topic Re: What Was the Worst Job That You Ever Had? in Community Chat

What Was the Worst Job That You Ever Had?

Plaid Pants2 — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 18:51:09 GMT

For me it's easy, working retail.

As a cashier/salesperson, Iwould approach every day, and every customer with a positive attitude.

But when you have quotas to get customers to apply for the store credit card, and customers blaming you for things beyond your control, such as following store policy, and management that doesn't support you, it's difficult to maintain that positive attitude.

What was your worst job?

Re: What Was the Worst Job That You Ever Had?

deepwaterdotter — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 18:56:20 GMT

Assembly plant. The money and benefits were good, but I was left with physical challenges that will last a lifetime.

Re: What Was the Worst Job That You Ever Had?

chickenbutt — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 19:01:04 GMT

Oh boy, I can relate about working retail! I worked retail when I was very young. There are always nice people, and sometimes nice employers, but the nasty ones could really blind you.

I remember one time, before opening the store (a large regional chain), there was this one lady standing outside the locked door looking kind of mad. I thought 'uh oh, somebody's in for it!'. Well, when I went and unlocked the doors at opening time she rushed right to checkstand #1, slammed a receipt down on the counter, and screamed 'YOU OWE ME SIX CENTS!!!'.

Gadzooks! I just calmly reached into my pocked, got out some change, and handed her a dime - 'here, keep the change'.

Anyway, probably my worst job was the almost ten years I spent with a very large national company. It wasn't the work. It was the company. They treated their employees and their customers horribly. It was killing me. I made so much money and had such great bennies that it took me a while but one day I just gave notice. I felt better right away. I must have gotten 50 'congratulations' cards from other employees. Worst morale I've ever seen anywhere. When they tried to get me to stay I let loose with everything that was so wrong about how they treated people. They didn't care.

Re: What Was the Worst Job That You Ever Had?

Caaareful Shopper — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 19:04:17 GMT

If anyone remembers Lerner's Department Store (Lerner Shops), right after college I worked at their corporate headquarters in midtown Manhattan. Erase any thought of glitz and glory. In a dungy office building, on a dimly lit floor, about 20 of us decided the number of every article of clothing that went to each store. For example -- ten denim jackets in size 8, four in size 16, six in size 6, and so on go, go to the 34th Street store. This wasn't rocket science -- they told you to look at the numbers from the dates exactly a year ago. That was it, every day all day. Write in the number. No thought, no variety, no possible exceptions. After two weeks I looked at the most miserable faces I have ever seen, and quit.

Re: What Was the Worst Job That You Ever Had?

scotnovel — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 19:04:45 GMT

I worked for one day at a surgeon's office. I quit at the end of the first day for a number of reasons. First they asked me to organize the drug refrigerator and closet (not the problem) but when I pointed out that most of the medications & some of the suppplies were outdated, by a lot, they said not to worry about it. Secondly about 3:30 the surgeon's girlfriend showed up at the office. She was 16 and I was told she usually dropped by to see him after school was out. He was in his 30's married with kids. One day in that place was quite enough for me.

Re: What Was the Worst Job That You Ever Had?

QVCkitty1 — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 19:17:34 GMT

When I was in high school , one summer I got a job in a sewing factory. I couldn't sew, but they said they would teach me. Long story short, me plus a power machine and a ripper which I managed to jam into my hand equaled a move to the packing dept.. They liked my attitude. The upside, I had nowhere to go but up .LOL.

Re: What Was the Worst Job That You Ever Had?

Peaches McPhee — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 19:18:51 GMT

After-hours switchboard operator for a medical client. No one was happy, not the sick people calling in, or the medical providers that had to take the calls.

Re: What Was the Worst Job That You Ever Had?

deja vu — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 19:25:13 GMT

This is a fun one and easy for me to answer...I worked in a candy packaging factory when I was a teenager..every time I watched the "I love Lucy" episodes of Lucy and Ethel trying to keep up with that candy rolling off the conveyor belt, it brought back bitter memories.

It was standing on concrete all day long and for some reason extremely hot in their...only pro to the job was sneaking piece's of candy once in a while.

Re: What Was the Worst Job That You Ever Had?

Suziepeach — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 19:25:23 GMT

I worked in a drugstore, really liked the owners but it wasn't an easy job. I had to make deliveries & I did not care for that one bit.

Re: What Was the Worst Job That You Ever Had?

mima — Wed, 09 Mar 2016 01:10:31 GMT

I worked in a small recycling plant grinding plastic all day. No air conditioning, some of the plastic was still wet so it stuck to you all over as you worked and I stood on a cement floor all day. I would go home filthy and tired.

The bad part? We owned the plant. We paid people for how much volume they did in a day. We hard a time making it financially, so we did a lot of the work ourself. We ended up closing down. We were ahead of our times.

The whole thing was a bad idea. LOL

Re: What Was the Worst Job That You Ever Had?

151949 — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 19:29:54 GMT

Before I turned 16 and was able to get a real job I baby sat the kid next door after school each day. She was austitic and very difficult to care for. She was 2 years old , did not speak at all. if i put her in her crib she would spend hours rocking it and banging it against the wall. If i held her she would hit me over and over and over so basically I kept her in her playpen all the time, where she was most content. She would throw all her food or spit it on me.To make it worse the parents would often not come home after work and would instead go out so I would be over there all evening. If I wasn't home by 10 PM my Mom would come over so I could go home to bed and then when the parents got home - often in the wee hours of the morning my Mom would really give them a piece of her mind. Fortunately, I didn't have to do that job long before I turned 16 and was able to get a job in a bakery.

Re: What Was the Worst Job That You Ever Had?

songbird — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 19:32:48 GMT

My first summer job in a bank before I started college. It was my boss. She constantly barked and me telling I'm doing everything wrong. She ended up screaming at me. Everyone would hear. I was a nervious wreck. I needed the money and I just hung in there. Eventually my boss was fired. But by then September was rolling in....and I had to leave anyway. How many times I wanted to quit..... Since then, I've never had a problem and I love my current job.

Re: What Was the Worst Job That You Ever Had?

SeaMaiden — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 19:32:13 GMT

The worst was working as a maid in SunValley, Idaho in my 20's. I was a ski bum and got to ski For free when working for the Sun Valley resort. Dirty, back breaking work Is maid/ housekeeping and I was paid $3.10 an hour which was the going minimum wage at the time. I got one free meal a day and lived in dorm room the resort provided for their employees at the cost of $100 a month. When payday came, I usually owed THEM money after all my charges were taken out of my check. What I would not do to ski for free! LOL!

Re: What Was the Worst Job That You Ever Had?

Montana — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 21:18:42 GMT

Working a part-time retail job as a cashier and sales person. I also had a full-time job.

My regular job was a desk job and I had a hard time having to stand for long periods of time. I worked evenings and the money in the cash register had to balance out or you couldn't leave. I always had a feeling of dread when I had to do this.

And there was nowhere in the store where you couldn't be paged - even in the loo!

It was quite the experience.

Re: What Was the Worst Job That You Ever Had?

DiAnne — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 19:34:54 GMT

My first job after I had gotten a divorce. I had never worked and had no job skills or employment record although I had finished college. I worked as a file clerk in the radiology department of a large hospital. It was horrible. All the married doctors hit on you and it was mind numbing work. I stayed there for 18 months.

Re: What Was the Worst Job That You Ever Had?

Mmsfoxxie — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 19:35:17 GMT

My first job was at Spiegel, a mail order company in Chicago back in 1965. It was located near the stockyards and the smell was horrible. I'd already be a little sick when I got off the bus from its fumes. I didn't mind too much when I got layed off about 6 months into it.

Re: What Was the Worst Job That You Ever Had?

lulu2 — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 19:36:24 GMT

I worked as a security detective in a large (11 floors) city department store. The part of the job I hated the most was sitting behind a 2-way mirror in the dressing room, watching people try on clothes. I felt it was an invasion of privacy. What's worse was we were teams, 1 male and 1 female, so when I was in the ladies' dressing room, there was a male with me.

Re: What Was the Worst Job That You Ever Had?

violann — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 19:36:51 GMT

Telephone company file clerk.

There are no doubt phones in the hinterlands now, after almost 55 years, that probably don't function correctly TO THIS DAY thanks to my overwhelming ineptitude.

I later did line assembly and retail sales, and was bored to tears doing both, but nothing equaled the combination of time pressure, volume pressure, and interpersonal pressure in that horrid NJ BELL office of yesteryear.

The pay was FABULOUS but never came close to balancing the ruination of the summer I spent doing it.

Re: What Was the Worst Job That You Ever Had?

gmkb — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 19:38:19 GMT

I worked assisting an ophthalmologist. He was a great teacher and taught me a lot. But he was a very divisive person, who always had the office in an uproar. He seemed to take delight in stirring up trouble between the employees.

About six months into the job I received a raise, but was so disgusted with the work conditions that two weeks later I gave my 2 weeks notice. He became angry and said "I just gave you a raise!" Except for work related conversation, he never spoke to me for the next two weeks until I left. There was definitely a personality flaw with that man.

Re: What Was the Worst Job That You Ever Had?

chickenbutt — Tue, 08 Mar 2016 19:41:29 GMT

lulu2 wrote:
I worked as a security detective in a large (11 floors) city department store. The part of the job I hated the most was sitting behind a 2-way mirror in the dressing room, watching people try on clothes. I felt it was an invasion of privacy. What's worse was we were teams, 1 male and 1 female, so when I was in the ladies' dressing room, there was a male with me.

Oh dear! The Security Detective part would be so interesting and I love that. But the part with the dressing rooms had to be - I don't know...I don't think I have a word for that. That they had a guy watching the women with you is pretty creepy, eh? That had to be profoundly uncomfortable for any person with any sense of privacy.