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I’ve made the really difficult decision to leave my job at the supermarket.
There have been a few realisations that have led me to this decision and I thought it’d be handy to discuss what I’ve experienced over the past couple of weeks there.
There have been a few realisations that have led me to this decision and I thought it’d be handy to discuss what I’ve experienced over the past couple of weeks there.
I was on a temporary contract of 22.5hrs a week for £8.74p/hr (1p over minimum wage).
This was a contract for ten weeks but the company withheld the right to terminate at any point if business needs changed.
This was a contract for ten weeks but the company withheld the right to terminate at any point if business needs changed.
As a temp, I was not entitled to any staff discounts or indeed any bonuses permanent members of staff have been given to reward them for their efforts in response to the Covid crisis.
I took the job (possibly quite naively) feeling as though I was ‘doing my bit’, helping deliver food and essentials to those that are unable to leave the house.
It quickly became clear I was actually just helping the company make as much profit as possible during this crisis.
It quickly became clear I was actually just helping the company make as much profit as possible during this crisis.
Rather than saying “We can’t accept any more orders” the company has prioritised profit over the safety and welfare of its staff, taking advantage of people’s desperation to find work during these difficult times.
I discovered they had hired over 120 temporary workers in that store alone to meet the increasingly high demand of online orders.
To make sure those orders were fulfilled we had no option but to ignore any social distancing measures often finding ourselves within 2m of four people or more, handling products which had already passed between the hands of six other people before being sent out to customers.
I’m trying to combat feelings of ‘failing’, to ignore notions that I should be ‘doing something’, to put my mental and physical health first, to wade through these uncharted territories as best as I can.
Just trying to be good to myself.
It’s not much. But every little helps
Just trying to be good to myself.
It’s not much. But every little helps
