Five years. Five years and I resigned on my anniversary. Sometimes it seems that everything I do I do for a laugh. Like I’m some elaborate prankster who’s even now scheming up his next punchline.
When I started at Wal-Mart, I was on the setup crew. I saw it all come together from a gigantic nearly empty building into one of the biggest Super Centers in the midwest.
The store opened in August of 2006. I became a “maintenance associate” on overnights. I did that for over four years. I loved the employees on overnights. There’s a profound difference in personalities compared to the fellow “Daywalkers.” It’s like, well night and day really. The night shift attracts interesting people. And the usually scattered and subdued customers give space for employees to communicate with each other.
I met some amazing people during my time on nights. Some of them have changed my life. In an environment like that, the people you work with can become almost like family.
The pay wasn’t bad either. Wal-Mart pays everyone according to their job position and they’re setup in grades. Overnight maintenance is on grade two and I got the night premium.
I just couldn’t handle the schedule. It was impossible for me to get to sleep when I got home at seven in the morning. The minute the sun came up I’d be wide awake when I was completely exhausted a few hours before. I’d stay up until two or three in the afternoon, get up at eight p.m. and then do it all over again. Also, things in my personal life began taking an interesting and disturbing turn. If you’re a person that gets caught up in your thoughts, nights isn’t for you. It’s easy to think in the night. Everything is quiet and still. When the mental subject matter is distressful, the night is a curse.
In September of 2010 I went on leave for a month. When I returned to work in October, I was a Daywalker.
The store is so different in daylight. There are customers everywhere, which at first annoyed me but then I adjusted to them. You have to look at them all as individuals. If you just see the herd of cattle that they are then it’s easy to despise them.
The employees are very different during the day. There isn’t as much time or silence to communicate so the bonds between each other are fragile. Nevertheless, I came across a few people who I really enjoyed being around and talking with. There’s a cart pusher that I always BS’d with on my lunch and breaks. He always made me laugh. I never met anyone that swore so much on clock and in front of customers and yet he still just kept working there.
Most of my fellow maintenance workers are good people as well. I love people. I love hearing about their lives, getting to know them and what drives them. To a writer, each person is novel. A well of information and inspiration. I’ve taken something from everyone I’ve met because everyone has something to offer.
I worked my ass off on days. I was the youngest maintenance associate there and fresh off of leave I had the drive to achieve. Everyday I walked without stopping it seemed trying my best to get that shipwreck of a store clean and usually I did.
Then things started going downhill. That entire place is a broken machine. They are short-handed and yet they say that they’re overstaffed. Three months a year they cut everyone’s hours. My pay went down drastically when I went to days. I lost the night premium and Day Maintenance is on grade one instead of two and frankly I’m not sure why.
Not to mention the perpetual state of idiocy that seems to invade that store. If you made bail in the backroom then you have to try to maneuver it around pallets that are sticking much to far out into the aisles. One day, I had to take something outside to the dumpster. No one had the key for the backdoor. After about a half an hour it was unlocked and then I discovered that there were two padlocks on the dumpster and once again… no one had the key for them.
Both compactor keys were out of commission, one being broken and the other lost, so garbage was spilling everywhere. Not to mention customers that for some reason or another can’t seem to treat public restrooms with decency. I’ve seen some terrible and traumatizing things my time as a janitor. Things that defy logic.
As the storm began to build within me, I saw a glimpse of my future. The goal was to get an apartment and get out of my parents’ house. Then I thought, “Okay, what if I get an apartment in October. Then February comes and they start cutting our hours again. How am I supposed to pay the bills?” I went down from 32 hours a week to 20 and 25. Top that off with making only 9 something and hour and you’ll find that you can’t live off of that. How could I plan a future working at a place that’s unreliable?
So I put in my two weeks notice. After consideration I thought about talking to the store manager and taking it back as long as he made some changes. Then I walked into the backroom and saw that garbage travesty by the compactor and decided that I couldn’t do it anymore. Plus, it was my five-year anniversary. How often am I gonna be able to say that I quit on my anniversary? So I did.
But it turns out Wal-Mart still isn’t done with me. I went in the day after I resigned so that management could “gain” me out of the system. The paperwork didn’t go through. Now, three days later it still hasn’t gone through. I found this out after I waited on hold for ten minutes while all the managers were playing hacky sack with each other or whatever it is they do in the office. This reinforced my decision. What a circus! So now I’m waiting patiently for them to call me back to tell me that I’m free.
Thoughts 