Fastest you've ever quit a job.

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
81

Ugh. I’ve done that too. Somehow I managed to last a whole two weeks at it. The entire place was kept refrigerated except in the immediate vicinity of the oven where preformed chicken bits were punched out of a metal die and slapped on to a conveyor to pass by inspectors for defects and then sent on to be breaded and cooked. The job had some variety to it, but none of it was good. A couple of days I spent as an inspector, which basically involved standing at the conveyor where the chicken was punched out and tossing aside anything that looked weird or half-formed or just icky. I’d also dump 50lb tubs of teriyaki sauce into a big marinating drum to be prepped for a different prepared meal. In another I’d pour spice mix into the vat where frozen blocks of random chicken pieces were dumped, mixed, and frozen with liquid nitrogen to eventually make their way through tubes to be punched out of the die down the line.

My supervisor was cool – first day he nicked a couple of die-cut chickens and stuffed them into his pocket, inviting me to do the same so we could munch on them while he showed me around. Unfortunately working on a giant refrigerator – in the middle of winter, and the overnight shift to boot – made me feel like I’d never get that damn chill out of my bones, so I quit.

My current job is working for a parts distribution company. Fortunately, because we’re not at the retail level, 99% of the people we deal with are the dealers and service centers who are the ones that have to deal with the irate customers. Sometimes those customers will call us to complain, but since we’re the top of the food chain in this country (the companies we distribute parts for don’t have a presence of their own in Canada) they’re pretty much complaining to brick walls; they’d have to call long distance to the companies themselves if they really wanted to be heard. Mostly though when end users call we just direct them to a service center in their area, though we do also offer technical support for those intrepid or mechanically inclined enough to do something about it themselves.

I came here from a service center though so I know what it’s like being on the front lines. It saps your faith in humanity, it does.

82

That was my answer too. My brother and I were working at McDonald’s for minimum wage at the time. One day a lady came through the drive-thru and told me I could make more money delivering phone books. (In retrospect, I realized she had a pickup truck and a bunch of kids; i.e. free labor). My brother and I took a day off and busted our asses delivering load after load of phone books. At the end of the day, we were exhausted and had made less money than we would have if we’d worked at the restaurant.

Another job I had lasted about a month. It was a different McDonald’s, same wage. I was unhappy already because I was always scheduled with a manager who didn’t like me. She was always nitpicking (I used one hand to hold a soda cup, the other to put the lid on. She was of the opinion that I should do it with just one hand). So anyway, one night I was working the register and started to develop a migraine. I asked if I could go home, and was told no, but I should go work fries. I walked over, took a look at the fries, and with superhuman effort did not blow puke all over the place. Without any further discussion, I headed for the door. The manager called me the next day and asked me to come back, but I declined.

83

I am another who rejected a job as soon as it was offered to me.

I had a day-long interview with three old men, who met me in this nice conference room in a hotel. They were very nice, not creepy or anything, but the job was a sales job, that involved heavy traveling, hotel stays, and was to be paid on commission - and expenses were all out of pocket, and then the company reimbursed you.

For the pay they were offering, I would have been staying in the cheapest flea-infested motels just to get by, and then I am cynical enough to wonder under what circumstances they would be rejecting my expense reports.

I told them thank you, but no thanks.

84

True, Cutco (or whatever) isn’t a scam per se (although find me anyone who’s ever made any money doing it). What bothered me was the fact that the ad, and the person I called who granted me an interview, were disguising the nature of the business. I can’t recall the wording, but it definitely didn’t say “We will hire absolutely ANYONE to sell expensive knives door-to-door. Come down and receive a sales pitch!”. If I had known who they were, I wouldn’t have spent the time (half-hour drive, plus the time spent being semi-polite before cutting out, then driving back) doing it. They knew various people (like me) knew the name “Cutco”, which is why they didn’t use it in the ad. Et cetera. Its the dishonesty that irritated me.

85

For some reason I am hearing this in a Peter Lorre voice.

86

Once when I was just out of high school I applied for and got a job as a security guard in a Manhattan office building.

Aside from the fact that I was spectacularly unsuited for such work (sort of like having a Yorkshire terrier patrolling the grounds of a nuclear power plant), the job paid barely above minimum wage, required a long commute and the employment agency that placed me there wanted a fee. I think I might have been able to not actually lose money on the deal, but only barely. In any case I came to my senses and quit before showing up for day 1.

Interviewing and orientation were fun though. It was the first (and only) time I’ve been polygraphed, and I was not a cool camper. I think blew ink all over the walls on questions like “Are you a mammal?” and “Do you have a pulse?” (come to think of it, these were about the only job requirements). During orientation, I was warned not to try to pick up babes during work hours. I wondered what sort of women in the building would be susceptible to my allure as a barely post-adolescent security guard. (“Oooo, I love a man in uniform!”).

87

Mine was about 4 weeks.

I had gotten a job with DA Consulting and they laid me off 2 weeks later - it was traumatizing since we had just moved to Dallas into a more expensive apartment. I was desperately job hunting and interviewed with an international company doing an SAP implementation in Joilet. They wanted someone that spoke French to create French training materials.

I had majored in French in college, but I just didn’t have the vocabulary for something like that - and it had been 10 years since school. At the end of the interview, I told them I wasn’t a good fit for the job and tried to turn down their offer. I guess they thought I was hardballing, because they added money + benefits until I finally said yes.

The job was a disaster. They gave me a contract to sign that said if they wanted to let me go, they had to provide 4 week notice (it was a very long contract, I only remember that line specifically). I thought that sounded great, so I signed it. They brought in a French expert to brush up my French, I went to one of their implementation sites in Nashville (which was horrendous since no one on that team wanted me there and I had literally nothing to do).

I came back to the Dallas office and there was nothing to do. It was so painful. The big boss presented ANOTHER contract, saying they had left something important out of the first contract. Now the contract stated that if either party wanted to end the relationship, both parties had to give 4 weeks notice. Whoa. I ducked and avoided signing that contract for another week.

On a Monday morning, I woke up and realized I hated that job, and just couldn’t do it. I went in and quit. Met my then-boyfriend for Chinese food for lunch, went home feeling completely free yet terrified of being unemployed again.

There was a message on the machine from a Very Large Software company I had interviewed with 2 months before. I didn’t get that job, but they had liked me enough to interview me for another job. Would I like to fly to Rainy City on the West Coast for an interview? I got that job!

Still have no idea why the SAP firm hired me.

88

I had that happen to me once, and the lady who interviewed me actually started crying. :eek:

All though the interview she kept going on and on about how impressive were my qualifications (and I was expertly qualified for the job), but the hours were something like 7-3 Sunday, off Monday, 10-2 Tuesday, 5-930 Wednesday, etc. It wasn’t workable for me, so I had to turn her down. I could see tears in her eyes and hear her voice breaking as she thanked me for interviewing. :frowning:

89

This. When looking for a summer job, I was thrilled that I was accepted for an “interview” with these jackasses. The ad and the subsequent call for interview never said it was a sales job, never said it was a group sales pitch and certainly didn’t divulge that the $14/hr was actually per appointment, which you had to find and set on your own with your friends and family, and they only paid that $14 to you if you didn’t sell anything… and they didn’t pay for any mileage, prep, doing work in their office or if the appointment took more than an hour.

Screw those bastards. Completely wasted my time and I was too young and unassertive to just walk out.

90

Fastest I ever quit was about an hour. It was at a little place called Po’Boys restaurant (family style type of place). I got a job as a waiter and when I got the tour I was sickened beyond belief. Granted, this was back in… oh 94 I think, but the cooks were smoking while cooking, there was gunk everywhere in the kitchen and I saw a rat.

A few years later, this place was shut down by the health board, but I wasn’t going to be a part of it. I couldn’t possibly serve people food I KNEW was unsanitary.

91

Me, female, 17 years old, mailed a resume to a retail store that sold novelty/joke items. They called and pretty much offered me the job, sight unseen, on the basis of my resume alone. So I went over. The guy said, “You know what we sell in our back room, right?”

I peeked into the back room: wall-to-wall vibrators, butt plugs, blow-up dolls, you name it.

I backed out slowly, said “Whoa. No thanks.” and ran my ass out the door.

92

My college job was for the events group at the college. We set up for small concerts and events around campus. Going into summer I would effectively be unemployed, my boss at that job tried to help me out by setting me up with a local DJ and events guy as his assistant. First day, painted his fence. 3 hours? I think 15 bucks with a faily reasonable excuse that he was ‘testing my interest’. At the time, I really considered becoming an event DJ so I put up with it. The next day he had me help set up for an event. Turned out it was for a friend’s party. I repeatedly told him that I was not available the next day to help him tear down because I had a final credit review with my professor. The next morning he called me and said he needed me to be at his his place so we could tear down.

I didn’t bother to call him back.

A few months later, while working what became my main job through the end of college (doing even set up for an inflatables company) I ran into him. It was a little awkward.

So 8 hours over two days?

93

Now that’s funny.

I once worked at a gas station for one whole week where we pumped the gas, checked the oil, tire pressure, washed the windows & mirrors, etc. I didn’t actually quit, or get fired; something completely different. During the day, boss and his bro thumbed dipsticks and sold nearly everyone right off the interstate a quart of outrageously overpriced oil. Same with the anti-freeze, but the real moneymaker was the one scam he let myself and the other night guy in on. Although we received an occasioonal tip, it was minimum wage, but, pumps back then didn’t automatically zero when reset, there was a crank you turned to zero it or…:rolleyes:…well, guys coming in for two bucks worth ($0.50/gal. in those days) we didn’t mess with, but three and up and we’d start them off with the pump at $1.00 and pocket a buck a car. Anyone wanting a fill up got cranked to $2.00, and my partner and I were both ripping people off at over a $100 a night, each. If any one came back to fuss, we just gave them their money or another couple of gallons and told them it was mechanical difficulties with the pump. We knew we were dead wrong and dishonest, but we didn’t realize we were less than two miles from a state police post, where dozens of troopers would come by, not in uniform, and in their own vehicles. Some off-duty oinker comes back claiming his fuel needle didn’t move on a four dollar purchase, so I flipped him a five and told him to go chase himself. While sitting in the back of his car wearing those darned uncomfortable bracelets I spilled the beans in exchange for my freedom. The station was visited repeatedly the next day by some undercover troopers building a case, the weights and measures inspectors, the EPA guys, and the local media. When I cruised by around ten p.m. (my normal starting time) the place was dark and padlocked. Go figure.:confused:

94

I lasted 2 weeks of blind sweat-soaked panic as a freshman English teaching assistant.

See, I had gone to school too long ago to know what you were supposed to do with a class of 25 kids in a computer lab, and of course, that wasn’t explained in our orientation week.

In the space of four class meetings, I got my section so far behind it took a department vice-chair to catch them up.

95

When you hear that, you should always mentally add:
“…and I’m gonna personally see to that.”

96

My nephew, actually - he made a fairly substantial amount this summer, and not from selling to his relatives, either (he pitched us, but it was too expensive). And he is not the salesman type at all, I would have thought. But he has made a success of it. YMMV, apparently.

Mine was not a job, but a position. I was a manager for some years, we got acquired (again) and they “flattened out their structure”. They offered me a “manager” position. Which was fine, until the first meeting, where it was explained that I was going to be “Compliance Manager”. And from their description, it became apparent that my duties were to be the one who, if ever anything went wrong, to get blamed. I had all the responsibility, and none of the authority. This project was going to fail, Big Time, and they needed a Designated Ass-Fuckee. Guess who they felt was perfect for the job?

Half an hour into the meeting, I told them that there was no way in hell I was equipped for this position, and got up and went back to my nice safe cubicle.

One of my colleagues accepted the position instead. The project bombed, and he got fired.

Regards,
Shodan

97

See, I woulda thought the kind of people who would work on something like Jerry Springer would be the kind of pathologically cynical types who could work for years without turning a hair. Please tell us more about your experience there!

I once worked third shift at a Del Monte packing plant. I was young and broke and fairly desperate for a second job. No complaints about the people or the facility – I worked on an assembly line in a gap between two machines with five other women. Little plastic trays of frozen cut potatoes came out of the first machine, and our job was to make sure the top edges of the trays were dry before they passed into the second machine, where the plastic wrap was attached. That was it. We had rolls of paper towels and just kept tearing off more paper towels as we needed them. The women were nice enough but the place was so loud that you couldn’t really talk – some of the women would shout or use a kind of sign language to talk to one another. Also the place had that kind of purple-white lighting that made us all look like the undead.

We got a break and I had to go lie down in the supervisor’s office. I still wasn’t feeling well when the break was over and she was kind enough to drive me home (I had taken the last bus of the night to get there). I never said I was quitting, but I think we both knew on that car ride home that I wasn’t coming back. I promptly received a paycheck for something like nine dollars and change for my 2 1/2 hours’ work. To this day I feel guilty for wasting everyone’s time.

98

This brings back memories.

I was going into my third year of college, doing summer, fall and winter semesters, working on campus, and trying for a dual major, and completely burning out and getting booted out due to grades. Go me! I went back home and got a job at the place my dad worked as a diesel mechanic assistant. I liked that job, for the most part. From time to time they would ask me to do something just stupid, like crawl inside a test tank (imagine a tank 20 foot in diameter and 15 foot high), with a high pressure hot steamer wand and clean out all the crude oil stuck to the walls, and I’d always turn them down. Times got tough for them, and they let me go, on my birthday, some 6 months from when I got hired. No worries, I’d had a good run.

The guy there felt bad for me, and got me a job at the company that installed and serviced the 2 way radios in the trucks, since I was an electrical engineering major. I interviewed, and the guy looks over my resume, and despite noting I had 3 years of college, asked to verify that I had a high school diploma, and if I knew how to mop. Oh, I thought he was kidding…

Every morning I had to sweep the entire 5000 square foot shop twice (once in each direction), then mop it. The job said we could not sit, anytime. If you were not installing a cell phone or 2 way, you had to go get the box of abused pagers and refurb them. Installing a radio or cell had to be done as fast as possible. I was going too slow one day and the boss came and took over, ‘bolting’ the cell phone to the carpet instead of getting the right screws… You were not allowed to be a minute late. I was 2 times, and was made to come in at 6 instead of 7am for a week or else I would be fired. At one point, a big spool of nasty yellow rope had broken, and I got tasked with straightening it out and spooling it, and I was not doing it fast enough… The last straw was when I got sent off site to install 2 ways in a couple of dump trucks. I always did a totally pro job, but I guess my hour per truck was too long, and I got really yelled at about it, and was told I would never be sent off site again.

That next Monday, I came in and told the boss that I had considered things and determined that this job was not a good fit for me, and I was going to look for employment elsewhere. He said he thought that I should do that, and how much notice was I giving. I said, ‘You just got it’, and he made a stink about how it was not going to be a good reference if I did that. Yeah, I’ll put down I mopped floors at a cell phone installer for 3 weeks as reference…

I gotta say though, having a crap job in your life really makes you hold out for something decent. I won’t do a job that requires you to be in at exactly whatever and treats you like crap.

99

OTOH, requiring all young people to take and keep one job where they are treated like crap will build ambition in young people who are sufficiently ambitious, and reinforce the values of the real world for the rest.

100

Personally, I think there’s a lot to be said for requiring everyone to work for three to six months in a crappy retail job- while they’re in High School or something.

It might encourage people to buck their ideas up, and understand why sales staff can’t just click their fingers and summon replacement widgets out of the aether (or any of the countless other “Don’t you know who I am? I demand you do [something completely impossible/against policy and which will result in you losing your job if you do it]!” type things that anyone who’s worked in retail has to deal with.