honestly, I didn't want to. I know everyone has their days, maybe every day, that they just don't want to go to work. I'm not convinced that financial security is worth being miserable. But here's the shady thing, and the part that leaves a bad taste in my mouth. Right on the other side of the cubicle wall from me, one of my co-workers literally made his own schedule. He worked 40 hours a week, but pretty much any damn time he wanted from week to week. Similarly, a guy from another department who shared my schedule, and who I drove to work every day was never spoken to for being late. Hell, I got away with being late for damn near a year with barely a word. Not sure why, but something shifted in my department. That bit of bitterness in me hopes that my department -- which was already understaffed -- is hurting without me. My workload was at least 30% larger than it was when I moved to a full-time position. Not to mention my extra training, etc. that most of the new folks don't have. I don't really blame them for getting rid of me, but it seemed like a really bad time to do it, on their part.
Now obviously, I should've been looking for another job when this one got tiresome. Vicki and I are still in the process of making plans to return to western New York, so I was sorta hoping to just ride this one out until the end of the year. Now, I'm not so sure. Vicki seems undecided still, as her job still ties her to this place.
Unbelievably, I make about as much from Unemployment as I did at my job. Well, thanks for the paid vacation, Tribune. More time to chill, more time to hang out with Vicki. More time to write, hopefully. All in all, not a bad turn of events.
posted by Kultcher at Thursday, October 19, 2006
1 Comments:
That's a sweet deal, unemployment. I gots ta get me some of that.
I completely agree with your stance on financial stability and your mental and physical state of being. I was miserable when I worked at Wendy's, and when I found out that I got my new job, I skipped work that day, and quit the next. Never went back in. And I feel better for it.
Unfortunately, my new situation promises to be one where I spend less time with Bridget, due to the crazy work schedule. But we'll see.
In any case, good luck with whatever happens next. I wish you and Vicki the best, and it was good to see you this past weekend. Keep writing, and I'll talk to you later.
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