Another vote of sympathy from me for everyone working a supermarket job and hating it.

I worked in a Budgens part-time when I was at university and, of about 14-15 jobs I’ve had over my life so far, it’s the only one I’ve ever walked out of. I lasted about two months, then just went home after a shift and never came back.

Eventually they sent me a threatening letter saying that if I didn’t return my uniform I’d recieve an invoice for £198 or some equally ridiculous amount.

Eventually they sent me a threatening letter saying that if I didn’t return my uniform I’d recieve an invoice for £198 or some equally ridiculous amount.

So you basically stole someone else’s property as you couldn’t cope with some hard work?

Supermarkets are tough and ran very tight, I’ve said before I work for tesco, I’m a manager for stock control and admin, we have a tablet which defines job task and hours allowed for said task, we have to work to that. Some days it’s tough, I used to enjoy my job, seriously it was fun you had time to work with your team, help them progress or just generally be there if they needed anything. Nowadays supermarkets have got rid of night replenishment, proper bakeries have gone, self serve is more prominent and blimey covid, I have no idea how many long term guys haven’t just walked. It’s been and continues to be a drain day to day.

Sometimes you have to switch off and just go into fill mode, last week when it went pear shaped I think I worked solid for 8 hrs filling which is the last thing I should be doing, but the shop takes priority.

If it helps pay the bills and fits your life it can be fun it can get great! But currently I wouldn’t wish it on anyone.

So you basically stole someone else’s property as you couldn’t cope with some hard work?

To be fair working in Budgens probably wasn’t as difficult as being an internet hard man like you.

Genuine LOL at finbar.

I worked in Wm Lowe in Workington (before Tesco’s bought it out) and while re-sitting my A-levels…

Two important life lessons for me:
1. If you bugger about sailing/drinking/chasing girls (one in particular who I’m still married to 😁) there is a price to pay… Working on a deli counter for 12 months on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday evenings and any other crappy shift was my price.

2. Absolutely do not try to make the person working on a deli counter’s life miserable because you’ve had a bad day – I guarantee you will get the skankiest cuts of meat and cheese… Just be nice.

Oh and I would still love to meet the arsehole who managed that store back then – I believe he was busted for thieving eventually but he was the ultimate example of angry small man syndrome. Utter prick.

https://www.tescoplc.com/media/1239/tesco-code-of-business-conduct-2018.pdf

b230ftw
Full Member
Eventually they sent me a threatening letter saying that if I didn’t return my uniform I’d recieve an invoice for £198 or some equally ridiculous amount.

So you basically stole someone else’s property as you couldn’t cope with some hard work?

Mate you really need to get off the internet for a while. The aggression in that one sentence is unreal. Go do some yoga, have a cup of tea. Life will seem so much better 🙂

@b230ftw have you ever thought about becoming a Big Hitter? pm sent.

I grew up in spending time in my family’s seaside shop and worked there from an illegally young age, for years it’s all I knew. Whilst I was doing A levels I also stacked shelves a night in the local Budgets. I was a skinny runt so how I managed unloading tonnes of cages every night I’ve no idea. Hard work but luckily it was mindless and the manager took it easy on me unlike the majority of the female stackers.

Yes, like prison, doing a few years in a Supermarket has made me determined to never go back.

I wasn’t a pushover at that age, but still ended up getting bullied (pretty low level) by my department manager. It seemed at the time that he was just determined that my job should be as difficult as possible, because that somehow elevated his own position.

My advice for surviving in a supermarket is to get trained on as many departments as possible. If somebody calls in sick, the department managers look down the roster to see if there is anyone else trained on their dept, and go and requisition them. I rarely did two days in a week in the same department, and it kept me sane. Seems weird to say, but when I walked through the door of the bakery or meat-room or whatever, people were happy to see me because it meant that they were no longer short-handed – made a huge difference to my experience.

Far-and-away the worst job used to be “breaking down”. It’s basically taking the roll-pallets as they come off the lorries, and re-distributing the contents so that everything on a single pallet is from the same aisle. It takes hours and is backbreaking in a dark, cold corner of the warehouse. Oh hang on, worse than that was making thousands of Jam donuts. That was 23 years ago, and no-word-of-a-lie, I haven’t eaten a jam donut since. Oh, or spending an entire day in the freezer trying to sort out the humungous delivery of frozen turkeys just before christmas.

I’ve not worked in a supermarket but a factory. My job was to clip coffee packs with a promotional stick and clip. I did that 3 hours three nights a week after school. I was by myself in a warehouse so mind numbing beyond belief. No radio, nothing but a huge clock.

I once did a shift with a long term guy and I’ll never forget his words “try hard a school lad or you’ll end up like me.” I never forgot that experience or that conversation and it did motivate me. Sad looking back that this old boy felt this way.

To be fair working in Budgens probably wasn’t as difficult as being an internet hard man like you.

🙄

I once did a shift with a long term guy and I’ll never forget his words “try hard a school lad or you’ll end up like me.” I never forgot that experience or that conversation and it did motivate me. Sad looking back that this old boy felt this way.

I had a similar experience, worked in a factory who made cakes for Tesco. It was hard work and boring but safe and not too bad. I was put on the end of packing line and was chatting with one guy and he asked how many weeks longer I’d be there, I said one more (they employed a lot of students in the summer like me), he said he only had 34 years to go before he retired. It was the way he said it though, as if he never expected he would do anything else.
Weirdly I got stuck in retail the next year and was there over a decade until I managed to extract myself – which wasn’t easy.

Far-and-away the worst job used to be “breaking down”.

Stocktake of frozen turkeys and meats in run up to Christmas, basically working in a room at -30 for hours with no extra kit bar some scabby old coats, lugging boxes around with your fingers occasionally getting crushed by stuff falling out of boxes. Still remember the discomfort of it thirty years plus later.

FYI the worst job I did was as a student in circa summer 1997 when I worked at Manchester airport. There were a couple of business there which broke down, cleaned up, washed, etc., all the ‘galley trolleys’ which come off the flights full of empty/half-eaten meal trays, all the cutlery, etc.

There were various roles I filled in for. One, for example, was taking the trays out of the trolley; waste food would go in one bin, anything one-use in another, then anything that needed washing would be fed onto a conveyor for further processing. So you’d stand there all day doing this as the trolleys all backed up. What a job! This was the ‘dirty end’ of the process and you’d end up covered in food.

Then there were other roles such as feeding the empty trolleys into a big ‘car wash’ type machine. Steam everywhere, trolley surface scalding hot upon exiting the washer lol.

Another role was to just pick cutlery and cups off a conveyor as they exited the washer. So you’d just stand there for hrs doing that.

The place was full of ex-cons but strangely nobody was nasty or a bully. They even had a staff restaurant which although not 5-star nevertheless served hot food for free.

I did a summer working at a cash and carry doing a bunch of restocking and kind of enjoyed it. Hard work and dangerous in some ways, but some good people (Mick the butcher being one) there. I have never eaten so many Pot Noodles. Thank you staff purchase scheme.

Worst job was working in a lab at a hospital. You’ve never had a shit job unless your day has been defrosting the fecal fat freezer. Well, that and autoclaving blood samples.

I feel for you mate. During the first lockdown I got a job at my local Tesco working as a picker for the click and collect service. I lasted a week before walking out half way through a shift. I only did the job to fill in my time and didn’t need it for financial reasons.
The manager was claiming she didn’t have enough staff so couldn’t give the current staff their full entitled breaks. Basically we were working a 9-11 hour shifts with a 10 minute break. I reported them to trading standards.

I have fond memories of my part time work behind the deli/meat and fish counters while I was a student. Luck of the draw with managers I guess. Most are going to be promoted shelf stackers so their actual intelligence will be hit and miss and their management skills vary as a result. I feel for anyone that needs the work.

Sounds rubbish. Hang on in there and consider it temporary where as the dickhead manger is stuck there. Keep looking and keep moving on until you find somewhere that fits.

Stocktake of frozen turkeys and meats in run up to Christmas, basically working in a room at -30 for hours with no extra kit bar some scabby old coats, lugging boxes around with your fingers occasionally getting crushed by stuff falling out of boxes. Still remember the discomfort of it thirty years plus later.

I worked Freezers for about a year, it was semi-hazardous work so you got paid 20p a hour more.

The cold isn’t easy to explain, -5c in the UK (in Wales anyway) is almost unbearably cold, the Freezers, as you say ran at -30c and I’m sure some will be thinking “Yeah, it’s the wind that gets you” the fans in the Freezers blew at a gale.

Our job was supposedly to go in, grab the closest cage, wheel it out onto the shopfloor and fill anything you could find space for in under 20 mins to avoid it starting to thaw. You’d then return it to the other side of the freezer.

Because we were just kids doing evenings and weekends we were never given any kit, you grabbed what you could find laying around. Massive orange rubber gloves I can still remember the smell of mostly, I preferred to just have those, run in, grab a cage and get the hell out. Occasionally though you’d arrive to a wall of half-empty cages because the day shift hadn’t condensed them. So we’d have a choice, risk freezing to death (often worth a go) or put on the Snowsuits from the lost and found box of random suits. We wore trousers and shirts, Night shift wore, what we can only assume was nothing under their snow suits so they STANK, a smell that didn’t leave you until you showered.

So a couple of 16 year old kids with zero training in working in a freezer, often wearing nothing but cotton shirts worked in -30 throwing boxes around, swearing and every 10-15 mins running out to warm up, and then be shouted at for not being on the shop floor filling shelves.

I remember one day arriving in work wet because it had been raining and after working for a couple of mins flicking aside my 90s spec curtain haircut and it snapping.

I’d completely forgotten about all that.

I think I have the win on jobs that stink…

As a student I worked as a cleaner at the British American Tobacco factory in Southampton.

Essentially the job was sweeping and shovelling all the baccy that fell off the machines onto the floor. The stench is horrible, as the dust just hangs in the air.

Came home reeking each day, even after a 25 minute bike ride. Get rid of the black bogies, put clothes in wash and have a shower before I could do anything else.

Didn’t last long…

I think I have the win on jobs that stink

Ah, but you never worked in Southport sweet factory, standing at the conveyor belt picking out defective individual Chewits as they sped past before your numbed gaze…

You’ve never had a shit job unless your day has been defrosting the fecal fat freezer.

Now I know what fecal matter is. I know what fat is. What is fecal fat? And why does it need to be frozen???????? 😳😳😳

I don’t want to ask but I am very inquisitive.

Now I know what fecal matter is. I know what fat is. What is fecal fat? And why does it need to be frozen???????? 😳😳😳

It makes it easier to insert the Spice Malange

@AD – You’re originally from Workington?

Feel for you. I spent a long time in a shit job for a shit boss, he was a goat farmer who married someone rich and set up a business. They were both illiterate arseholes and my life was hell

It is terribly unjust that the most vulnerable end up in these jobs (not talking specifically about you OP) and get trapped with no way out

Stay strong and hopefully it won’t be forever

JUst remembered a freinds son, many years ago , got a job as a graduate trainee in a big supermarket, lots of interviews to fet in etc, and role play, first day at his new store put on the floor stacking shelves, got to about 10.30 he got hungry, so went and got a packet of crisps and a can from the shelf, and started eating them when stacking shelves.
Senior jobsworth walked up and said youre not to eat on shop floor,etc, heated discusion about rules and hunger etc, and sacked at 11.00am told not to come back.

Another job i had promised a junior managers position,first five mins, hello said new boss, tea bags in locked cupboard, count out 20 for the day, and put ern on, when i asked why just 20 tea bags she said people steal them, even a pint of milk had to be accounted for, 30 mins in i realised it wasnt the job for me.

@Daffy – Aye I’m Workington born and bred… Although not the new ‘Jenkinson Workington man’ though 😆

I live a few miles further inland now though but still frequent Pedro’s for my take-aways…

Have had both sides of the shit job paradigm, when they’re good it’s brain out top bantz with the crew and zero responsibility, at the worst you’re completely at the mercy of whichever bunghole petty Napoleon has the badge with supervisor on.

This.

I used to work in pubs/bars. Some of the jobs were amazing. But one big city centre fashionable bar was an absolute nightmare. Is was being managed by a team of stuffed suits in an office somewhere unseen in the building. They would give the title ‘Supervisor’ to one worker and pay them an extra 20p per hour. My god that power went to their heads. One repellent slimy git used to insist we always had to be doing something whether it needed doing or not. Such as constantly pushing a mop around. The tragic thing was that at the end of the week when all the bar staff were heading to a club/party/rave, he’d get all chummy with the ‘where we going?’ etc… Unbelievable.

@AD – Also Workington and remember Pedro’s from my time at Stainburn. Left a good few years ago, but remember Wm Lowe and My cousin worked at Tesco for a while.

JUst remembered a freinds son, many years ago , got a job as a graduate trainee in a big supermarket, lots of interviews to fet in etc, and role play, first day at his new store put on the floor stacking shelves, got to about 10.30 he got hungry, so went and got a packet of crisps and a can from the shelf, and started eating them when stacking shelves.
Senior jobsworth walked up and said youre not to eat on shop floor,etc, heated discusion about rules and hunger etc, and sacked at 11.00am told not to come back.

Just so there’s no confusion for anyone who’s never worked in retail, or in fact pretty much any job. It doesn’t matter if you’re a Grad Trainee, a ‘normal’ min wage slave or the Regional Manager, you can’t just help yourself to stock because you’re hungry. It would be considered theft, because it is, and theft is instant dismissal in retail in fact most if not all jobs, and no you’re not allowed to eat or drink on the shop floor either. Some staff who can’t ‘nip off’ for a bit if they’re desperate are allowed to have a drink at their workstation, they’ll have the receipt sellotaped to it.

This is an absolute fundamental rule, it’s usually made very clear at interview, it will be listed very clearly in the staff handbook and sometimes on your employment contract, it will be mentioned during training and again, first thing day 1. It’s usually given with the preamble of “I’m sure you wouldn’t but…” because to 99% of people, it’s obvious.

I enjoyed my Saturday job filling shelves at Sainsbury’s (except for Xmas) but as it was when electronic tils were being introduced I think things may have changed a lot for the worse since then 🙁

got to about 10.30 he got hungry, so went and got a packet of crisps and a can from the shelf, and started eating them when stacking shelves

Hmm, lol!

I think I have the win on jobs that stink

Ever been in a landfill? Ever done a waste audit?

No? Piss off out of here.

Worst job I ever had was picking turnips… then once picked we’d process them in a shed by chopping any odd looking roots off to make them look pretty…utterly back (and hand) breaking. Think I lasted 3 days doing that.

That was physically awefull though, on the other side I’ve worked in offices and warehouses where the work was easy but the atmosphere was just as toxic, but more in a mental way than a physical one.

@OP – what did you do in Oil and Gas out of interest? Theres lots of jobs going at the renewable energy developer I work at and I know that there are certain skillsets which transfer really well…

DM me if you like.

@dickydutch

I was a Directional Driller lol, but I have an MSc in Building Surveying now. I probably don’t want to actually work as a Surveyor per se because in reality one is a small to medium-sized project manager.

Funny you mention directional drilling! Drop me a DM.

Forgot the smiley sorry.

Sometimes I just love this place! Hope something comes out of that Cake.

Asda 24hr in the rough end of Dundee doing nightfill on petfoods while at Uni. One night a lad comes in with a freshly burst face, walks to the sporting goods and picks out an aluminium bat. The security guard was older than God and had the good sense to not try to stop him as he headed out into the night. But yeah; crap job with folk who were obsessed with the status of being trusted with fresh goods and viewed being put on a different dreel as a demotion. Oh; and the supervisors were grand but the managers utter C-wombles.