'I don't have to do half of my job anymore': Part-time grocery worker asks for raise after halting extra work

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Remy Millisky • Writer and Editor
Sep 21, 2023 11:00 AM EDT

As a grocery store employee, this part-time worker is known for taking on additional work to make the store run smoother. You'd think that would make them the ideal employee! But at this grocery store, that's just not how things work. 

As the OP explained in their story, they work very hard at their job, doing tasks that honestly sound like managerial work, like adjusting inventory or handling deliveries. Despite that, they still did all these things happily, until a new boss decided to step in and change things up. 

This person's story gained an interesting reaction from commenters. Some people loved the tale. But others said that the OP "sounded full of him/herself." I actually think the manager, K, was correct in a roundabout way here. She saw that the OP was doing tasks inappropriate for their wage, and stepped in. It's hard to know if she intended to maliciously comply, but after reading the u/Welcomesnooze's story, it does make us wonder. The OP is way to much of an overachiever to be stuck in a part-time retail gig. 

Up next, these people revealed their cringiest and most embarrassing moments ever, like one kid who offered to do the worm across the stage during their winter school play. 

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  • 01
    Plant - LANT 00 FISH ARROTS FRESH LEEKS 919 FRESH کالا BROWN HEMOODS at llinat WITO CAPIOIS 15.00 KO 'It's a lot of work... but the benefit is that all the managers know how much I do and leave me alone. All managers, except K.' FRESH Broed 16.00 REIC
    via Somi Jaiswal on Unsplash
  • 02
    Font - "If you know you shouldn't be doing it, then just don't do it." Great! That means I don't have to do half of my job anymore! L Sorry for the formatting, I'm on mobile. Throwaway account because I still work here and my talkative coworkers are on Reddit.
    via u/Welcomesnooze
  • 03
    Font - To preface this story, I work in a grocery store. This isn't just any grocery store, this is one of the busier stores in the entire district, with my specific department being the busiest department in our store. Most people who come to this department quickly move to another, because our work is back- to-back with no downtime in- between.
    via u/Welcomesnooze
  • 04
    Font - I pride myself on being a hard worker, no matter what. I always strive to learn more, do more, be more. I make myself a necessary asset because it gives me a lot of influence. In my department, I am a part timer, but I do just as much work as our departments managers. Without me, the department would be well f because no other part timer is willing to do the work I do. ed,
    via u/Welcomesnooze
  • 05
    Font - What exactly do I do that other part timers don't? I place orders, adjust inventory, handle DSD (direct store delivery) receiving, KLT (known loss tracking), markdowns, 5am shifts to hang tags, 5am shifts to deep clean vital sections, overnights on holiday weeks, endcap planning/changing, etc.
    via u/Welcomesnooze
  • 06
    Font - It's a lot of work, way more work than I should be doing, but the benefit is that all the managers know how much I do and leave me alone. All managers, the f except K.
    via u/Welcomesnooze
  • 07
    Font - K is our front end manager (we also have a main perishable manager, assistant store manager, and store manager). She is a mean spirited person who is awful at her job. She's never paying attention to what the other departments are doing (hence, she doesn't realize how vital I am to our dept), but she insists on acting like she does. I've heard multiple complaints from others in my departments that K tells them they are slacking and need to get more work done; I know full well this isn't t
    via u/Welcomesnooze
  • 08
    Font - One day I'm on break. We get two 15 minute breaks, and one 30 minute lunch. I decided to combine my two 15s into one half hour break, because my grandmother recently broke her rib and I was trying to coordinate with family about who could take care of her and when.
    via u/Welcomesnooze
  • 09
    Font - K walks back into the break room once, then again later. She makes some sly comment about me taking my break so early in my shift, so I explained to her that it wasn't early at all and thought nothing of it.
    via u/Welcomesnooze
  • 10
    Font - I guess K didn't like my tone of voice or something, because an hour later she calls me into the office. Turns out she had checked the cameras in the break room and caught me taking an extended break. Before I even had a chance to speak, she went on a rant about how the department looks like garbage and it must be my fault since she caught me doing this (the department looked awful because my manager didn't order enough product, there is nothing I can do about that).
    via u/Welcomesnooze
  • 11
    Font - I finally was able to speak and tried explaining to her that I only combined my two breaks into one. She asked if I knew I wasn't supposed to do that, which I told her I did. "Well then," she said, "if you know you shouldn't be doing it, then just don't do it in the first place."
    via u/Welcomesnooze
  • 12
    Font - Game, set, match. I wanted so badly to exact my MC immediately, but I knew the bigger, badder managers would be in tomorrow along with her, and I knew they would absolutely rip her a new for what I was about to do. a
    via u/Welcomesnooze
  • 13
    Font - I took the time to write out my new availability on paper. No more overnights, check. No more hanging tags or cleaning, check. I also wrote down my request for a $2 pay raise if they'd like me to continue doing all the other things the other part timers don't have to do, along with a list of what exactly those responsibilities were.
    via u/Welcomesnooze
  • 14
    Font - I went over to the managers office, and saw K sitting alone. Perfect. I said nothing and simply handed her the paper. She looked confused at first, and asked me what this was. I explained to her that those are all the things I shouldn't be doing, since I'm not getting paid for them and they aren't a part of my job description being just a part timer.
    via u/Welcomesnooze
  • 15
    Font - I've never seen a look of pure despair on a person's face until that day. She first got angry at me, told me that I shouldn't be overblowing things. When it was clear that her being angry with me was only making my moment sweeter, she tried reasoning with me (really, this was just her reexplaining why I was wrong in nicer words). I wasn't having any of it. I told her that we could have a meeting with the other managers to discuss it if she'd like. Not to my surprise, she declined that off
    via u/Welcomesnooze
  • 16
    Font - Shortly thereafter, I was questioned by the other managers, separetly, why I was doing this. I explained how she checked the cameras on me during my extended break, and told them all about our conversation where she accused me being responsible for the state of our department.
    via u/Welcomesnooze
  • 17
    Font - The assistant store manager directly told me that she shouldn't have done what she did, that she would talk to her, and that if she ever even bothered me again that I should immediately notify one of the other managers. Since that day, K has been nothing but an angel to me. That $2 raise was pretty sweet too.
    via u/Welcomesnooze
  • 18
    Rectangle - [deleted] $2 raise as a part timer is sick. I'd say you fu did all of that quite well
    via u/deleted
  • 19
    Font - Foreign Environment You're still getting ded, from the sounds of it. You're doing better work than your managers and you're getting paid a part time wage. Put some of that intelligence and motivation into getting a different job. I bet you'd make more money waiting tables.
    via u/ForeignEnvironment
  • 20
    Font - nhaines That $2 raise was pretty sweet too. I actually did that "evil supervillain laugh" out loud when I got to this point.
    via u/nhaines
  • 21
    Font - Ensvey With your skills, motivation, and deftness at navigating work politics, you're going places for sure.
    via u/Ensvey
  • 22
    Font - ronin1066 I contracted with a few clients to do their IT. One client got some extra attention: I'd remote in on weekends just to check things, would go in late evenings if she called, blah blah. Then she started getting pushy with my rates. It literally took all my motivation away to do anything extra. I told her if she brought up my rates again, she could find someone else. She relented, but I never went out of my way for her again.
    via u/ronin1066
  • 23
    Font - koryface Great work, but I gotta day one thing- please don't do work you aren't getting paid for. You don't owe any company that unless you're on salary.
    via u/koryface
  • 24
    Font - FirstToSayFake I couldn't get into this one. OP sounded so full of himself/herself. Got a big I'm the best at what I do, nothing is ever my fault vibe. Maybe it's just me but a little humbleness goes a long way.
    via u/FirstToSayFake

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